The Point Loma High boys basketball team will not make a CIF championship appearance under first-year head coach Josh Aros, but they came close.
The Pointers, seeded fourth of 16 Div. III teams, were the highest remaining seed after numbers one, two and three were all defeated in quarterfinal action.
With a semifinal game win against No. 9 seed Mt. Miguel in a home game on Tuesday Feb. 28, the Pointers would have advanced to the Div. III title game against the winner of the game between No. 6 Montgomery and No. 10 Sage Creek. But despite being ahead for most of the game by as many as 13 points, the Pointers lost their game 64-57 to Mt. Miguel.
The Div. III championship game will be played at the Jenny Craig Pavilion on the University of San Diego campus March 4 at 11 a.m.
“Mt. Miguel’s a good team,” Aros said, “and they’ve beaten some very good teams.”
Most notable, the Matadors eliminated No. 1 seed Coronado 55-45, a team that gave the Pointers fits this year. The Islanders, who won the Central League with an 11-1 record (28-4 overall), defeated the Pointers in both league meetings.
The Pointers finished second behind the Islanders with a 7-3 record (19-7 overall).
Fourth quarter play has carried the Pointers to victory in each of their two tournament wins to date.
Against Bonita Vista in their first round game, the Pointers turned an extremely tight and hard-fought game into a 76-65 win by outscoring the Barons 32-23 in a frantic fourth quarter run.
In that game, senior Darnell Johnson, junior Kyle Johnson and junior Carlos Amarrillaz each recorded a double-double on the score sheet. Darnell Johnson had 19 points and 11 rebounds, with Kyle Johnson (19, 15) and Amarrillaz (10, 10). Freshmen Yassine Gharram had 14 points while Dakarai Allen registered five steals.
Then, in a quarterfinal match with Otay Ranch, the Pointers broke open another close game with a 21-4 fourth quarter run to pin a 62-47 loss on the Mustangs.
The same trio again achieved a double double including Kyle Johnson (12, 16), Darnell Johnson (10, 10) and Amarrillaz (12, 12). Gharram led all scorers with 19 while Allen distributed seven assists and totaled four steals.
“The kids are taking the coaching really well, they understand this is a one-game elimination and have been giving 100 percent effort,” Aros said. “This is what we strive for every year, make it to the playoffs and win a championship.”