Fullove Takes Solid Foothold

There were times in the game when he was limping noticeably.

And his right ankle was wrapped with an enormous ice pack afterward.

But that didn’t prevent junior guard Branduinn Fullove of Simi Valley High from making one big play after another in the Pioneers’ 70-58 victory over Ventura in a Southern Section Division I-A quarterfinal game at Royal High on Friday night.

With 6-foot-9 senior center Rafael Berumen spending most of the third quarter in foul trouble and 6-6 junior forward Brett Michel struggling offensively, it was the 6-5 Fullove who led No. 3-seeded Simi Valley (28-2) to its 17th consecutive victory and a semifinal matchup against No. 2 Santa Ana Mater Dei on Tuesday at a site to be determined.

Fullove had 21 points and seven rebounds for the Pioneers, but it might have been his ability to keep his composure in a physical game that was his greatest asset.

While Berumen and sophomore point guard Shaun Michel lost their cool at times, Fullove stayed focused.

“I think this game answered a lot of questions about us,” Fullove said. “I think there were a lot of people who wondered how we would react without Rafael and I think we answered that tonight.”

Simi Valley appeared on the verge of blowing out a smaller Ventura team when it took a 23-7 lead early in the second quarter.

But the Pioneers were clinging to a 55-50 lead with 4 1/2 minutes remaining after Ventura hit three of four free throws following a foul on Fullove and a technical on Shaun Michel for arguing the call.

But Fullove made two free throws to give Simi Valley a 57-50 lead with 4:36 remaining and he followed that with a pair of assists on lobs to Berumen that gave the Pioneers a 64-53 advantage with 2:52 remaining.

Berumen, who is headed to New Mexico in the fall, had 23 points and 11 rebounds, but he picked up his third foul early in the third quarter and spent most of the period on the bench.

“He plays the game how it’s supposed to be played,” Coach Dean Bradshaw said of Fullove. “He’s got the heart of a tiger.”

The same thing could be said of Ventura.

The Cougars trailed, 21-7, after the first quarter and 50-35 after the third quarter following a Fullove tip-in of a missed Berumen free throw. But they never gave up.

They hit their first five shots of the fourth quarter to pull within 52-47 with 5:45 left.

Shaun Michel hit a three-point shot to give Simi Valley a 55-47 advantage, but then junior guard Scott Ellis sank two free throws and senior guard Jeff Staniland made one of two for Ventura after the technical on Shaun Michel.

But the Cougars couldn’t get any closer.

Staniland, Ventura’ single-season and career scoring leader, scored 20 points and Peterson had 15.

“This team never gives up,” Staniland said. “We always keep coming back. We play like champions.”

* SEMIFINAL SHOWDOWN: Valley Pac-8 Conference rivals Poly and North Hollywood meet today at 2 p.m. at L.A. Southwest College for a berth in the City Division championship game. Notebook, Page 11

* SCORES AND SCHEDULES: PAGE 11