Division V Boys’ Final : Palos Verdes Chadwick vs. Brethren Christian, 4 p.m.

SITE--Cal State Dominguez Hills

RECORDS--Chadwick (23-8), Brethren Christian (25-7)

CHADWICK--The third-seeded Dolphins defeated Calipatria Thursday night, 68-48, in the semifinals behind Joe Giaconi’s 24 points. Chadwick led by four after a quarter but outscored Calipatria, 20-1, in the second quarter. Giaconi averaged only 10 points during the regular season, but he has been hitting his three-point shot consistently in the postseason. The 6-3 forward had four three-pointers against Brethren in the Southern Section V-AA final and made five against Calipatria. Two of Chadwick’s losses have been to Brethren, 43-36 and 44-43. In those games, Neil Takur, Chadwick’s leading scorer, has been held to 12 and seven points by Brethren’s Scott Thomas. Chadwick reached the Southern California final in 1983, losing to Crossroads.

BRETHREN--The Warriors have won 20 consecutive games and are playing in their first Southern California championship game. “These guys have gone above and beyond my expectations,” Brethren Coach Richard Thomas said. “I’ve been proud of these guys.” Brethren has come this far by playing good team defense, rebounding well, keeping the tempo slow and hitting the key shot in the closing minutes of tight games. Often, Scott Thomas has been in the middle of Brethren’s postseason victories. When the game is tight down the stretch, Brethren has been able to find Thomas and he has delivered every time--hitting two game-winning shots and making a three-point play to give Brethren a lead in overtime of Thursday’s 48-43 victory over Fontana Ambassador Christian.

KEY TO THE GAME--The first two meetings between Chadwick and Brethren were slow-down affairs, highlighted by good defense and poor shooting. “I just hope this will be a more relaxed and better-played game,” Chadwick Coach Tom Maier said. “Maybe we’ll loosen up and enjoy it a little more.” But Thomas said he doesn’t foresee a wide-open game. “I don’t know if we can run at this point because both teams do such a good job of getting back on defense and rebounding well,” he said. “They may come out and press us a little more, to speed up the tempo.” If Brethren plays man defense, its key matchup will be center Andy Brown against Giaconi. “Andy’s going to have to play tougher defense,” Thomas said. “He’s just got to go out there and make (Giaconi) put the ball on the floor.”

CONSENSUS--Most teams would dread the thought of having to beat an opponent three times, but Brethren appears excited about it. “We want Chadwick,” Brethren point guard Richard Mendoza said. “We believe we’re the better team. We want to prove that we are. It’s not a fluke when you beat a team three times.” If Brethren can keep the tempo in their favor and improve on its perimeter shooting, it should be able to win. If the Warriors continue to shoot poorly and they can’t contain Giaconi, they could be in trouble. However if the game goes down to the wire again, don’t be surprised if Thomas is the difference. He is simply more athletic than anyone Chadwick can throw at him and is hard to contain when he gets near the basket. “I just hope that we’re far enough ahead where Thomas can’t beat us again,” Maier said.

Starting Lineups

PALOS VERDES CHADWICK

P Name Ht. Avg. G Phillip Belin 6-2 9.0 G Neil Takur 6-1 14.0 F Todd Ammons 6-3 11.1 F Dylan Brown 5-11 11.0 F Joe Giaconi 6-3 11.1

Coach: Tom Maier

BRETHREN CHRISTIAN

P Name Ht. Avg. F Scott Thomas 6-3 13.5 F Reggie Davis 6-4 11.8 C Andy Brown 6-5 7.5 G Richard Mendoza 5-10 10.0 G Seth Carey 5-11 8.2

Coach: Richard Thomas