Damien High School

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Damien Basketball WINS CIF Finals!

Congratulations to Coach Matt Dunn and the Damien Spartan basketball team on winning Damien's first CIF Southern Section Basketball Championship!! Final score was Damien 54, Santa Margarita 40.

ANAHEIM - Damien High School, after advancing to the CIF-Southern Section finals for the first time, wasn't about to waste the opportunity.

Ayo Adedeji and Jeremy Hemsley made sure of it.

Adedeji had 18 points and eight rebounds and Hemsley scored 17 points and the Spartans scored the program's first CIF-SS title with a 54-40 victory over Santa Margarita in the Division 3AA championship game Thursday night at Anaheim Arena....

The Spartans, who had made three previous trips to the semifinals only to be denied, improved to 25-6 and will likely receive a bid when the CIF State playoff brackets are announced Sunday.

Santa Margarita, getting 16 points from Devonte Klines, slipped to 16-15.

"It feels so good for the kids," Damien coach Matt Dunn said. "I don't even mean the guys on our team right now. I've heard from so many of our former players. They feel a part of this also and they are. It takes a little bit of luck, and luck was on our side tonight a little bit."

It was more of Adedeji and Hemsley, who refused to let the Spartans fade, even after Damien fell behind 27-22 early in the third quarter.

Adedeji hit back-to-back 3-pointers and Hemsley had a nine-footer and two free throws as the Spartans closed the quarter with a 9-3 surge to lead 36-34 after three quarters.

The duo then helped the Spartans pull away in the fourth.Hemsley opened the fourth quarter with a three-point play and a driving layup for a 41-34 lead. Adedeji, after Santa Margarita had cut it to 41-38 with five minutes left, followed with an inside shot at 1:25 and a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left that gave the Spartans a 50-43 advantage.

"I can't put this into words," Hemsley said. "I'm really happy for the seniors. It's a great feeling. I'm real happy right now."

Santa Margarita, getting six points each from Klines and Furstinger, led 23-21 at halftime.

But Damien survived a key two-minute stretch when Hemsley was forced to the bench after picking up his second foul at 6:12 of the second quarter, with the Spartans clinging to a 16-15 advantage.

Furststinger and Tyler Straus had back-to-back baskets for a 19-16 advantage.

But Hemsley, who came back in a 3:55, made a five-footer to cut it to 19-18 before Ayo Adedeji followed with a three-point play to tie it at 21 with 1:25 left in the first half.

Klines countered with a steal and dunk for a 23-21 lead with 36 seconds left. Santa Margarita had a chance to extend the lead. But Ryan Merritt missed a 3-pointer and Strauss was short on the putback at the buzzer.

"We hung in there," Dunn said. "It wasn't pretty. But I thought we defended and rebounded real well in that stretch. That kept us in it. We didn't score a lot. But we defended and got loose balls and that helped us in the end."

Damien, getting 3-pointers from Keith Cavanaugh and Dizon, led 13-11 after the first quarter.

The Spartans, following a 3-pointer by Cavanaugh and a putback by the senior, opened with a 6-2 surge. But Santa Margarita rallied to cut it to 11-10 following a 3-pointer by Merritt and free throws by Shane Cavanaugh.

Adedeji's layup at 1:48 made it 13-11.

Original article can be found on

http://www.sgvtribune.com/sports/ci_22694713/high-school-boys-basketball-damien-wins-its-first