By Corey Kwok
(Whittier) – Cantwell took advantage of some strong rebounding to go on a fourth quarter run to knock off Village Christian 51-48 Saturday in a CIF State Southern California Division IV regional quarterfinal.
Joey Covarrubias led Cantwell with 14 points while Andrew Martinez wound and attacked his way in the paint to a hard fought six points, including an and-one. Three other teammates had double-figures in scoring, as Gligorije Rakocevic (11 points, a 3-pointer, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks), Balsa Dragovic (10 points, 16 rebounds), and EJ Mejia (10 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds) rounded out the slate.
Two prominent Village Christian players were kept in check by the stifling Cantwell defense. Bennie Boatwright, a standout sharpshooter formerly at Alemany, had 14 points and 12 rebounds. Bryan Alberts finishing with nine points and four assists, had just one field goal – a fourth quarter three-pointer – to show for over the final three frames of play.
Marsalis Johnson had three blocks, six rebounds, and nine points, while Jerrick Ahanmisi and another former Alemany player, Bear Henderson, each scored eight.
Cantwell advances to the CIF State Southern California regional semifinal to earn a rematch with top seeded Sierra Canyon on the road at a site to be determined, 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday night. In their prior meeting at La Salle over MLK day weekend in a showcase, the Trailblazers came out on top 45-42 in a sloppily played slugfest for both teams.
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