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Edison is tops in tourney

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The Edison boys’ basketball team ripped off four straight wins to take the championship of the La Quinta Tournament.

The Chargers took top honors Saturday by edging Aliso Niguel, 50-49, in the tournament final. Senior guard Corey Foster led all scorers with 22 points, and senior guard Dreon Barlett contributed 17 points. Barlett was named tournament MVP and Foster, freshman guard Derek Molina and senior guard Cade Hernandez all made the all-tournament team.

Edison scored tournament victories over Servite (62-57), host La Quinta (69-36), Corona del Mar (62-59) and Aliso Niguel.

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“We played hard from the very start, and as a team the whole tournament,” Edison Coach Rich Boyce said of the Aliso Niguel game and winning the title.

The Chargers improved to 6-0 Monday by defeating Lakewood, 57-48, on the opening day of the Irvine World News Tournament. Barlett topped all scorers with 31 points and Foster scored 20. They suffered their first setback of the season Tuesday in a 69-40 loss to El Toro at the tournament. Barlett and Foster scored 18 and 13 points, respectively.

The Irvine World News Tournament continues Thursday and Friday and concludes Saturday.

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Brethren Christian

The Warriors nabbed third place last week at the Viewpoint Tournament in Calabasas. They dropped their opener, 77-60, to eventual tournament champion Valley Christian of Cerritos but then won their final three games by defeating Malibu (48-44), Crossroads (77-52) and Hueneme (61-30).

Junior post Mamadou Ndiaye and senior guard Billy Bryson were selected all-tournament. Ndiaye had a monstrous game against Crossroads with 40 points, 24 rebounds and six blocked shots, Coach Jon Bahnsen said.

“The team started to click toward the end of the tournament, as we are still learning how to play together with a 7-5 player (Ndiaye) on the floor,” Bahnsen said.

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Fountain Valley

The Barons made it to the finals of the Valley Christian Tournament on Saturday where they fell, 60-45, to a veteran South Torrance team.

Fountain Valley, which had shot well from the field in its previous three tournament games, wasn’t as sharp from the floor in the final. The Barons were only six of 28 from three-point range and trailed by five at the half. The Spartans took a nine-point lead into the fourth quarter. Senior guard Zack Richartz had 17, senior forward Nathan Moss 10 points with eight 8 rebounds, and senior guard Sean Myers was “hobbled by a bad ankle,” Barons Coach Roger Holmes said.

Sean Myers and junior guard Josh Armstrong were named all-tournament.

Fountain Valley started the tournament red-hot, hitting 11 three-point shots in a 74-34 blowout of Bellflower. Armstrong was four of five from three-point range and led the way with 17 points and had three assists. Richartz scored 12 points, Moss 10, junior forward Sean Finley had nine points and nine rebounds, and Myers six points and four assists.

The Barons turned in a solid performance in their second game and scored a 58-38 over host Valley Christian. Myers had 13 points, six assists and six rebounds, Moss 12 points and nine rebounds and Armstrong 12 points and three assists. In their third game, the Barons blazed their way to a 46-18 lead on California and went on to score a 68-44 win over the Condors. Richartz hit four of the Barons’ nine three-point shots and finished with 16 points. Junior forward Tanner Trounce was seven of 11 from the floor and scored 14 points with six rebounds, Armstrong chipped in with 11 points and Finley had nine points and eight rebounds. Myers suffered a sprained ankle in the game and sat out the second half.

Fountain Valley returns to the court next Monday to host Segerstrom in a 6 p.m. nonleague game.

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Huntington Beach

The Oilers finished up pool play Tuesday on the second day of the North Orange County Championships at Sonora. They moved to 2-0 in the tournament by pulling away in the second half to defeat host Sonora, 60-54. Senior guard Rory Aldana topped all scorers with 23 points. Junior forward Harley Ruder scored 12 points and junior guard Andrew Tenbrink 11 points.

The Oilers started tournament play Monday and defeated Long Beach Wilson, 57-44. Aldana led four Oilers in double-figures with a game-best 14 points. Ruder scored 12 points and Tenbrink and senior guard Blake Skorich both scored 10 points.

Previously, Huntington went 2-2 at the El Modena Tipoff-Canyon Kickoff Classic. The Oilers got into early foul trouble against Esperanza and eventually dropped a 57-53 game to the Aztecs. Tenbrink led the Oilers with 20 points and nine rebounds and Ruder finished with 12 points and six rebounds. They also lost to San Bernardino as the Cardinals used a 12-0 run to pull away to a 72-56 victory. Ruder had 16 points and seven boards, Aldana scored 15 points, Tenbrink had 11 points and seven rebounds and senior forward Bryan Ortt had six points and 10 rebounds.

The Oilers victories came against El Modena (52-45) and Workman (56-49). Tenbrink had 17 points, Ruder 13 points and sophomore guard Ryan Morrissey nine points in the El Modena win. In rallying from an early, 12-2 deficit to defeat Workman, Tenbrink netted 19 points and five assists, sophomore guard Mason Luna had 13 points and Aldana added eight points with four steals.

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Marina

The Vikings also are part of the Irvine World News Tournament. On Monday, they were edged, 65-64, by Esperanza after the Aztecs hit a last-second three-point shot. Senior guard JJ James topped Marina with 17 points and senior guard Michael Livingston scored 13. On Tuesday, the Vikings fell, 59-47, to host Woodbridge. Senior guard Jordon Adnams led all scorers with 19 points, and James scored 14.

The tournament continues Thursday and Friday and concludes Saturday.

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Ocean View

The Seahawks reached the tournament finale of its own Jim Harris Memorial Tournament of Champions on Saturday. In the championship game, they fell, 72-63, to Clovis West. Senior center Conor Clifford scored 14 points and senior guard Cristian Rivera and freshman guard Kendall Small both scored 11 points for Ocean View.

“We were challenged in the first half and backed down to a team that is trained to take advantage of hesitation and soft play, leading to a 15-point halftime deficit,” Ocean View co-head coach Jimmy Harris said. “We did a great job responding to the challenge in the third quarter, knocking them on their heels and climbing back into the game. Great energy, great attacking defense.”

Ocean View started the tournament Dec. 7 with a 90-48 rout of Manual Arts. The Seahawks also defeated Rancho Verde (62-59) and Killarney (96-42) of British Columbia, Canada, to reach Saturday’s final.

The Seahawks currently are playing in the Cantwell Sacred Heart Tournament in Montebello from Thursday through Saturday.

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Girls’ Basketball

Edison won its first three games of the season and in the process, captured the championship of the University Tournament. The Chargers won the tourney crown Saturday by running past Yorba Linda, 64-43, in the final at Concordia University.

Junior guard Karlie Samuelson scored 13 points and went on to be named tournament MVP. Samuelson’s younger sister, freshman center Katie Lou, led all scorers with 19 points. Senior forward Monay Lee scored 12 points and was named all-tournament.

Edison also defeated Dana Hills (68-33), led by 30 points heading into the fourth quarter and subbed freely in a 74-62 win over San Clemente and beat host, 82-48. Tough game in final against Yorba Linda 64-43.

“We could be really successful this year, depends on how our bench can improve,” Edison Coach Dan Wiley said. “Loli Gomez and Riley Lowe did a great job coming off bench in this tournament and each started a couple times. Four-year returnee Lorene Grego is just coming back this week which will help tremendously.”

The Chargers start play Monday at the Tournament of Champions in Arizona. They face Centennial of Las Vegas at 4:30 p.m.

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Brethren Christian

The Warriors hit the long road for a pair of nonleague games and returned home victorious on both counts.

BC first went to San Juan Capistrano on Dec. 7 to face Saddleback Valley Christian and came away with a 46-29 win. Senior guard Diannia Demaziliere and junior guard Sara Hodges led the scoring with 10 points each. Senior center Kate Jensen and junior forward Brooke Hernandez each added eight points.

The Warriors improved to 4-2 last Friday after routing Excelsior Education Center High, 51-23, at Victorville. A balanced scoring attack included 10 points apiece from Hernandez and senior forward Emily Hammond, eight points from Demaziliere and six apiece from Jensen and senior forward Emily Janio.

The Warriors are currently playing at the Orangewood Academy Classic in Garden Grove. They face Calvary Chapel/Santa Ana in pool play on Thursday. BC is the defending tournament champion.

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Fountain Valley

The Barons went 2-2 at the own Barons Hoop Challenge and finished in fourth place. They dropped a 69-34 decision Saturday to Esperanza in the third-place game. Junior guard Jasmine Matar led Fountain Valley with 13 points, and senior forward Carly Ducat scored eight.

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Huntington Beach

The Oilers made it to the championship final of the Barons Hoop Challenge on Saturday where they were defeated, 55-45, by El Toro. Senior point guard Kelsey Minato poured in 23 points and collected 12 rebounds and was named all-tournament.

Huntington played its final two tournament games, including Friday’s semifinal game against Fountain Valley, without senior guard Maya Kennedy, who was ill. The Oilers still went on to defeat the Barons, 55-45. Minato led all scorers with 20 points, and sophomore guard Paola Roa had 12 points.

Huntington reached the semifinals by defeating Kennedy on Dec. 7, 66-43. Minato led all scorers with 27 points, and Kennedy scored 10.

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Marina

The Vikings concluded play Saturday at the University Tournament and fell, 60-48, to Aliso Niguel. Junior guard Lauren Dorame played a solid game with 11 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Sophomore guard Melissa Lindquist also keyed Marina with nine points and two assists and junior guard Jennifer Chau tied for team-high in points with 11.

The Vikings also dropped a close, 58-52, game Dec. 8 to Dana Hills. Dorame had 12 points and four assists, Lindquist a team-high 16 points and three assists and junior post Kasey Cutchshaw had a team-high 11 rebounds.

“We definitely know that we need to get down to business on the defensive end,” Marina Coach Dean Katayama said. “Lucky for us, we have a week off with no games and we can be very focused at practice. The flaws are correctable, it’s just a matter of concentrating during the game. With the right effort and mental commitment, we should be fine down the road.”

michael.sciacca@latimes.com

Twitter: @MikeSciacca

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