MENIFEE - Perris boys basketball coach Elzie Landers
was counting on his team's defensive pressure to carry the Panthers into their
first championship game since 1977.
Perris trailed by only two points after 3 �
quarters, thanks in large part to the defense forcing 19 turnovers, but things
fell apart for the Panthers over the final three minutes.
La Canada Renaissance Academy used a 12-3 run
over the final three minutes to defeat Perris, 64-53, Friday night in a CIF
Division 3A semifinal game played at Paloma Valley High.
"The difference in this game is they
finished and we didn't," Landers said.
Renaissance Academy (27-1) is an all-boys
school with an enrollment of only 55, but the Wildcats played an extremely
tough freelance schedule this season. Coach Sid Cooke said that has helped his
team prepare for the jump up from Division 5A, the Southern Section's smallest.
"We've played teams like (Ontario)
Colony and Simi Valley, and that really helps us when we play a strong team
like this one," Cooke said. "Their pressure definitely gave us some
problems in the beginning, but we played very well once we settled thing
down."
Renaissance Academy took advantage of Perris'
aggressive at times, throwing the ball over the top to beat the Panthers'
full-court pressure and get easy breakaway layups.
"I think the excitement of the game
caused us to get out of position a few time, and they (the Wildcats) were able
to capitalize in those situations," Landers said.
Perris (19-10) and Renaissance Academy traded
shots throughout the game, as each team used large offensive runs to answer one
another. Perris fell behind 10-4 after four minutes but the Panthers countered
with a 23-12 run over the next 10 minutes.
Perris trailed by two points in the closing
minutes but missed two chances to tie the game. On one of those possessions,
the Panthers missed three shots from within five feet.
Myron Samuel and Robert Smith led the
Panthers with 13 points apiece, but the duo was held to a combined six points
in the second half.
Reach Eric-Paul Johnson at 951-368-9530
or [email protected]