TONIGHT’S SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PREP BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS : BOYS : Division I

Huntington Beach vs. L.A. Crenshaw

SITE--Cal State Dominguez Hills, 7:30 p.m.

RECORDS--Huntington Beach (29-4), Crenshaw (25-2).

HUNTINGTON BEACH--The sixth-seeded Oilers were surprisingly focused and relaxed in their 81-55 rout of Vista Tuesday. “I was ecstatic with the way we played,” Huntington Beach Coach Roy Miller said. “I wondered how we would respond after losing to Mater Dei. There was no letdown in practice Monday or on the court Tuesday night. They couldn’t match up with Tony (Gonzalez) or Matt (Ambrose), and our perimeter shooting was as good as it’s been all season. We shot the lights out.” Gonzalez had an outstanding game, with 18 points and 16 rebounds, and Ambrose had 20 points and 10 rebounds against Vista.

CRENSHAW--Second-seeded Crenshaw’s two losses came to East High of Washington, D.C., 88-82, and Los Angeles Washington, 94-85. Coach Willie West’s team is led by Tremaine Fowlkes, a 6-6 junior forward who averages 21.3 points and 16.8 rebounds, and Kristaan Johnson, a 6-5 junior center who averages 21.3 points and 14.4 rebounds. Crenshaw defeated Dorsey, 91-72, in the City 4-A final.

KEY TO THE GAME--Crenshaw will be on par with Mater Dei and quite a step up from Vista. “Obviously, they have some great athletes and excellent depth,” Miller said. “I see where they’ve scored 100 or more points nine times, including 137 and 122. They must have had a letdown the night they only scored 99.” Miller expects Crenshaw to press his guards, Tommy Walden and Bryan Chang. “They’ll try and intimidate us.” In addition ball-handling responsibilities, Walden and Chang must shoot well from the perimeter so that Gonzalez and Ambrose have room to operate inside.

CONSENSUS--If the Huntington Beach can keep its turnovers down and keep Gonzalez and Ambrose out of foul trouble, it might get a chance to play Mater Dei a fourth time.