Sage Hill boys’ basketball ekes out another close game in semifinals over San Gabriel Academy

Sage Hill’s run to a second CIF Southern Section boys’ basketball final in three seasons has been defined by determination and grit.

It took multiple clutch shots with the clock running down to send Sage Hill to the semifinals, and in an equally dramatic — and possibly more poetic — scene on Saturday, the Lightning ran out the final 19 seconds on defense without surrendering a shot.

All that is to say that Sage Hill, a 45-43 winner over San Gabriel Academy in a semifinal at home over the weekend, has proven its mettle in close games.

Sage Hill (18-9) now faces its CIF finals hurdle, a stage it has been on twice and is still looking for the first title in program history. The Lightning will take on Palmdale Knight (25-5) in the Division 3AA championship game on Saturday, March 1 at 8 p.m. at Edison High.

“I think it’s just really grit and how bad everybody wants it,” said Jackson Cryst, a senior center who had 14 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots. “At the end of the regular season, we went through a lot of tough losses. I think that bad taste in our mouth really led all the boys to just want it really bad.

“Knowing in those moments, in those tough losses, what it really takes, what made us lose, and then why we’re winning now. That feeling, that feels good, and even though in that moment you might not want to take that extra two steps that you have to to get that shot, get that rebound, make that cut, our coaches told us, and we’ve learned through the playoffs that it’s worth it — every time.”

Knight, the Golden League champion, has excelled in close games, too. The Hawks have won their last three games — against Hesperia, Los Angeles Price and Pasadena Maranatha — by a combined six points.

Sage Hill’s story is similar, all four of its playoff wins being decided by six points or less. The Lightning have fully committed to the defensive end of the floor, averaging just 40 points against in the postseason.

Cryst, who is 6-foot-10 and led Sage Hill to a CIF title in volleyball as a junior, has committed to Long Beach State for that sport. His ability to defend without fouling has been a crucial piece of the puzzle.

“We take advantage of the things a lot of people don’t see,” Sage Hill coach D’Cean Bryant said. “For him defensively, we tell him to ‘stay down, stay down, stay down,’ and then he goes up, we crack down. … That just comes from volleyball, right? He’s got to time that jump, he’s got to wait, he’s got to see the block.”

Cryst relished the opportunity to have a true battle in the paint with San Gabriel Academy sophomore Mahamadou Diop, a 6-foot-11 center who led the Eagles with 14 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks.

“I prefer this to a game where I’m going to be one-against-three, where I’m getting triple-[teamed], and when I’m not really getting to guard a true big,” Diop said. “It was fun to bang down low, be able to get after it. He’s a great player. He’s really strong, really big, so I think we look forward to moments like this, where it could be challenging.”

Outside of a game-tying basket in the closing seconds of regulation in the quarterfinals, sophomore guard Tre Cradle largely struggled due to foul trouble against Tustin.

Cradle bounced back with 10 points, including a second-half dunk, in the semifinals. He added two blocks, one of which came against Diop to end the first half.

“I didn’t score a whole lot,” said Cradle, reflecting on the quarterfinal. “Our coach always says, ‘You always have the right time to make plays,’ whether it’s a rebound, a game-tying bucket, a steal, whatever it is. You’re going to have your moment. It’s just a matter of time.”

Sage Hill forged another fourth-quarter comeback, rallying from a 39-35 deficit and surrendering just one basket — a three-pointer by Marquise Humphreys — in the final four minutes.

James Karahalios added 10 points for the Lightning, and Carson Ellis chipped in with two steals. Cryst had the go-ahead score on a driving layup with just over a minute to go, then a key block on Diop on the next defensive possession.

When teams have had the Lightning down late, it hasn’t phased them. Cryst believes preparation — both in practice and on the schedule — has contributed heavily to success.

“Our practices right now, they’re not too difficult, because we built the capacity,” Cryst said. “Throughout the whole season, we’re building, we’re building, we’re building because you don’t want to be the best in the beginning of the season. You want to be the best now — in playoffs, in the championship.

“We’ve built the capacity to play these gritty games, these dirty games, and know what we have to do. That’s why we don’t want a cupcake schedule. We don’t want easy games in the beginning of the year — blowouts. We want to build the capacity to play in games like this.”

CIF Southern Section Division 3AA semifinals

Sage Hill 45, San Gabriel Academy 43

San Gabriel Academy 13 - 10 - 14 - 6 — 43

Sage Hill 8 - 13 - 14 - 10 — 45

SGA — Diop 14, Humphreys 11, Hsu 5, Wang 5, Moreau 4, Traore 4.

3-pt. goals — Humphreys 3, Hsu 1, Wang 1.

Fouled out — None.

Technicals — None.

SH — Cryst 14, Cradle 10, Karahalios 10, To. Akomolafe 5, Ellis 2, Gomez 2, Yun 2.

3-pt. goals — To. Akomolafe 1, Cryst 1.

Fouled out — None.

Technicals — None.

Also in the CIF Southern Section boys’ basketball playoffs:

Pacifica Christian Orange County 84, Corona Centennial 80 (2OT): EJ Spillman had 33 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the visiting Tritons on Friday in a Division 2AA semifinal game.

Hudson Reynolds added 19 points and 10 rebounds for Pacifica Christian (23-7), which will face Fairmont Prep (21-9) in the championship game on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Toyota Arena in Ontario.

The Tritons and Huskies split the San Joaquin League title in the regular season.

Michael Noel scored 11 points for Pacifica Christian. Logan Stewart added eight points and 10 rebounds.

Pacifica Christian will be competing in its third CIF final, looking for its first section title. The Tritons previously met Fairmont in the Division 4AA final in 2019, a game the Huskies took by a score of 52-49 at Godinez High.