Mater Dei, Servite Prove Rankings Can Be Wrong : Basketball: Scoggin, Mansell help Monarchs upset third-ranked team in country, 81-76.

It’s hard to remember the last time Mater Dei entered a boys’ basketball game as a decided underdog as it was Saturday and came out with a victory.

But the Monarchs--who have had an up-and-down season playing a variety of sophomores and juniors--played their best game of the season and pulled off a huge upset, defeating Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick, 81-76, in the third annual Nike Extravaganza at UCI’s Bren Center.

The visiting Celtics (12-3), ranked third nationally in the USA Today poll and who feature top college forward prospect Al Harrington, must have thought they were getting a breather Saturday from a schedule that already has seen them play seven top-25 teams.

The 6-foot-8 Harrington was as good as advertised, leading both teams in points (26) and rebounds (17). But Mater Dei, despite a height disadvantage, upstaged St. Patrick. Steve Scoggin and Derrick Mansell had 22 and 20 points, respectively, for the Monarchs.

“I thought last night would have been our biggest win,” said Coach Gary McKnight, referring to Mater Dei’s 37-35 victory over South Coast League foe Dana Hills. “But after the game I could see our kids were very excited about playing St. Patrick. So I said, ‘Go out and beat the No. 3 team.’ ”

To do so, Mater Dei (16-7) had to get into a good shooting rhythm from the outset, which is not always easy for players who rarely see glass backboards. But the Monarchs came out firing, and never cooled down, shooting 58% in the first half and 56% (29 of 52) for the game. Long distance wasn’t a problem either: Mater Dei was eight for 13 from three-point range.

“I can’t remember another team that has shot twos and threes that well against us in the last five years,” Celtics Coach Kevin Boyle said.

Scoggin gave Mater Dei its first lead, 13-10, with a three-pointer at the 4:09 mark of the first quarter. It was a lead the Monarchs never relinquished.

But it was a 15-6 run that put Mater Dei ahead, 35-21, midway through the second quarter that raised the possibility of the pending upset.

St. Patrick cut the lead to nine, 45-36, at the half, and kept waiting for its full-court pressure and superior size to wear down Mater Dei. But the Celtics were hampered by poor shooting from the field (30 of 80, 38%) and the free-throw line (10 of 26, 39%). And they forced only 14 turnovers, while committing 18.

“We never let them get into a flow,” said McKnight, whose team played a 2-3 zone for the game, and a box-and-one on Harrington in the second half to keep him in check.

The Celtics’ one big run--12-1--brought them within 62-61 early in the fourth quarter. But they never took the lead or shook Mater Dei’s confidence.