Oregon teams bounce a pair of out-of-state favorites in Hillsboro; Okafor, Emery go off at Beach Ball Classic.
Out-of-state teams have won the last seven titles at the Les Schwab Invitational, the top event on the calendar every year in Oregon.
But Wednesday's action at Liberty High School in Hillsboro saw a pair of tournament favorites from outside of the Beaver State fall.
Central Catholic (Portland) bounced
Ricardo Gathers and
Riverside Academy (Reserve, La.) while
Westview (Portland) stunned
Yates (Houston) in the nightcap.
The semifinals will feature three Oregon teams and
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), which has has won the LSI four times and finished second once.
Central Catholic raced to a 27-8 lead at the end of the first quarter against Riverside Academy and maintained a comfortable distance throughout before winning 82-65. The Rams, who will play
Jesuit (Portland) in Thursday's semifinals, received 34 points and nine rebounds from senior wing
Danny Brakebush.
Kansas signee
Landen Lucas, a 6-foot-9 transfer from
Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.), posted 20 points and 11 rebounds as Westview held high-scoring Yates in check, 68-59. The Wildcats will take on Oak Hill Academy in the semifinals.
OKAFOR, EMERY GO BIG AT BEACH BALL
A couple of individual performances highlighted Wednesday play at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
In a 78-62 win over
Lexington (S.C.),
Whitney Young (Chicago) received 36 points and 14 rebounds from 6-10 sophomore
Jahlil Okafor. The Dolphins will get a shot at City of Palms Classic champ
Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas) on Thursday.
An angry
Lone Peak (Highland, Utah) team looking for national respect at the event got 37 points from junior guard and reigning state player of the year
Nick Emery in an 86-48 win over Myrtle Beach. Emery drilled six 3-pointers and helped the Knights pile up 51 first-half points.
Lone Peak was an overwhelming pick to repeat in Utah's 5A classification this season but was upset in a tournament two weeks ago by
Orem. The Knights will face
St. Augustine (New Orleans) in quarterfinal action.
