Mater Dei Sleepwalks Past Huntington Beach

A fairly subdued Mater Dei boys’ basketball team took the floor against Huntington Beach in the first round of the Orange Holiday Classic Saturday night at Chapman.

The Monarchs didn’t display a lot of emotion, there was only one flashy dunk and the electric buzz normally in the crowd at a Monarch game was nowhere to be found.

But the Monarchs aren’t the top-ranked team in Orange County based on reputation alone and, despite their sleepwalking approach, they kept building upon their lead and eventually routed the Oilers, 76-44, to advance to the second round Monday against Esperanza.

Steve Scoggin, who scored 18 points, making five of seven three-point baskets, said it was difficult for the Monarchs (12-2) to get motivated against Huntington Beach (1-10) after finishing seventh at the Las Vegas Holiday tournament.

“No disrespect to Huntington Beach,” Scoggin said, “but we just beat Dominguez and that was a big game.”

Mater Dei, which has lost to Fresno Edison and Glendora this season, is on a mission in this tournament to avenge a three-point loss to Santa Margarita in last year’s final.

“We didn’t win a tournament title at all last year,” Scoggin said. “This means a lot to us, especially if we play Santa Margarita.”

Scoggin set the tone early, making four three-point baskets in the first 4 minutes 40 seconds. Cedric Bozeman also had a three-pointer during that stretch, giving Mater Dei five three-pointers and a 16-6 lead.

Freshman forward Mike Strawberry took an alley-oop pass from Imran Sufi and dunked it to start the second-quarter scoring, bringing the near silent crowd to its feet for a brief moment.

Phil Venlimiglia scored eight of his team-high 10 points in the first half for Huntington Beach, which trailed, 36-16, at halftime and, 65-28, after three quarters.

Strawberry, who finished with 10 points, was one of five Monarchs who scored in double figures. Mike Bayer had 11 points and eight rebounds. Sufi did not score, but had eight assists.

Mater Dei Coach Gary McKnight used 14 players, 11 of whom scored. Mater Dei led, 72-32, before McKnight cleared the bench with 5:07 to play.

“Everyone seems to be playing together,” Scoggin said. “I think this team is definitely better than last year’s.”

The Monarchs will get even better when 6-foot-10, 235-pound sophomore center Jamal Sampson returns from a broken foot he suffered over the summer. He might be ready by the start of league play, which should inject life into the Monarchs.

In other Orange Holiday Classic games:

Fountain Valley 65, Kennedy 46--Zach Hardin and Jeff Greenfield each scored 18 points for the the Barons, who scored 29 points on free throws.

Robert Reyes had 10 points for Kennedy.

Esperanza 67, Orange 64 (OT)--The Aztecs did not make a field goal in overtime but made eight of eight free throws and hung on.

Kenny Ho had 21 points for Esperanza, including six free throws in overtime. Mike Garcia had 15 points for Orange.

Santa Margarita 62, Valencia 49--Kelly Kramer had 21 points and Spencer Gloger had 17 for the Eagles, who outscored the Tigers, 32-20, in the second half.

Alex Aguirre had 14 points for Valencia.

Corona Centennial 64, Aliso Niguel 53--Jamaal Williams scored 10 of his 23 points in the third quarter as the Huskies pulled away in the second half.

Ryan Ross and Robert Deven each had 12 points for Aliso Niguel.

Foothill 63, Laguna Hills 50--Chad Bigler and Alex Rasmussen combined for six three-point baskets and 36 points to lead the Knights.

Rasmussen had 15 of his 19 points in the first half as Foothill built a 38-32 lead. Bigler had eight of his 14 after the break.

Jeff Ettereim had 20 points for Laguna Hills, but only two in the fourth quarter.

Dana Hills 65, Murietta Valley 64--Darvell Meyers made a layup with four seconds to play to give the Dolphins the victory.

Jeremy Cooly had 24 points for Dana Hills, including 10 in the first quarter. Brett Nowell scored 21 points for the Dolphins, who led 43-33 at halftime.

In the Brea Olinda tournament:

Orange Lutheran 54, West Covina 49--Jason Whieldon had 20 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and six steals to lead Orange Lutheran (5-5) in pool play.

Patrick Salyer had seven points, 12 rebounds and five blocks for Orange Lutheran.

In the Century tournament:

Century 56, Norwalk Glenn 33--Mike Zepeda had 21 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks and Matt Napier had 11 points for Century (4-7). Glenn is 1-6.

Cypress 59, Calvary Chapel 55--Justin Yun scored 18 points and Alphonso Stovall added 16 for Cypress (5-7).

Laguna Beach 71, Santa Ana Valley 42--Kurt Beimfohr had 19 points and eight rebounds and Jessie Obrand scored 18 points for Laguna Beach (10-2) in the first round.

Sonora 73, Seaquam (Canada) 45--Bim Okunrimboye led all scorers for Sonora (8-4) with 16 points. Mike Pink and Quinn Hawking each scored 12, also for the Raiders.

In the Coast Christmas Classic:

Corona del Mar 61, Garden Grove 37--Dennis Alshuler scored 15 to lead Corona del Mar in pool play.

Justin Shea scored 13 for the Sea Kings.

In the Katella Classic tournament:

Bosla Grande 67, Laduc (Canada) 63--Jon James scored 27 points and Doug Baughman added 16 for Bolsa Grande.

Hesperia Sultana 67, Santiago 49--Jose Lizarras scored 11 points and Miguel Sorano had nine for Santiago. Mike Everett led Sultana with 14.

La Habra 66, Harbor City Narbonne 53--Nathan Allard’s 25 points led the way for La Habra. Greg Kinghill and Kyle Fitzpatrick each had 10, also for the Highlanders.

Katella 79, Savanna 55--Matt Tisthammer scored 23 points for Katella and Don Carey had 17, also for the Knights.

In the Las Vegas Prep Championship:

Las Vegas Clark 67, Newport Harbor 65--Matt Jameson had 25 points and Dustin Illingworth had 22 for Newport Harbor (9-2). Kevin Gaines led Clark (8-1) with 36 points.

Troy 82, Las Vegas 38--Jerry Inzunza had 29 points and Theron Chaney had 13 points and 13 rebounds for Troy (8-3) in the first round. Las Vegas 5-4.

In the Nike Invitational:

Capistrano Valley 78, Oakland Bishop O’Dowd 72 (2 OT)--Mike Stowell had 38 points, including eight of Capistrano Valley’s 10 in the second overtime, to lift the Cougars (9-1) in the first round at Torrey Pines High. J.J. Sola had 16 points and Nathan Hair 15 for Capistrano Valley. Bishop O’Dowd is 3-2.

In the Honolulu Tournament:

Sunny Hills 53, Maryknoll (Hawaii) 29--Eric Hardeman had 12 points and Nathan Hochgesang had 10 points and 12 rebounds for Sunny Hills (4-8).