CIF STATE BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS : Mater Dei Takes Title in Overtime : Division I boys: Monarchs dig deep for 71-67 victory over Oakland Fremont.

In a test of character and endurance, Mater Dei survived both. And a lot more.

The Monarchs scratched out a 71-67 overtime victory over Oakland Fremont to win the State Division I boys’ championship Saturday at the Oakland Coliseum Arena. To get it, the Monarchs had to go deep into their bench and even deeper into their heart.

They watched Fremont (27-5) erase a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit. They watched Frank Knight tie the score with a three-point bank shot at the buzzer. They watched Fremont hold the ball for more than two minutes in overtime.

But when it was over, it was the Tigers who watched the Monarchs celebrate.

Schea Cotton, who scored 29 points, put them on that track, driving for a layup to give the Monarchs a 67-65 lead with 35 seconds left in overtime. Both teams had worked the clock up to that point, but time tilted in Mater Dei’s favor.

Knight, who had made eight consecutive shots, then missed a jumper. In the scramble for the rebound, Fremont knocked the ball out of bounds.

All that was left for the Monarchs was making their free throws. Kevin Augustine and Shaun Jackson each sank two.

“We had to come out and play in the overtime,” Jackson said. “We had to prove ourselves.”

Over and over.

The Monarchs seemed to be well on their way to their third state title since 1987, leading, 54-44, with six minutes left. Then Knight got hot.

He had missed his first six shots before scoring late in the third quarter. He then made seven consecutive shots in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 of his 23 points. His last was nearly a back-breaker.

Mater Dei led by three with 4.8 seconds left when Knight dribbled through two defenders and banked a shot from the top of the key at the buzzer.

“When that went in, the wind went out of my stomach,” Coach Gary McKnight said. “And that’s a big stomach.”

Said Cotton: “I saw the ball hit the backboard and thought the game was over. I couldn’t believe it went in. But I knew we’d come back. We couldn’t lose.”

They might have won by a whole lot more had Cotton and Jackson avoided foul trouble.

Cotton started the game fast, scoring the Monarchs’ first 11 points. His surge gave the Monarchs (36-1) a 16-5 lead. He had 17 by halftime and the Monarchs had a 31-20 lead.

The Tigers made only four of 30 shots in the first half. They shot 31% for the game and made only three of 16 three-pointers.

Zerrick Payton was 0 for 12 and missed eight three-pointers. Robert Grissom was three of 17.

But Cotton picked up three fouls and Jackson two in the first half.

Jackson picked up his fourth foul two minutes into the third quarter. Cotton followed him to the bench a minute later.

Suddenly, the Monarchs’ lineup was shorter, slower and much less talented. They led, 35-22, when Jackson left and 37-29 when Cotton left.

Somehow they held on.

“We didn’t panic,” said 6-foot-5 Mark Pozsgai, who was the Monarchs’ tallest player on the court. “We haven’t been asked to do that much. But we showed what we can do.”

What they did was win by attrition. The Tigers whittled the lead as the Monarchs whittled time off the clock.

McKnight even used forward Matt Scott at one point, just to fill some space.

“I haven’t used him in two weeks, so I figured he was rested,” McKnight said.

The Tigers pounded the ball inside and gained a little, but not enough. Mater Dei led, 49-42, at the end of the third quarter.

“They maintained when I was out of the game,” Cotton said.

Cotton and Jackson returned and so did the offense. Cotton finished with 29 points, making 11 of 13 shots. Jackson scored 11, but had 10 rebounds. He had nine defensive rebounds, which kept the bigger and more physical Tigers from getting second shots.

They extended the lead, only to watch it shrink again.

“What can I say?” Fremont Coach Clinton Williams said. “We took Mater Dei to overtime and still lose? I’m proud.”

As was McKnight, who saw his team get the state title that had eluded them the past three seasons. The Monarchs lost to Alameda St. Joseph in 1992 State final and Los Angeles Crenshaw in the Southern California Regional final the past two seasons.

He got the title, even if the Monarchs had to work overtime.

Monarchs’ Season

The 1994-95 game-by-game record of the Mater Dei boys’ basketball team (36-1), the CIF State Division I champion:

60 Pasadena Muir 45 56 Los Alamitos 39

Ocean View Tournament of Champions

78 Palos Verdes Peninsula 54 58 Los Angeles Fairfax 50 77 Ocean View 46 55 Tustin 46

Las Vegas Holiday Classic

92 Payson (Utah) 39 82 Vancouver (Canada) Tech 37 49 Federal Way (Wash.) Decatur 48 70 Louisville (Ky.) Ballard 49 87 Washington (D.C.) Dunbar 60 53 Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill 55

Torrey Pines Above The Rim Tournament

75 San Diego Scripps Ranch 63 86 Anchorage (Alaska) Service 61 93 Merced 48 65 Queens (N.Y.) Christ the King 63 92 Brooklyn (N.Y.) Lincoln 77 106 Calvary Chapel 49 83 Cerritos Gahr 51 93 Dana Hills 38 99 San Clemente 52 85 Trabuco Hills 65 86 Mission Viejo 49 51 Capistrano Valley 31 93 San Clemente 40 92 Dana Hills 42 88 Trabuco Hills 53 68 Mission Viejo 45 94 Capistrano Valley 45

Southern Section Division I-A playoffs

86 Cerritos 36 79 Palmdale Highland 50 64 Glendora 42 83 La Puente Nogales 33

Southern California Division I Regional

65 Long Beach Poly 47 41 Los Angeles Fairfax 28 78 Clovis West 51

CIF State Division I Championship

71 Oakland Fremont 67