Sage blows past Whitney

NEWPORT COAST — After playing as if they had forgotten, the Sage Hill School boys’ basketball players were reminded at halftime by Coach Steve Keith and his staff about the importance of Thursday’s game.

The Lightning left the locker room with thoughts of the playoffs riding on the outcome. While the situation was not that dire, a 38-point second half led to a 63-44 Academy League victory over Whitney.

A win in either of the Lightning’s final two league games will clinch third place and an automatic berth in the CIF Southern Section IV-AA playoffs.

Junior Jamie McGee scored a game-high 22 points for Sage Hill (12-11, 5-3 in league).

With the 12th victory Sage Hill, which is ranked No. 12 in CIF Division IV-AA, can now petition for an at-large bid.

But Keith said an at-large bid or even the third-place slot usually equate to a quick trip out of the playoffs, so the Lightning have their sights set higher with two games remaining.

Should Sage Hill win out, and Brethren Christian lose [it plays St. Margaret’s, ranked No. 1 in CIF Division IV-AA, Feb. 8], Sage could get the league’s second-place berth.

“Going as a second-place team gives us a good spot,” Keith said. “We have a lot of opportunities ahead of us. We’d like to get a playoff game at home.”

Lightning junior Preston Oklejas, who scored 12 points, said the team is focused on building its playoff status against Capistrano Valley Christian on Tuesday. Sage defeated the Eagles, 60-35, on Jan. 13.

“We just have to keep winning,” Oklejas said. “They play in the cafeteria. They have cement floors and their fans are really loud. We just have to bring the same intensity we had in the second half.”

Sage Hill had its lead cut to 32-30 with three minutes, 55 seconds remaining in the third quarter. The Lightning’s defense tightened, though, and on offense they were more aggressive, outscoring the Eagles, 26-4, over the next eight minutes before Keith emptied the bench.

McGee scored 12 points in the run, all of which came off drives to the basket while converting on two three-point plays.

“I was feeling confident,” said McGee, who added six rebounds and four blocks. “I’m just reading the defense. Right now, we have a good shot to make the playoffs. We’ve already beaten CVC. If we win our next two we can get homecourt advantage. That would be awesome.”

Sage Hill’s aggressive play led to 28 free-throw attempts, compared to 16 by Whitney. The Lightning converted 19 foul shots, while Whitney sank 13.

“We just try and put the ball on the floor,” said Oklejas, who had six rebounds. “Connor Rose was money from three tonight. We just take it to the hole. We try to get to the free-throw line because it slows the game down and gets the momentum on our side. It also takes the momentum away from the other team.”

The Lightning defense held Whitney scoreless for four-minute and three-minute increments in the second half.

“We played poorly in the first half, giving up dribble drives all over the court and on offense we weren’t cashing in,” Keith said. “I said ‘That’s got to be our bad half and we’re still winning by two.’ Basketball is a game of runs. At the end it looks like a 19-point victory but we put in a lot work to get that. We want to play a full 32-minute game.”

Junior Connor Rose scored 10 points for Sage Hill.

Academy League

Sage Hill 63, Whitney 44

Score by Quarters

Whitney

14

9

9

12

—

44

Sage Hill

14

11

19

19

—

63

Whitney -- Kim 11, Rousta 12, Pan 3, Elchico 2, Gandhi 9, Hernandez 2, Yang 5.

3-pt. goals -- Kim 1.

Fouled out -- None.

Technicals -- None.

Sage Hill -- Astorino 7, Apramian 4, Witte 6, McGee 22, Rose 10, Oklejas 12.

3-pt. goals -- Rose 2.

Fouled out -- None.