High school basketball: Bronny James leads Sierra Canyon past St. Vincent-St. Mary 71-53 on ESPN game

Bronny James, Kijani Wright and Shy Odom made sure Amari Bailey's absence from the No. 5 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) starting lineup Saturday didn't matter as the Trailblazers built a 21-point halftime lead en route to a 71-53 win over St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, Ohio) in the nationally televised Chosen-1's Invitational.

Playing in front of a star-studded crowd at Staples Center in Los Angeles that included Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and Bronny James' father LeBron James, Sierra Canyon jumped on the visitors — LeBron James' alma mater — from the start.

Wright opened the scoring with an emphatic dunk and James put Sierra Canyon up 5-3 minutes later by swishing a 3-pointer from the top of the key. The bigger, more physical Trailblazers harassed the Fighting Irish — who looked star-struck and took a while to get their sea legs. Bronny James led the way with 19 points, while Odom, Ramel Lloyd Jr. and Wright each added 15.

Sierra Canyon opened a 25-point lead midway through the third quarter on a James jumper bucket before a St. Vincent-St. Mary flurry led by Sencire Harris trimmed it to 17 at 51-34. Harris finished with 17 points.

But the night belonged to Sierra Canyon, as the Trailblazers were too deep. Wright had his way in the paint, including a few highlight-reel dunks, while Odom had a coming out party hitting from all over the court and in transition.

But the showstopper was James — who, as a freshman, was the MVP of the 2019 game played in Ohio. His pair of first-quarter 3-pointers showed the work he's put in on his shooting, while his transition game also shined with a pair of in-traffic layups, one of which got LeBron James up out of his seat.

Few even noticed that Bailey — a five-star recruit headed to UCLA — was out with a sprained ankle. He sat at the end of the end of the bench with a walking boot and crutches.