Etiwanda does it with defense

On more than one occasion, people have teased Etiwanda basketball Coach Dave Kleckner that he should become a defensive coordinator in football because his players are so tough, tenacious and unyielding in their man-to-man defense.

The fourth-seeded Eagles (28-2) find themselves one win away from playing for the Southern Section Division 1AA championship after a 70-58 quarterfinal road victory over Valencia on Tuesday that featured their usual take-no-prisoners effort.

The 1AA semifinals are set, and what a Final Four it is. Etiwanda will play top-seeded Long Beach Poly, which defeated Montebello, 74-65. No. 2 Santa Ana Mater Dei defeated Rialto Eisenhower, 82-62, and will play No. 3 Corona Centennial, which defeated Upland, 74-58.

Also set are the City Section Division I semifinals. Woodland Hills Taft defeated Reseda Cleveland, 91-59, and will face Palisades, a 72-68 winner over Crenshaw. Westchester defeated Fairfax, 58-34, and will take on Washington, which defeated Dorsey, 79-61.

Lonnie Jackson, the Boston College-bound senior from Valencia who came in averaging 22 points, was held to zero baskets in the first half when Etiwanda took a 30-20 lead. He did get to shoot 12 free throws, but the Eagles sent the message every point would have to be earned. He finished with 21 points on five-for-19 shooting.

“He was our focus all week in practice and we shut him down,” Etiwanda forward Byron Wesley said.

This is the way the Eagles do things under Kleckner, who has never had one of his teams play a second of zone defense during his coaching tenure at Etiwanda. It’s all about gaining position, fighting through screens and helping each other.

And when the Eagles needed offense, they turned to the USC-bound Wesley, who scored 27 points. Boston College-bound point guard Jordan Daniels was solid with 12 points, eight assists and one turnover.

“I thought we did a good job of not only defending Jackson but contesting his shots,” Kleckner said.

When Valencia pulled to within five points in the fourth quarter, Wesley and Daniels took charge to lead a 6-0 surge and leave the Vikings (21-8) with no response.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com