After losing in the Division 2 California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section championship, the Saugus Centurions girls basketball team returned home on Tuesday and secured a 46-39 win over the Lincoln Hornets of San Diego.
With the first-round win in the Division 2 CIF state playoffs, the Centurions won their first-ever game in state competition, an achievement that left Saugus head coach Anthony Falasca proud.
“There’s a lot I get to add to my resume this year,” Falasca said in response to the team’s first-ever state playoff win. “I told the girls, ‘All I want is a chance and a chance to be in the game’ … We got open shots. We didn’t knock them down. It’s going to take us knocking those shots down to continue to move on. But I think defense is what won this game tonight.”
The Centurions held the Hornets’ offense to just 13 points in the first half. But throughout the game, the Saugus offense struggled to make baskets, which left multiple opportunities for Lincoln to get back in the game.
In the third quarter, Lincoln’s offense opened with a 6-0 scoring run to cut the Centurions’ lead to 24-19, which prompted a timeout from Saugus.
One player Falasca relied on to lead the Centurions out of their rut was junior Rachael Correa, who scored 13 points in the win.
Throughout the second half, Correa grabbed timely rebounds and drove to the baskets to score.
After the game, Falasca said Correa really improved over the course of the year and compared her play style to the likes of Draymond Green and Ron Artest with their defensive ability.
“She has that caliber of a rebounding skill if we allow her to go get it,” Falasca said. “And in these playoffs, and this season, she gives us extra shots, and when you’re not shooting the way that we want to shoot, we need extra shots.”
After the game, Falasca added he’s proud of his team’s mindset in the way they responded after losing in the CIF championship last weekend.
Falasca said many teams usually just let other teams win so they can end their season, but his Centurions wanted to defend their home court once they learned they were at Saugus for the first round of the state playoffs.
“We used the analogy that the next day is coming whether you like it or not,” he said. “And do we want to show up and play, or do we want to give up and let a team come into our house? Once we found out on Sunday, who were we playing? We don’t want somebody to come into our house and beat us.”
With the win, the Centurions will host their second-round matchup on Thursday, and with another opportunity to play at home, Falasca is looking forward to having a packed gym as they continue with the playoff run.
“We’re going to try to pack this house. We’re going to try to get 100 more people here, and get more students here,” he said. “This is an amazing group of young women that have just bought into each other, man. They want to fight for each other.”
The Centurions will host the Grossmont Foothillers of El Cajon on Thursday at Saugus High School with tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m.
Centennial 67, Valencia 40
The Valencia girls’ basketball season came to an end Tuesday night as the Vikings fell in the first round of the Division 1 state playoffs to the Centennial Huskies of Corona.
Sophomore guard Kamila Basyrova led all Vikings in scoring with 22 points and tallied four rebounds and 2 steals.
With the loss, the Vikings are eliminated from the CIF state playoffs.
