West Catholic Athletic League Championship
Final score: Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco) 43, Valley Christian (San Jose) 35
Stars: Ki-Ki Moore (SHC) 12 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists; Jazmine Davis (VC) 12 points
Key stat: Rebounds, SHC 45, VC 16
Key run: SHC 10-0 to end the game
Records: SHC 23-1, Valley Christian 21-6
State ranking: SHC No. 4, Valley Christian No. 12
Previous meetings: SHC 72, VC 63 (Jan. 16), SHC 50, VC 35 (Feb. 5).
Boys WCAL final: St. Francis 70, Sacred Heart Cathedral 66 (see write-up Sunday night).
Video highlights/interviews: See Tuesday.
By Mitch Stephens
MaxPreps.com
LOS ALTOS HILLS, Calif. — At stake was another possible mythical national championship. So was a proud 46-game West Catholic Athletic League win streak and third straight outright league crown.
So when Sacred Heart Cathedral’s girls basketball team fell behind 35-33 to upstart Valley Christian with 4 minutes, 54 seconds left in the fourth quarter, a panic most assuredly must have struck the Irish.
If nothing else then, a sense of urgency.
Ha.
Picture the expressions of cows grazing, DMV employees, teens in first-period archeology class.
The poker-faced and defending national champion Irish ended on a 10-0 run to drop kick Valley Christian’s spirited effort and win going away 43-35 in the WCAL playoff finals before a packed crowd at Foothill College on Saturday.
“Honestly, I had no doubt we would win,” said Sacred Heart senior forward Ashley Boggs, who scored seven of her nine points in the second half including a key 3-pointer to seal it. “It’s our senior year and we didn’t want to share (the championship).”
As selfless as Sacred Heart is with the ball, the Irish are selfish when it comes to winning.
They’ve won three straight state championships and gone 149-9 over the last four seasons plus, including 73 of their last 74, the lone loss a 51-35 defeat to national power Long Beach Poly on Dec. 13.
They’ve played a tough national schedule during that time but what’s made them particularly tough in postseason is the strength of the WCAL, which features two-time defending state Division II champion Archbishop Mitty, and perennial state-ranked squads St. Ignatius and Valley Christian.
The other teams – St. Francis, Notre Dame-Belmont and Presentation – are always high Central Coast Section seeds.
That is why the Irish’s now 47-game WCAL win streak is nearly as impressive as the three-year state-title run.
“I’m a graduate of Sacred Heart and know what the WCAL is all about,” Harrigan said. “When we went through the first time undefeated that was impressive enough. To go unbeaten three straight years in one of the toughest leagues in California is a great accomplishment. It’s very meaningful.”
It also explains why they took Valley Christian’s best shot and barely blinked.
“They’ve been in so many different environments and scenes and arenas,” Harrigan said. “They’re poised in tough games.”
Especially the duo of WCAL Player of the Year Ki-Ki Moore, a 5-foot-8 point guard headed to Washington State, and McDonald’s All-American Tierra Rogers. Both are four-year starters.
Moore and Rogers, like all the Irish, couldn’t shoot a lick — a combined 6 of 22 — but they did about everything else to lift their team to victory. Moore had a game-high 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists, while the Cal-bound Rogers added 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Moore tied the game at 35-35 with an acrobatic shot and 3:40 remaining, then Rogers added a putback and three-point play 42 seconds later to put the Irish up for good 38-35.
“We just had to play harder,” Moore said.
They picked up the defensive intensity throughout the second half, giving up just nine points and 21 percent shooting (4 of 19).
The Warriors (21-6), ranked 12th in the state, got superb efforts from Jazmine Davis (12 points) and Jazzmyne Ross (10 points), but they didn’t score the last 4:54.
When Boggs drilled her team’s only 3-pointer of the game (in five attempts) with 1:15, Sacred Heart was well in command 41-35. Boggs, the team’s main 3-point threat, was just 3 of 9 from the floor.
“The shot was open and I stepped up and took it,” she said of her clutch 3-pointer. “Coach encourages me to keep shooting even when I’m off. So that’s what I did and luckily it went in.”
Moore sealed it with two free throws with 28.4 seconds remaining. Despite making just 14 of 43 from the floor and committing 22 turnovers, the Irish prevailed.
They absolutely dominated the boards with a 45-16 edge — a game-high 13 from 5-10 junior Kamilah Jackson — but the scrappy and short Warriors hung tough with superb man-to-man defense and ball-handling (they had just 13 turnovers).
Sacred Heart, however, found a way to continue its win streak. The Irish have won 18 straight this season.
“We’ve been in this position before,” Moore said. “I know the pressure really doesn’t scare me.”
With the queen of blank stares — Moore — leading the charge, the Irish seem always in control.
“You can’t tell if we’re 10 up and 10 down with Ki-Ki,” Harrigan said. “She’s picked up her game about five levels this year. She was one of great players the last three-four years but she’s risen to another level and really led the team.”
Said Moore: “I felt like I needed to step up this year and be a leader.”
The road only gets tougher from here on out. Though most are pointing to a repeat Northern California Division III final between the Irish, No. 12 nationally in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25, and St. Mary’s-Stockton (No. 13).
St. Mary’s coach Tom Gonzalves was video taping Saturday’s game. The game must have reminded him somewhat over last year’s NorCal final when St. Mary’s controlled most of the game but the Irish’s experience and confidence pulled it out, 46-45.
How would the Irish feel about playing St. Mary’s again.
“We would like to see St. Mary’s again definitely,” Boggs said. “Our goal is to win a fourth state championship but it would make it more meaningful to beat them along the way.”
Said Harrigan: “Tom has done a great job getting St. Mary’s right to the top. We played them often when we were trying to get to where we are right now. We’ve lost to them a couple times in the NorCal finals. We know how good they are. They have really good players, they are extremely well coached and work real hard.
“Would it be fun to play them again? Sure. We’d love the challenge. We have a couple more steps before that happens.”
E-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com.
WCAL Girls Basketball Championship
At Foothill College, Los Altos Hills
Sacred Heart Cathedral 43, Valley Christian 35
Valley Christian 10 16 4 5 - 35
Sacred Heart 10 13 10 10 - 43
VALLEY CHRISTIAN (21-6): Newton 1-5 1-2 3, Jazzmyne Ross 3-12 4-6 10, Amy Griffith 2-4 0-0 4, Jazmine Davis 5-16 0-0 12, Kiley McDermott 0-2 0-0 0, Kelsey Byrd 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 14-45 5-8 35.
SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL (23-1): Tierra Rogers 4-13 3-5 11, Ashley Boggs 3-9 2-2 9, Ki-Ki Moore 2-9 8-8 12, Rayven Brooks 2-5 1-2 5, Kamilah Jackson 3-7 0-0 6. Totals 14-43 14-17 43.
3-point goals: VC 2-8 (Davis 2), SHC 1-5 (Boggs). Rebounds: VC 16 (Byrd 5), SHC 45 (Jackson 13). Assists: VC 7, SHC 6 (Moore 5). Turnovers: VC 12, SHC 22.