California Teams Advance to CIF State Basketball, Soccer Finals

Several high school teams from Southern and Northern California advanced through regional playoffs this week, securing spots in the CIF State Championships for boys and girls basketball and soccer, set for March 13 and 14 at Golden 1 Center and other venues in Sacramento. In basketball, standout performances highlighted defensive stands and late rallies, while soccer saw tight matches decided by single goals and penalty kicks.

In boys basketball Division I Southern California regional finals, No. 4 St. John Bosco rallied from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter to defeat No. 6 Damien 49-44 on Tuesday. The Spartans limited Damien to 12 points in the second half despite struggling with three-point shooting, going 7-for-35. St. John Bosco, which earlier overcame Mater Dei in overtime 75-71, advances to face the Northern California champion in the state final at 8 p.m. Friday. Key for the Braves will be containing Damien's perimeter players Eli Garner, Elijah Smith and Zaire Rashan, while their own 6-foot-8 forward Christian Collins, a five-star recruit, dominated with 32 points and 17 rebounds against Mater Dei. The matchup pits coaches with history: St. John Bosco's Matt...