Montclair Prep Edges Brentwood

It’s amazing what hustle after a blown layup can do for a team.

The Montclair Prep High boys’ basketball team was downcast after standout forward Anwan Jones was called for his fifth personal foul with just over one minute to play in Tuesday night’s Southern Section Division V-AA playoff game against Brentwood.

Seconds later, though, guard Akil Anderson stole the ball and appeared headed for an easy basket. But the unexpected miss set into motion a frantic chain of events that ended when Reed Berglund connected on a go-ahead three-pointer to lead the Mounties’ to a 73-71 victory at Harvard-Westlake High.

Anderson grabbed his own miss, but lost the ball to Brentwood’s Sebastian Saylor. Saylor threw a long pass that was intercepted by Montclair Prep’s Jeff Benson, who streaked down the court and found Berglund wide open. The basket gave the Mounties a 70-69 lead with one minute to play.

“They were down when Jones fouled out,” Montclair Prep Coach Howard Abrams said. “That play gave them their confidence back.”

After three Montclair Prep free throws and a Brentwood basket, the Eagles (23-4) had a chance to tie in the waning seconds. But Teddy Miller, who scored 32 points, was triple-teamed and missed a wild 10-foot shot.

Montclair Prep advances to its first section final since 1982. The Mounties will play Pasadena Poly on Saturday.

Montclair Prep (24-4) took control of the game in the second quarter, thanks to 11-of-11 shooting. The Mounties made 13 consecutive shots at one point.

Jones had 23 points and nine rebounds before fouling out. He drove the baseline and appeared to tie the score, 69-69, but before scoring he was called for a charge, his fifth foul.