Mater Dei Faces Quick St. Bernard in Semifinal

Quick Quiz: Name the four teams that have beaten Mater Dei High School during the four-year reign of Coach Gary McKnight. Answer: Crenshaw, DeMatha, Long Beach Poly and St. Bernard.

Mater Dei has won an amazing 113 games during McKnight’s tenure, and the Monarchs face one of the answers to the trivia question at 8:45 tonight when they meet St. Bernard in the CIF Southern Section 5-A semifinals in the Los Angeles Sports Arena.

St. Bernard defeated the Monarchs, 66-52, in McKnight’s first season at the Santa Ana-based parochial school, but has paid a price for the win. Mater Dei has beaten the Vikings five consecutive times, including a 61-58 win at Loyola Marymount University earlier this season.

The game features a contrast in styles. Mater Dei (27-0) utilizes a power offense with 6-foot 10-inch center LeRon Ellis and 6-9 forward Stuart Thomas. Thomas averages 19.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Ellis averages 14.8 points and 6.3 rebounds.

St. Bernard (18-6) is a quick, fast-breaking team led by guard David Whitmore and forward Kirland Howling. Whitmore averages 23 points per game and Howling has scored 20 or more points in five of his last six games.

“We’ve always had difficulty matching up with St. Bernard,” McKnight said. “We’re big and they’re quick. We’ve had some real close games with them.”

The Monarchs, riding a 56-game winning streak over the past two seasons, have faced packed-in zone defenses in two playoff games against St. Francis and St. Anthony that were designed to collapse on Ellis and Thomas.

“Everybody is trying to contain our inside game and giving us the outside shot,” McKnight said. “We need everyone to play well as a team if we hope to win.”

Jim McClune, St. Bernard coach, said his team shot only 40% in the three-point loss to Mater Dei at Loyola and will have to shoot better in tonight’s rematch.

“If we don’t take good shots, we’re in trouble,” McClune said. “We’re not going to get many second shots, so we have to be patient.”

The game also will be a preview of things to come. St. Bernard will move into the Angelus League next season and figures to be the Monarchs’ chief competition.

In other 5-A action:

Serra (22-4) vs. Edison (17-9) at 7 p.m. at the Sports Arena: The high-scoring Cavaliers have gone over the century mark in five of their last six games and have won 17 straight. Three-year starter Keith Malone (6-2) averages 25 points per game and Alemany transfer James Moses (6-4) adds 23 points per game. Edison, the 5-A division’s surprise team, has upset Verbum Dei and Long Beach Poly to advance further in the playoffs than any other team in the school’s history.

In the 3-A:

Brea-Olinda (25-4) vs. Ganesha (27-1) at Ontario High: The name of the game has been free throws for the Wildcats. Brea has made 80 of 107 free-throw attempts in three playoffs games for 75%. Opposing teams have made only 28 of 55 attempts for 51%. The Wildcats are returning to the same gym where they were upset by Montclair in the second round last year.