Redondo boys basketball team seeded fourth in CIF State Southern California Regional
Junior guard Leland Green was Redondo’s top scorer in the Consolation Championship. Photo Ray Vidal
The shots weren’t sinking for the Redondo boys’ basketball team in Friday night’s CIF Southern Section Open Division Consolation Championship game at Long Beach Poly, but the scrappy Sea Hawks impressed those who matter most earning a fourth seed in the State Division 1 Regionals.
Redondo rallied in the second half, narrowing a gap of 13 points to just four by the fourth quarter, but the effort proved too little, too late, and the Sea Hawks fell to the Jackrabbits 48-40.
Despite the victory, Poly is seeded only one spot higher than Redondo in the Division Regionals which began Wednesday.
Poly’s gymnasium was hot and crowded and showcased teams that had dropped their opening-round games in the Open Division but won two straight to reach the Consolation final.
Redondo supporters – cheerleaders, parents school administrators and friends — squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder and the energy was high in the first quarter as the Sea Hawks were passing with precision and defending with aggression.
Junior Leland Green, who would be Redondo’s top scorer with 13 points, sank a three and a layup within the first few minutes. At the close of the quarter, sophomore Ryse Williams sank a 3-pointer and senior Ryan Reeves made a layup with 20 seconds on the clock, putting Redondo in the lead 11-10. By the end of the first half, though, the Jackrabbits had gained a 5-point lead.
The home team used their height advantage – their center, Jordan Dallas, is 6’9” – to shut down Redondo’s shot attempts and by the end of the third quarter, the Hawks were lagging by 13 points.
Ryse Williams and the Redondo Sea Hawks earned a shot at the CIF State Division 1 title. Photo
Redondo heated up toward the end of the fourth and so did the energy in the bleachers. The Sea Hawks narrowed the margin to 44-40, where it stayed until there were 35 seconds to go. Poly connected on late free throws to seal the victory.
Despite its late comeback, Redondo was just 14 for 47 inside the key and made roughly 5 percent of its 3-point attempts. Friday’s loss dropped the Sea Hawks two places to 12th in the state rankings.
After a 61-56 loss to Cathedral, Redondo reached the Consolation Championship with a pair of road wins. The Sea Hawks eliminated J.W. North 61-58 and rallied to defeat Damien 82-77 in overtime.
Redondo (23-7) hosts Dorsey (24-7) in the first round of the Southern California Regional Wednesday night at 7 p.m. with the winner advancing to the second round on Saturday to take on the winner between No. 5 St. John Bosco and No. 12 Taft.
Semifinal games are scheduled for Tuesday, Mar. 17 followed by the Southern California finals on Saturday, Mar. 21 at The Pyramid on the campus of Long Beach State.
State Championship games will be played Friday and Saturday, Mar. 27-28 at UC Berkeley.
Brackets and results available at cifstate.org.