The Burnaby South Rebels staved off a fourth-quarter rally by the Sardis Falcons to move on in the championship round at the B.C. high school AAA boys' basketball championships in Langley.
Led by the hot hand of first-year senior Martin Bogajev, South held on to defeat the honourable mention Chilliwack school team 73-69 in the opening game at the Langley Events Centre on Wednesday.
Bogajev led South's balanced scoring with 17 points, including three three-pointers and four-for-four free throws in the final two minutes of play that kept the Rebels in control of the scoreboard in the dying moments of the game.
South post Dejan Posavljak had 14 points on seven-of-nine shooting, while senior guard Gino Pagbilao nailed four long-range bombs in a 15point contribution that also included seven assists. Nick Garcha also shot in double figures, netting 13 points and nine rebounds for the Lower Mainland runners-up.
Junior varsity standout Jermaine Hayley was a perfect three-for-three from the floor for South, while also chipping in with eight boards in his first playoff game with the senior team.
South led 56-45 heading into the final quarter, but Sardis went on a 12-5 run to close the deficit, but could not get any closer than three points on a couple of occasions late in the game.
Mike Gregory led the Falcons with 18 points, while Hayden Lejeune popped in 17 points and added 14 boards for the Fraser Valley school.
South played No. 1 Walnut Grove on Thursday (after NOW deadlines).
Burnaby Mountain did not have much time to regroup after dropping its second consecutive game at the B.C. high school AAA boys' basketball championships.
The top-10 ranked Lions were beaten 67-47 by honourable mention Pitt Meadows Marauders yesterday afternoon in Langley, following a first-round upset loss to Caledonia on Tuesday.
Against Pitt, Mountain shot a dismal 20 per cent from the floor and collectively made just one-of16 three-point attempts. Mountain led at halftime 28-27 following an 18-9 second quarter.
The Marauders made good on more than 45 per cent of their buckets and beat up the Lions under the glass, blocking eight Mountain shots and outscoring the Burnaby team 22-6 in the paint.
Jaryn Bailey had 14 points for Mountain. Jordan Rich led Pitt with 29 points and 15 rebounds, while Sebastien Marshall tallied 21 points and eight assists for the winners.
The loss dropped the BurWest champions to the bottom bracket, where the Lions beat up on the North Peace Oscars 83-31 in an early Thursday morning matchup. Atdhe Hajrizi scored 30 and added 10 rebounds for Mountain.
Burnaby Mountain will play for 13th place on Saturday.
Tip off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
