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After a delay of a couple of weeks, Mater Dei’s boys basketball team will play St. John Bosco at the Intuit Dome.
The Trinity League game at the new home of the Clippers will be played Saturday at 3 p.m. as part of the Trinity-Mission League Showcase.
The Intuit Dome was set to host the event on Jan. 10, featuring three Trinity League games and four for the Mission League. The event was postponed because of the wildfires that erupted that week in Los Angeles County.
Mater Dei did play St. John Bosco on Jan. 10 at Mater Dei and the Monarchs beat Bosco 62-59. St. John Bosco was without one of its starters, Brandon McCoy Jr. Mater Dei has been without 2024 All-County senior guard Owen Verna all season because of injury.
Mater Dei and St. John Bosco ended last week tied for first place in the Trinity League with 5-1 records. They might still be tied Saturday, but first Mater Dei has to play JSerra on Wednesday while St. John Bosco has two league games, against Santa Margarita (Monday) and Servite (Wednesday), before taking on the Monarchs.
Also on Saturday’s schedule at Intuit Dome: Chaminade vs. Loyola, noon; Alemany vs. Crespi, 1:30 p.m.; Brentwood vs. Campbell Hall, 4:30 p.m.; Harvard-Westlake vs. St. Francis, 6 p.m.; Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks vs. Sierra Canyon, 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the games are on sale at Ticketmaster, priced at 43.40-$48.50 before whatever fees Ticketmaster decides to apply.
SAN CLEMENTE UPDATE
San Clemente lost a crucial game to San Juan Hills on Wednesday, Jan. 22, in the South Coast League and beat Tesoro in a close league game Friday. The Tritons on Saturday beat Damien 58-50 in the Nike Extravaganza at Mater Dei.
Damien went into the Nike Extravanza with an 18-8 record, including wins over Orange County Top 25 teams Fairmont Prep, La Habra, Orange Lutheran and Villa Park.
San Clemente senior Christian Fernandez, who scored 27 points with four assists against Damien, talked afterward about how he was pleased with the Tritons’ 58-50 win over the Spartans.
“I think the San Juan game definitely made us want to come out and win this one,” he said.
NOTES
The basketball court in the gym at Mater Dei was officially commemorated as “Gary McKnight Court” on Saturday before Mater Dei played Crean Lutheran during the Nike Extravaganza. McKnight is in his 43rd season coaching Mater Dei boys basketball and is No. 2 all-time for high school boys basketball coaching victories in the United States. …
As league play winds down, here are some of this week’s notable games: Tuesday, Pacifica Christian at Fairmont Prep (Fairmont Prep is 4-0 and Pacifica Christian is 2-1 in the San Joaquin League), Canyon at La Habra and Foothill at Crean Lutheran in the Crestview League, and Esperanza at Pacifica in the North Hills League (Esperanza is 4-1 in league, Sunny Hills is 3-2); Wednesday, JSerra at Mater Dei in the Trinity League (JSerra beat Mater Dei earlier this month); Thursday, Corona del Mar at Los Alamitos in the Sunset League; Friday, Santa Margarita at JSerra in the Trinity League, and Savanna at Los Amigos in the Coast League (Los Amigos is 5-1 in league, Savanna is 4-1). …
CIF Southern Section boys and girls championship games are Feb. 28 at Toyota Center in Ontario and at the Felix Events Center at Azusa Pacific University, and on March 1 at Toyota Center and Edison High. Which division finals will be played where and when will be determined after the semifinals on Feb. 21. …
CIF-SS basketball playoff brackets will be released on Feb. 8, a Saturday, at noon. Basketball playoff brackets usually come out on a Sunday but Feb. 9 is Super Bowl Sunday and the CIF-SS folks did not want to conflict with that.
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