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.
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
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@CE …. Some of those bottom division games are very weak . Some divisions are made of teams that are ( almost all) below .500 . The system is randomized to make sure new schools can now be crowned champions even if not very good by overall standards.
Other platforms (Escarcega) drool over new schools winning championships like it means something- which it does for the admins and coaches who can now call their program a success and move on to a better job .
You still have to play and win the games , so I don’t begrudge the accomplishment . I’m glad that some players get a surprise opportunity for the spotlight , but many others get slighted by the randomization.
I’ve coached for 20 years and winning CIF was ultimate goal prior to 2016’. The lure has lost its luster over time , and with current format don’t care about it that much anymore . Get a top seed in lower division and you have a good chance – seedings are random likewise divisional placement .
It’s the way of the world at present
Another example of how CIF’s new computerized system has failed to deliver its promise of close games between teams of similar abilities. I’d like to suggest that CIF stop using artificial intelligence and start showing us some real intelligence.