Eagles Can’t Keep up with Victor Valley

tpeterson on February 28, 2026 — Leave a Comment
Max Pineda led the Eagles with 14 points. (Photo by Duane Barker).

By Tim Peterson

(Azusa) – South El Monte was outscored 36-17 in the second half and fell to Victor Valley 78-47 Saturday in the CIF Division 8 Championship game at Felix Event Center.

South El Monte stayed with Victor Valley in the first quarter trailing only 12-11 after one. The Eagles jumped out to a 7-2 lead early until Victor Valley rallied to take a one-point advantage.

But things quickly changed in the second quarter. The Jackrabbits raced out on a 15-4 run to open the quarter and go up 27-15. Kayden Murray and Deanthony Dyer both knocked down threes in the run. The lead eventually ballooned to 18 at 39-21 until South El Monte made a final push late in the quarter.

Victor Valley scored 30 points in the quarter and hit four bombs from long distance. Aiden Tanks buried a couple from deep and scored six points in the quarter. Dyer tossed in 10 for the Jackrabbits in the second.

The Eagles offense got on track late in the quarter to stay within striking distance. Max Pineda scored seven for South but the Eagles were still down 42-30 at the break.

Elijah Lopez scored nine points for South including five in the first quarter. (Photo by Duane Barker).

In the third quarter the Jackrabbits put the Eagles out of striking distance. They went on a 12-3 run to go up 59-38 at the end of the third.

Victor Valley was in cruise control in the fourth quarter and the margin eventually hit 30. Dyer led all scorers with 18 points for the Jackrabbits. They had three players in double figures as Murray scored 14, including a break-away jam in the fourth, and Deangelo Dyer scored 11. Tanks, with his pair of threes, finished with eight.

For South El Monte Pineda hit two shots from beyond the arc and led the team with 14. Nathan Oros scored 11 and Elijah Lopez added nine. The Eagles were outrebounded by Victor Valley 20-11 and shot 33 percent from the field compared to 45 for Victor Valley.

While Victor Valley lays claim to the CIF Division 8 title South El Monte finishes the season with an overall record of 17-16.

Both teams now wait to see where they land in the CIF State Tournament.

VV 12 30 17 19 78

SEM 11 19 08 09 47

Posted in High School Sports

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