Thousand Oaks Moves On

Ben Olson, Dave Anderson, Kasey Myers and Kevin Rex first met as sixth-graders playing for a Conejo Valley all-star basketball team. They dreamed about winning a championship in their teenage years.

“We used to come to high school games as little kids and think it would be us one day,” Olson said.

They’re seniors now at Thousand Oaks High and on the verge of ending their basketball days with a championship ring.

Olson scored 27 points, Anderson made five three-pointers and had 18 points and Myers contributed 16 points for the third-seeded Lancers (27-3), who defeated Glendora, 74-60, Tuesday night to earn a spot in Saturday’s Division I-A final against Loyola at the Arrowhead Pond.

In winning its 17th consecutive game before more than 2,000 spectators at Westlake High, Thousand Oaks opened a nine-point halftime lead and refused to let second-seeded Glendora (27-3) pull off any comeback.

Senior guard Larry Monroe kept the Tartans in the game with 26 points.

Eric Sondheimer

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Loyola 81, Canyon Country Canyon 60--Omar Wilkes had 24 points, Vince Oliver had 17 and Chris Rucker had 16 for No. 4-seeded Loyola in a Division I-A semifinal at Loyola Marymount University.

Loyola (26-3) advances to a section final for the first time since 1990, when it lost to Santa Ana Mater Dei. Jeremy Haggerty had 32 points for Canyon (20-10).

Rialto Eisenhower 64, Long Beach Millikan 44--Cory McJimson scored 19 points, Sean Marshall added 16 and the Eagles advanced to their first championship game with a Division I-AA semifinal victory at Long Beach Wilson. They will play Long Beach Poly on Saturday at the Pond.

Johnny Dukes had 13 points, including a dunk with three minutes left in the third quarter, to give Eisenhower (27-2) a 44-28 lead.

Long Beach Poly 68, Capistrano Valley 44--Second-seeded Poly (27-3) broke the Division I-AA semifinal game open in the third quarter when Barry Barnes, who scored 11 of his 15 points in the period, was whistled for a technical foul, then ignited a 10-3 run with three consecutive three-point baskets to push the Jackrabbits’ lead to 47-31.

Jake Franzen had 18 points, Matt Sweany had 14 and Pete DeCasas added 12 for Capistrano Valley (24-7).

Pasadena 63, Inglewood 49--Dino Wilburn knocked down a three-pointer during a decisive 11-0 run to end the third quarter and open the fourth as the second-seeded Bulldogs (26-4) won at Occidental College.

Pasadena, which advances to a section final for the first time since 1995, will play Mater Dei for the Division II-AA title on Saturday at the Pond. Wilburn finished with a game-high 21 points, and center Mackenzie Clark added 16 points and five blocks.

Inglewood center DeAngelo Collins had 10 points, 15 rebounds and two blocked shots.

Santa Ana Mater Dei 69, Bellflower St. John Bosco 55--Wesley Washington led the top-seeded Monarchs (26-4) to the Division II-AA final with 20 points and 11 rebounds against St. John Bosco (24-7) at Cypress College. Gio St. Amant had 32 points and 12 rebounds for St. John Bosco.

North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake 66, Los Angeles Murphy 61--Down, 63-61, with 1:16 left, Murphy (21-9) had a chance to get even but a missed shot was snagged by Harvard-Westlake’s Evan Harris, and the Wolverines secured the Division IV-AA semifinal game at the free-throw line at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.

Harvard-Westlake (25-5) will play El Segundo, a 78-56 winner over Twentynine Palms, on Friday at Loyola Marymount in the title game. Justin Turman led Murphy with 41 points and Bryce Taylor scored 21 for Harvard-Westlake.

Michelle Gardner

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L.A. Ribet Academy 68, Oxnard Santa Clara 65--Caleb Baffey’s 10-foot jumper with 10 seconds to play clinched the victory at Oxnard College for the second-seeded Fighting Frogs (20-8). Ribet Academy will play Harbor League rival Rolling Hills Prep, which defeated Apple Valley Christian, 60-58, on D.J. Wright’s layup at the buzzer, on Friday at Loyola Marymount for the Division V-AA title.