The Fanatics went home satisfied in the Wolverines’ second matchup with the Trailblazers on Tuesday night, after being disappointed on the road in Chatsworth the month before.
In the sixth matchup between the two teams since 2020, the boys’ basketball team defeated Sierra Canyon High School 72-38 in the second game of California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section (CIF-SS) group play, avenging their previous loss to the Trailblazers on Jan. 19. For the second consecutive game, four players for the Wolverines recorded double-digits in scoring, led by Christian Horry ’24 with 14 points, Amir Jones ’26 with 13 points, Nik Khamenia ’25 with 12 points and Trent Perry ’24 with 11 points. Perry also recorded a triple-double with 11 assists and ten rebounds. The Wolverines improve to 28-3 on the season with a 2-0 record in group play.
The team’s reserves were ultimately the deciding factor in the game, led primarily by Horry, Jones, Josh Engelberg ’24 and Dom Bentho ’26. When the Wolverines had built an 11-point lead in the second quarter to 21-10, the team’s big three of Perry, Khamenia and Robert Hinton ’24 only had a combined three points. Horry and Jones would combine for eight of the team’s 12 threes, with 80% efficiency from behind the arc. Boys’ Basketball Program Head David Rebibo said the team’s reserves stepped up in a big way for the team.
“These guys are all really good basketball players who have decided to come together and become a great team,” Rebibo said. “And there’s something to be said for guys who sacrifice, who commit and who also step up when it’s their time. Their number was called. They rose and they did what they’re supposed to do.”
Christian Horry hits his fourth 3-pointer to give Harvard-Westlake a 67-32 lead over Sierra Canyon pic.twitter.com/0LjauSjAPW
— Dan Lovi (@LoviSports) February 14, 2024
The blowout loss for the Trailblazers would be their worst of the season, who scored their lowest point total and allowed their second-largest point total of the whole season. The Wolverines held the Trailblazers to 21% efficiency on total field goals and 17% from the field, despite questionable calls from the referees during the game.
The team ultimately pulled away from the Trailblazers in the third quarter, where they went on a 17-2 run to take a thirty-point lead 51-21, capitalized by a Khamenia dunk assisted by Perry that forced a Sierra Canyon timeout The Wolverines’ lead would be too large for the Trailblazers to make a comeback, which was as large as 70-34 with a few minutes remaining.
OPEN DIVISION STANDINGS
GROUP A
- No. 1 Harvard-Westlake (2-0)
- No. 4 St. John Bosco (1-1)
- No. 5 Sierra Canyon (1-1)
- No. 8 Corona Centennial (0-2)
GROUP B
- No. 2 Roosevelt (2-0)
- No. 6 St. Pius X – St. Matthias (1-1)
- No. 7 JSerra (1-1)
- No. 3 Mater Dei (0-2)
The number one-seeded Wolverines can advance to the championship game Feb. 23 from Pool A with a win over fourth-seeded St. John Bosco on Feb. 16. However, if the team loses on Friday, the Braves will advance instead due to tiebreaker scenarios favoring the lower seed. Number two-seeded Roosevelt has clinched a spot in the championship game from Pool B, and will likely face the winner of Friday’s game.
In the previous year, the team lost to lower seed St. John Bosco in pool play, which resulted in a tiebreaker scenario favoring the Braves. Horry said the team is excited for their rematch on Friday.
“The main thing is revenge,” Horry said. “We need to kill [St. John Bosco]. That’s the main thing going through everybody’s head. [The goal] is the same thing we’ve been saying, everybody’s been talking about it. Mission League, [CIF Southern Section] and [CIF State]. We ain’t letting nobody stop us.”
