(La Canada) – For a better part of a half, La Canada stayed with the 15th ranked-team in the state before falling to an athletic Centennial Compton squad 57-44.
If the Spartans were intimidated it didn’t show for the first 16 minutes as they stayed toe-to-toe with the Apaches on both ends of the court.
It wasn’t until Centennial’s Kevin Smith and Deonte Burton took control of the third quarter that La Canada’s playoff dreams came to an abrupt halt.
Smith poured in eight points in the third quarter and Burton scored 16 of his game-high 22 points in the second half to lead the Apaches to a much deserved semi-final appearance.
The Spartans gave the fast-breaking Centennial team all they could handle the first half as they played an offensive style reminiscent of Princeton’s back-door offense that caused defensive breakdowns for the Apaches.
Early on Centennial it appeared as though they would be ripe for an upset as they shot 25% from the floor in the first quarter and were down by three after eight minutes.
La Canada’s Mike McGlashan sparked the offense early with four quick points early to set the tone for the Spartans. He would finish with a team-high 15 points.
The momentum changed with 3:54 to go in the second quarter as the Apaches went on a 13-4 run to end the quarter that was highlighted by a Harrison Hawkins lay-up at the buzzer that sent Centennial into the locker with a six-point lead.
The Spartans couldn’t keep up in the second half as they scored only two-points on second chance points and Jeff Grigg finally buried a three-pointer with 1:52 remaining in the game. The three-pointer by Grigg was the first by a Spartan in the game.
With La Canada in the bonus for the last 7:13 of their season, they still failed to mount any comeback as missed opportunities and tough Apaches defense stymied any hope for a rally.
CENTENNIAL COMPTON 7 19 12 19 57
LA CANADA 10 10 8 16 44
SCORING:
CENTENNIAL: Deonte Burton 22, Kevin Smith 16, Harrison Hawkins 13, Kurt Davis 7, Keith Smith 2
LA CANADA: Mike McGlashan 15, Jeff Grigg 10, Rocky Moore 6, Mason Holle 4, Dario Civon 4, Arlen Gharbian 3, Omar Rady 2
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