PREP BASKETBALL REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES : Mater Dei, Crenshaw Take Center Stage

High school basketball in Southern California tries to take a step up in national prominence tonight when Crenshaw and Mater Dei meet in the Division I Regional final at Anaheim Arena.

Area teams and players have lacked the respect given their counterparts in the Midwest and on the East Coast over the years, but they have been gaining ground.

Mater Dei enters tonight’s game with a 33-0 record and No. 2 national ranking by USA Today. Crenshaw, the defending State champion, is 27-2 and ranked No. 5 in the nation.

Adding to the pressure is an expected sellout of 17,100 and a live television audience. Anyone getting turned away at the door can watch Channel 9, which begins its broadcast at 7:30.

A sellout would set a record for the largest crowd to watch a high school basketball game in California. The live telecast is also a firstfor the Southern Regional tournament.

“Other states go crazy for high school basketball, and our staff felt Southern California also has a lot of interest,” said Susan Stratton, who will direct tonight’s telecast for Channel 9. “We think there is a big audience for this. There certainly is enough talent out there.”

Mater Dei breezed through the regular season unchallenged, its only close game a 65-59 victory over Edison in the Southern Section Division I final last Saturday. Coach Gary McKnight chewed his team out after the game for a lackluster performance.

Crenshaw started the season impressively, winning a tough national tournament in Florida in December. It spent one week in the No. 1 spot in USA Today before dropping two games during a holiday tournament in South Carolina the following week.

The Cougars come into tonight’s game having won 17 in a row.