Sage Hill boys’ basketball dispatches Littlerock to make CIF championship game

LITTLEROCK —  The Sage Hill School boys’ basketball team has gone from “one and done” to “one more to go for a ring.”

A year after losing in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division 4A playoffs, the Lightning will play for the championship.

Sage Hill’s remarkable season continues after the No. 4-seeded Lightning posted a 55-49 win at Littlerock on Friday night in a Division 4A semifinal game.

Junior wing player Carter Bryant had 28 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and six blocks for Sage Hill (15-11). Junior post Johnny Mayhew added 13 points and 11 rebounds.

The tandem helped lead the Lightning, guided by first-year coach D’Cean Bryant, into the CIF championship game against Long Beach Jordan. The No. 2-seeded Panthers topped Pacifica Christian Santa Monica, 84-64, in the other semifinal game.

Sage Hill will meet Jordan for the championship on Saturday, Feb. 25 at a venue to be determined. The Lightning have never won a CIF title; the only previous team to make the finals was in 2019.

“It’s great going from a first-round exit team all the way to the finals,” Mayhew said. “Our ups and downs have been pretty bad, especially our downs, but we’re in the finals now.”

Senior guard Shaan Patel added seven points for Sage Hill, and senior guard Rocky Lee scored three on a make from downtown. The Lightning led by as many as 14 points and never trailed.

Carter Bryant also had a trio of dunks in the game, including one on the very first possession of the contest. Still, Littlerock (19-9) and junior guard William Young Jr. proved tough to put away.

The Lobos, who had rallied from a double-digit fourth quarter deficit to win at top-seeded Lawndale Leuzinger in the quarterfinals, threatened to do something similar to Sage Hill.

Young Jr., who matched Bryant with 28 points, scored 12 of those in the fourth quarter on Friday for the hosts. His step-through layup pulled Littlerock within 47-42 with 2:30 left to play.

But Carter Bryant immediately found Mayhew on a slashing drive that ended up as a three-point play.

“It’s just dedication of our guys, especially Johnny,” said Carter Bryant of the team’s success. “He’s been in the gym with the coaching staff. He’s watching a lot of film. It’s definitely paid off. You could see his progression as the season went on. He’s shooting a lot better. He’s shooting a really high percentage from the field, along with Shaan Patel. They’re just doing a lot of really great things.”

Sage Hill’s Shaan Patel (21), shown shooting in the first round of the playoffs against Whittier, scored seven points Friday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Littlerock got a couple of good looks at three-pointers in the closing moments, including a corner try by Omari Penn that somehow spun out with 25 seconds left. That would have cut the Lightning lead to two, but on the other end, Carter Bryant sunk two free throws to push it back to seven.

Carter Bryant made seven of nine field goal attempts and was a perfect 14 of 14 from the free-throw line.

His dad, D’Cean Bryant, said he had talked to his team about Littlerock’s run against Leuzinger. The Lightning made sure the same thing didn’t happen to them.

“They saw that it was the same situation,” D’Cean Bryant said. “Luckily, we were able to make our free throws down the stretch, they missed some open looks and we got the rebounds. You know, it’s hard. They got to the semifinals for a reason. They’re a team that’s resilient, and we were just a little bit better tonight.”

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CIF Southern Section Division 4A playoffs

Semifinal

Sage Hill 55, Littlerock 49

Sage Hill 15 – 9 – 15 – 16 – 55

Littlerock 9 – 8 – 15 – 17 – 49

SH – Bryant 28, Mayhew 13, Patel 7, Lee 3, Talleur 2, Katkin 2.

3-pt. goals – Patel 1, Lee 1.

Fouled out – Talleur.

Technicals – None.

L – Young Jr. 28, Morgan 9, Penn 5, Moore 4, Fuentes 3.

3-pt. goals – Young Jr. 2, Penn 1, Fuentes 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

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