State Finals to Tip Off at Capital

Santa Margarita High appears in its first state basketball final tonight as the state tournament championships start their two-day run at Sacramento’s Arco Arena.

The Eagles (31-2) will play Santa Rosa Montgomery (26-7) at 8 p.m. in the boys’ Division II final.

Guard T.J. Williams and forward Ryan Forehan-Kelley are the Eagles’ leaders, but Dekker McKeever and Jake Rohe have stepped into the spotlight in the playoffs.

Rohe scored 10 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter of a 60-50 regional final victory over Compton to send Santa Margarita to the final.

McKeever has averaged 13 points and 11 rebounds in the playoffs and has been a strong defensive presence in the key.

Montgomery is led by 6-4 senior Trevor Lorz, who scored seven of his 25 points in the final two minutes of the regional championship victory.

In the boys’ Division IV final at 4:15, former UCLA star and Chicago Bull David Greenwood coaches his high school alma mater Verbum Dei (22-5) against Pacific Grove (27-2).

Verbum Dei, which won a title in 1995, takes a 17-game winning streak into the final behind the play of Marlon Parmer and Dalron Johnson. The Eagles crushed La Jolla Bishop’s, 67-46, to advance. Pacific Grove squeaked by Modesto Christian, 55-54.

The girls’ Division II final features Brea Olinda (32-1) against Redding Shasta (28-2) at 6:15.

It has been four years since Brea Olinda has been in a state title game. That’s a long time for Brea Olinda followers, who were treated to four consecutive state titles to start the decade. In 1993-94, Brea Olinda finished undefeated. Overall, Brea Olinda has won five state titles and a sixth this year would be unprecedented.

Chelsea Trotter averages 16.7 points, Erin Kelly 13.5 and Lindsey Davidson 13 for Brea Olinda, which qualified with a 64-52 regional final victory over Fresno Edison.

One of the Southland’s other top girls’ basketball programs, Playa del Rey St. Bernard (29-4), will play Colfax (28-7) in the Division IV game at 2:30.

St. Bernard won consecutive titles in 1993 and ’94 but lost in the final last year to Moraga Campolindo.

Sophomore guard Shannon Howell scored 26 points and senior guard Tracee Lewis had 22 in the Vikings’ 72-52 regional final victory over Corcoran.