The Wolverines continue to cruise through the playoffs, as they dominated fourth-seed St. John Bosco in the final game of group play in the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section (CIF-SS) playoffs Feb. 16.
The boys’ basketball team defeated the Braves from Bellflower 64-40 at home, streaking to a ninth straight win since back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Sierra Canyon in January. Senior guard Trent Perry ’24 and junior forward Nik Khamenia ’25 led the team in scoring with 14 points each. The team improves to an overall record of 29-3 with a playoff record of 3-0.
As they did in their previous two games against Corona Centennial and Sierra Canyon, the Wolverines took a commanding lead to start the game, which would only grow larger. A dominating 15-2 first quarter would establish a double-digit point difference for the entirety of the game.
Isaiah Carroll’s corner 3 is good and gives Harvard-Westlake a 15-2 lead over St. John Bosco heading into the second quarter pic.twitter.com/9zCQLmQDZE
— Dan Lovi (@LoviSports) February 17, 2024
The team’s defense was exceptional once again, holding St. John Bosco to their lowest point total in the season. The Braves began the game 1-9 from the field and only scored nine in the first half, having trouble finishing at the rim against the Wolverines’ contests. St. John Bosco’s top guard Brandon McCoy, who is ranked second in the class of 2026 according to ESPN, was limited to only 14 points the entire game.
Halftime: Harvard-Westlake 29, St. John Bosco 9. The Wolverines’ defense was good on Tuesday routing Sierra Canyon. It’s even better tonight. A win sets up Open Division final on Friday night against Roosevelt at Cal Baptist.
— eric sondheimer (@latsondheimer) February 17, 2024
The team’s younger players have continued to execute in the playoffs, notably junior forward Isaiah Carroll ’25 and sophomore guard Amir Jones ’26, who combined for three three-pointers and 11 points.
OPEN DIVISION STANDINGS
GROUP A
- No. 1 Harvard-Westlake (3-0)
- No. 5 Sierra Canyon (2-1)
- No. 4 St. John Bosco (1-2)
- No. 8 Corona Centennial (0-3)
GROUP B
- No. 2 Roosevelt (3-0)
- No. 6 St. Pius X – St. Matthias (2-1)
- No. 7 JSerra (1-2)
- No. 3 Mater Dei (0-3)
The deficit was too large for St. John Bosco to make a comeback, as the Wolverines would win by a 24-point margin. The team moves on from group play to face second-seed Eastvale Roosevelt in the championship game, taking place at California Baptist University on Feb. 23.
According to the Los Angeles Times (LA) preseason basketball rankings in November, the Wolverines were ranked second to St. John Bosco among the best teams in Southern California. Senior guard Christian Horry ’24, who recently announced his commitment to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) UCLA, said the team is looking to prove doubters wrong going into Southern Section and State playoffs.
“They had us ranked at number two coming into the season, so we want to prove that we’re number one in everything,” Horry said.
