BASKETBALL PLAYOFF SEMIFINALS : Dorsey Upsets Washington on 3-Point Shot

For the Dorsey basketball team, the third time was a charm.

After splitting its first two meetings with Washington this season, the Dons upset the Generals, 60-57, on a three-point jump shot with two seconds to go in the City 4-A semifinal game at Gardena High School on Tuesday.

Dorsey’s shortest player, 5-foot-8 senior guard Terrell McKnight, had the biggest impact on the game for the Dons. He finished with 14 points, including six in the first quarter, to give Dorsey a 14-13 lead.

Dayron Harris, the game’s high scorer with 21, put six points on the board in the first five minutes of the second quarter, as Washington used a 12-4 run to take a 29-26 lead at halftime.

Harris scored eight points in the third quarter, but Dorsey used a full-court press--which caused 17 Washington turnovers in the second half--and five points from Willie O’Neal to cut the Generals’ lead, 43-42.

“We had to press to try and keep the tempo up, and things started to go our way,” said Dorsey Coach Kevin Gibson.

Davey Fortson, Dorsey’s leading scorer with 20, converted on a four-point play to give the Dons a 51-48 lead, but Washington’s Patrick Blake hit a three-point shot to tie the game at 57 with 25 seconds remaining.

On Dorsey’s next possession, point guard Kenya Wilkins, who finished with 14 points and seven assists, passed to McKnight, who hit a three-point shot from the left corner with two seconds left.

Records: Dorsey 15--11; Washington 21-4.

Crenshaw 102, Westchester 77--Forward Kristaan Johnson exploded for 36 points, including 22 in the first half, to lead top-seeded Crenshaw to a City Section semifinal win at Washington High School.

Johnson, a 6-foot-5 junior, displayed a soft touch and muscle near the basket. He received support from 6-6 junior forward Tremaine Fowlkes and 6-5 junior forward Reggie McFerren, who each scored 17 points. Fowlkes also pulled down nine rebounds.

The Comets countered with balanced scoring from brothers Ben and Jason Sanders, who along with Lefty Wells scored 15 points each. Westchester, the Coastal Conference winner and two-time defending 4-A champions, made an early attempt to get back into the game but could only pull to within five points, 24-19, at the seven-minute mark of the second period.

The Cougars hit 25 of 31 free throws, forced 15 turnovers, including 10 steals, and blocked 10 shots.

Records: Crenshaw 23-2, Westchester 22-7

Verbum Dei 71, Crossroads 65--Dion Jackson scored 21 points and Andre Miller added 15 as Verbum Dei upset defending Southern Section Division IV-A champion Crossroads in a semifinal game at Compton College.

Verbum Dei led by as many as 16 in the third quarter, but fought off a late rally by Crossroads. After Crossroads cut the deficit to five, Alton Stafford made a steal and a dunk to give the Eagles a 60-53 lead.

Verbum Dei took advantage of Crossroads, which appeared tentative from the start, and held an eight-point lead after the first quarter. Jackson made a three-point shot and a dunk during the final 30 seconds of the first half to put Verbum Dei up by 11 at halftime.

“We were scared,” Crossroads Coach Daryl Roper said. “We came out intimidated by their speed and ability. We missed our free throws and we missed our shots.”

Records: Verbum Dei 22-4; Crossroads 23-4.

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL

Jefferson 67, Manual Arts 56--Jefferson High’s Shonte Tippie missed her attempt to douse Coach Curtis Hughes with a bucket of water after the Democrats’ victory over Manual Arts Tuesday night, but she hit just about everything else.

The 5-foot-8 senior forward finished with 22 points as the Democrats held off a late rally to end the Toilers’ 12-game winning streak in a City 3-A semifinal game at Hamilton High.

Chaka Smith scored 18 points and Kyetra Brown and Helen Ruano each had 13 points for top-seeded Jefferson, which advanced to its first City title game in school history. Ruano also had four blocks.

Tippie had 13 points in the first half and scored four of Jefferson’s first six points in the second to help the Democrats open a 43-31 lead.

She left the game after picking up her fourth foul midway through the third quarter. In her absence, the Toilers closed to 56-52 with 2:25 to play.

Tippie returned to spark a 9-2 run, scoring on a layup and converting a three-point play to give Jefferson a 65-56 lead.

“I was never afraid of losing. We weren’t going to let them come back on us,” Tippie said.

Ronneka Taylor had 22 points and nine rebounds and Jolie Kaba added 10 for Manual Arts.

Records: Jefferson 25-3; Manual Arts 15-3.

Crenshaw 58, Kennedy 54--Kimberly House scored 16 and Cathleen Grice had 10 and dished out seven assists as Crenshaw’s Lady Cougars withstood a 33-point performance from Kennedy’s Shaneya Harris to win a 4-A City semifinal game at Monroe High School.

Crenshaw, trailing 38-33 at halftime, used a full-court press to limit Kennedy to four points in the third quarter while the Cougars scored 16 to take a 49-42 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Kennedy closed the score to 53-52 as Harris scored on a three-point play with 2:19 remaining, but Crenshaw answered with a three-point play from Kristi Latin with 2:06 left to make the score 56-52.

With 1:15 left, Harris was called for her sixth foul, leaving with seven rebounds, five assists and four steals--and ending Kennedy’s chances.

Records: Crenshaw 23-2; Kennedy 18-6.

North Hollywood 62, Dorsey 57--Forward Darvena Merritt sank a jump shot with 21 seconds left and added a free throw to give North Hollywood a City 4-A semifinal victory at Birmingham High. The Huskie defense held Dorsey scoreless during the final 1:40 of the game.

Merritt, a junior forward, scored a game-high 22 points. Anna Celaya, a sophomore guard, added 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Merritt made a layup to give the second-seeded Huskies a 53-45 lead with 5:30 remaining. Dorsey came back with a 12-5 run over the next four minutes. Center Issia Lincoln made a jump shot to pull the Dons within one, 58-57, with 1:40 left.

Lincoln had 21 points and 12 rebounds to lead Dorsey. Tamu Agiza added 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Records: Dorsey 18-8; North Hollywood 21-6.