Muir Takes Its Time in Beating St. John Bosco in Division II-A

Pasadena Muir High played a waiting game Tuesday night in its Southern Section boys’ basketball Divison II-A semifinal game against Bellflower St. John Bosco.

Muir’s patience paid off with an 89-77 victory at Pasadena High.

Ahead, 61-60, late in the third quarter, the Mustangs went on a 12-point run to put the game away.

Senior forward Michael O’Quinn scored 22 of his game-high 33 points in the final nine minutes to spark Muir’s charge and lead the No. 10-ranked Mustangs (26-5) into Saturday’s final against Artesia at UC Irvine.

“I think we wore them out,” said Rocky Moore, Muir’s coach. “That was our game plan. We have great conditioned players.”

Led by forward James Cotton and guard Jelani Gardner, who scored 20 points, St. John Bosco (25-3) rallied from a 42-35 halftime deficit to take a one-point lead in the third quarter. Consecutive three-pointers by Gardner made it 54-53, and an eight-foot bank shot by Marco Lopez put the Braves ahead with two minutes to play in the third period.

But O’Quinn led the Mustangs, scoring on a dunk, a three-pointer and three free throws in the rest of the quarter to put Muir up, 64-60.

Muir scored two quick baskets to open the fourth quarter and never led by fewer than eight points the rest of the way. Center Duane Curtis was a rebounding force for the Mustangs, with 16. He also scored 10 points.

Eighth-ranked St. John Bosco also had trouble containing point guard Jacque Vaughn, who scored 17 points and added 17 assists.

Muir’s defense also played a big role in the victory, forcing St. John Bosco into 13 first-half turnovers. The Braves committed 20 turnovers for the game.

After a sluggish start from the field, hitting 10 of 24 shots in the first quarter, Muir warmed up to finish the game at 49.3%. St. John Bosco hit 59% of its shots, but was outrebounded.

“We tried to put pressure on their defense,” Moore said. “They were unable to get back.”

The game was played before a standing-room only crowd of 1,000. Several hundred fans, many of whom had advance tickets, were turned away 30 minutes before the game because no seats were left.

Muir, which won the Pacific League title, will face Lakewood Artesia in the championship at 6 p.m. Friday at UC Irvine Bren Center. Artesia, the defending State Division II champion, advanced with an 85-79 victory over La Palma Kennedy.