Southern Section Playoffs : Estancia Seeks Similar Results Against Capistrano Valley

When Estancia High School meets Capistrano Valley at 7:30 tonight in the second round of the Southern Section 4-A basketball playoffs at Mission Viejo High School, the Eagles will be looking for a repeat of last season’s result against the Cougars.

Estancia and Capistrano Valley met in the 3-A semifinals at the Los Angeles Sports Arena a year ago and it was the Eagles who emerged with a hard-earned 72-64 victory. One of their many heroes in that game was Scott Clements, who is their top player this season.

Estancia trailed, 49-44, with two seconds left in the third quarter when Clements made a 51-foot bank shot. That cut the Cougar lead to three points and sparked the Eagles to the victory.

This time, the game is not a semifinal, but the stakes are still high for Estancia (25-3) and Capistrano Valley (21-5).

Estancia Coach Joe Reid said the Eagles and Cougars played informally last summer and that the contest went down to the last 20 seconds, with the Cougars taking a three-point victory. Both teams favor the same style of play.

“I’ve seen them play and it’s like I’m looking in a mirror at our own team,” Reid said. “They’ve got four starters in double figures and like to press, too. The only big difference is that they look for the outside shot a lot more than we do.”

Said Capistrano Valley Coach Mark Thornton: “It should be a good matchup. Both teams use the entire court, play up-tempo games, and both our offenses score off mistakes forced by the defense.”

Reid said the outside shooting of guards Gregg Bujnovsky and Nathan Call could present problems for the Eagles’ zone defense. Under first-year coach Reid, Estancia plays mostly zone, although it did go man-to-man when it fell far behind Newport Harbor the first time those Sea View League teams met during the regular season.

While it’s probable the Eagles will stay with their zone against Capistrano Valley, it would be fun to see a man-to-man matchup between guards Adam Lockwood of Estancia and Call, the two best athletes on the floor.

As to whether revenge might be a factor for the Cougars, Thornton said, “Well, we won’t have any problems getting up for the game, believe me.”

In other 4-A playoff action:

John W. North (21-3) vs. Mission Viejo (23-4) at El Toro High--The defending 3-A champion Huskies are led by 6-3 guard Enoch Simmons, who averages 24.5 points per game, ninth-best in the Southern Section. He has a season high of 39 points. Point guard Derek Robinson (5-8) averages 6.5 assists per game while center Andy Johnson (6-5) is the team’s leading rebounder. Johnson missed most of the league season with a broken right arm, but is fully recovered. The Diablos will be seeking to avenge last season’s 64-48 blowout in the semifinals.

Dominguez (20-4) vs. Dana Hills (18-5) at San Clemente High--The Dons lost to El Toro in the first round of last season’s playoffs, so they will be wary of any South County teams they face. The key for Dominguez will not be in stopping the Dolphins’ Bryan McSweeney, but rather the guard tandem of Will Jeffers and Eddie Esteban. They sparked Dana Hills’ late-season resurgence.

Newport Harbor (23-3) vs. Muir (20-6) at Pasadena High--The Mustangs feature one of the most talented players in the Los Angeles area in 6-5 forward Tony Akins, a deft shooter from the 10 to 18-foot range. He averages 23 points per game. Dennis Price (6-6) and Stacey Augmon (6-5) also start on the front line with swingman Trevor Houston (6-3) and Ocean View transfer Derek Brown (6-1) in the backcourt.

In 3-A action:

Burbank (19-4) vs. Katella (20-4) at Cypress College--The Bulldogs defeated Antelope Valley, 61-51, last Friday night to gain its first playoff victory since 1967. Burbank’s leading scorer is point guard Gary Lotka (5-10), who averages 17.5 points per game. Forward Orlando Cepeda, whose father was the National League’s Most Valuable Player with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1967, scored 20 points against Antelope Valley.

Kennedy (20-5) vs. Nogales (20-6) at Rowland High--The Nobles get something of a home-court advantage by playing at nearby Rowland, which has a gym that is nearly identical to Nogales’. The Nobles struggled to beat Troy last Friday and they will find the Fighting Irish are no easier to contend with.

Brea-Olinda (23-4) vs. Montclair (17-8) at Ontario High--The Cavaliers’ record is deceptive. Center Desmond Scieneaux and forward Gary West offer an excellent counterpart to the Wildcats’ Kevin Walker and David Fox, which means Brea’s supporting cast must play up to par as well.

El Dorado (22-3) vs. Ganesha (17-6) at Garey High--The Giants thumped an average Claremont team to get to the second round, so it remains to be seen if they have the speed and firepower to stay with the Golden Hawks. El Dorado, meanwhile, is coming off two big wins--the first over Kennedy in the Empire League finale and last Friday against Fullerton in the first round of the playoffs.

Morningside (19-4) vs. La Quinta (11-11) at Los Amigos High--Common sense says the Monarchs should win easily, but then Savanna was favored over the Aztecs last Friday, too. Scott St. John led La Quinta with 23 points against the Rebels, including the game-winner at the buzzer. Morningside’s 6-2 senior guard Darrell Gordon was voted the Most Valuable Player of the Pioneer League. He averages 15 points per game. Elden Campbell, a 6-8 junior center, scored 17 points in the Monarchs’ 85-57 win over Canyon.