Big Games Pay Off for Santa Margarita

Reaching the semifinals is old hat for Santa Margarita. The Eagles have done it four years in a row, including Tuesday’s Division II-A meeting with Moreno Valley.

Making the finals, however, never gets old. And Santa Margarita heads to the Pond Saturday for its first final since 1994 after defeating the Vikings, 66-54, at Moreno Valley Valley View High.

Although the Eagles (22-6) were bigger, they were the giant killers, taking apart the division’s top-seeded team. Santa Margarita will meet Riverside North on Saturday.

It was accomplished because Santa Margarita’s best players came up with big games. Allen Krist had no one to challenge his 6-foot-8 size inside and had a game-high 29 points. Guard Dennis Keane added 21, many of them coming on layins because the Eagles repeatedly broke the Vikings’ full-court press.

“One reason we’ve gone to the semis four straight years is because we have really good kids who are very coachable,” Santa Margarita Coach Jerry DeBusk said.

“This group has had a purpose since they were freshmen; to play in the finals as seniors. I’m very proud of them.”

One reason Santa Margarita was so effective was that the Eagles came into the game fresh. The Eagles took their two-hour bus ride early in the day, arriving here by 2 p.m. They stayed in an area hotel, and the mothers of several players prepared the team’s usual pregame meal.

“We told the kids we were going to try and do the right thing,” DeBusk said. “That meant get them up here so they’re not tired. The question was, would it get us a win? I told the players they had to do that.”

Moreno Valley, which ended the season at 25-5, never led, but trailed only 29-23 at halftime. The smaller Vikings dominated the boards, 22-13. In addition, Santa Margarita, while not flustered by turnovers (seven for the half, 10 for the game), wasn’t always making the shots once the press was broken. Krist missed four easy layups.

DeBusk said all he told the Eagles to do was relax. Krist said the players added their own internal messages.

“We knew, being up only by six, that with their press they could quickly get on a roll,” Krist said. “We wanted to keep that from happening.”

Did they ever. Santa Margarita scored only 10 points in the third, but held the Vikings to one basket and four total points. Just as important, the Eagles regained control of the boards, restricting Moreno Valley to two offensive rebounds in the quarter; by the end of the game the Vikings’ overall rebound edge was only 33-26.