Brea’s Last-Minute Rally Falls Short Against Gahr

They played each other four times this season, a total of 128 minutes, but the only minute that mattered was the last one.

It was during the final minute Friday that Cerritos Gahr nearly blew a five-point lead over Brea Olinda. But Gahr held on to win a Southern Section Division II-AA boys’ basketball quarterfinal, 63-61, at Cerritos High.

Tajuan Jackson made a layup from the baseline with 2.3 seconds left, giving give Gahr (19-10) its first victory over the third-seeded Wildcats (26-3) this season.

Brea, which trailed 51-41 with 5:42 to play, had one last chance, but Ryan Wilber’s half-court shot at the buzzer came up short.

Brea got a three-pointer from Jerrett Skrifvars, steals by Dexter Villapando and Kyle Dodd and a layup by Ryan Moore, all in the last minute to tie the score at 61-61 with 26 seconds to play.

“I couldn’t be more pleased with the way we fought back,” Brea Coach Bob Terry said. “They battled. We wanted to win the championship, but it’s better to aim high and come up short than accept mediocrity.”

Unlike the previous three meetings, Gahr went to its inside game, throwing the Wildcats off balance. The Gladiators also seemed a step quicker on rebounds.

“Early in the season we felt our advantage against them was on the perimeter,” Gahr Coach Kurt Ruth said. “Tonight I felt we needed to be more balanced.”

Accurate shooting in the second half didn’t hurt either. The Gladiators, who shot 46% for the game (23 of 50 made 15 of 24 shots (62.5%) in the second half.

“They didn’t miss,” Terry said.

Wilber led the Wildcats with 19 points, including back-to-back three-pointers to start a 17-8 Brea run midway through the fourth quarter. Skrifvars had 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter. Kyle Dodd, ailing from a fever, did not score after the first quarter and finished with seven points.

In other Division II-AA games:

Compton Dominguez 74, Sonora 59--Marcus Moore had 19 points and nine assists for the top-seeded and defending champions at Compton College. Sonora ends 23-7.

Moreno Valley Rancho Verde 81, Newport Harbor 70--Matt Jameson scored 29 points, but visiting Newport Harbor (24-6) fell short at Perris High School. Gary Robinson scored 15 for the Sailors. J.S. Nash had 24 points and Brandon Shaw added 22 for Rancho Verde (25-5).