Brown’s Play Lifts San Clemente

Sara Brown had dreamed of a moment like this.

With the score tied and her team’s best player on the bench after fouling out, Brown drove the lane and scored the game-winning basket with five seconds left to lift San Clemente to a 42-40 victory Tuesday over host Oceanside El Camino in the quarterfinals of the Southern California Regional Division I playoffs.

Brown scored six of her nine points after Lindsey Pluimer fouled out with 3:32 left to play. Pluimer, who had three questionable fouls called against her, departed after being whistled for an offensive foul while shooting a turnaround jumper. She had scored 21 of San Clemente’s 36 points.

“In the fourth quarter the referees took over, but our team stepped up,” Pluimer said.

With Pluimer on the bench, El Camino took the lead on a three-point basket by Megan Johnson, but Brown countered with a 10-footer and a driving layup with 2:02 left.

Nikki Oakland, who led El Camino to a 51-43 victory in last year’s first-round game against the Tritons, scored her only points with 57 seconds left and Johnson made a free throw to tie the score, 40-40, with 33 seconds left.

In the end, there was no doubt who was going to take San Clemente’s final shot.

“The play was to get the ball in my hands and get out of the way,” Brown said. “I dreamed about this situation all my life.”

San Clemente, the Southern Section Division I-A champion, is 28-3.

The Tritons will play at Harbor City Narbonne in a semifinal game on Thursday.

“This is a huge win,” Pluimer said. “We were looking for revenge. We thought we should have won last year, but they outplayed us.”

El Camino, the San Diego Section Division I champion, finished 27-5.

-- Martin Henderson

Harbor City Narbonne 74, Newhall Hart 60 -- Three days after what players and coaches called a lackluster effort in the City Championship game, host Narbonne put forth one of its best efforts of the season in a Division I quarterfinal.

Narbonne edged Sylmar, 41-40, at the Forum on Saturday, but looked nothing like the team that won state titles in 2000 and 2001 and was owner of four consecutive section titles.

The Gauchos, however, looked in top form against Hart (24-7).

“After that horrible game against Sylmar, it was important for us to come back strong and play harder,” said junior guard Camille LeNoir, who finished with 20 points and seven assists.

Indi Johnson scored 17 points and Jamie Funn added 15 for second-seeded Narbonne (23-6), which forced 17 turnovers and had 17 offensive rebounds.

Ashlee Trebilcock scored 27 points for Hart, the Southern Section Division I-A runner-up, which lost to Narbonne by 33 points on the same floor last season, also in the first round.

Hart senior Amanda Patton, who had shoulder surgery causing her to miss last year’s game, added 25 points, including six three-pointers.

Patton made 67 three-pointers this season, breaking the school record of 59 set by Anjanette Dionne in 1990.

-- Steve Galluzzo

Fullerton Troy 92, Sanger 40 -- Amanda Livingston scored 23 points and Nicole Hayman had 19 and six steals to lead Troy to a first-round Division II victory over the Central Section runner-up.

Troy took a 44-17 lead over Sanger (22-6) at the half. Troy (28-2), which shot 57% in the Southern Section championship game on Saturday, shot 64%, making 36 of 56 from the field.

“We didn’t play as well as we did Saturday [an 82-45 victory over Perris] but we still played pretty well,” Troy Coach Kevin Kiernan said.

Freshman Sara Yee had 10 assists and Meghan McGuire had nine points for Troy, which plays Redondo, a 60-29 winner over Spring Valley Mt. Miguel, on Thursday.

Livingston, who didn’t play in the fourth quarter, made 11 of 16 shots.

-- Martin Henderson