Harvard-Westlake Takes a Hard Fall

There would be no repeat, only repeated regrets of opportunities lost and a lack of desire.

Harvard-Westlake High, seeking its second consecutive Southern Section girls’ basketball championship, instead fell to Inglewood Morningside, 53-46, in the Division III-A final Friday at The Pyramid in Long Beach.

“It was our worst game of the year,” junior forward L’Tanya Robnett said.

The top-seeded Wolverines (26-5) made only 16 of 53 shots (30%) from the field, committed 13 turnovers and were outscored, 17-11, in the third quarter as the Monarchs (21-9) pulled away from an 18-18 halftime tie.

“It seemed like they just had more desire than we did tonight,” Coach Brian Taylor said.

Morningside (21-9), which claimed its eighth section title, had ample motivation.

Harvard-Westlake defeated the Monarchs, 45-41, last season in the division final, then eliminated them the following week from the Southern Regionals.

“We wanted to beat them bad,” said Morningside forward Kamesha Bell, who had 15 points and 17 rebounds.

Said Morningside Coach Frank Scott: “That’s the team we wanted.”

Both teams again will advance to the regionals, beginning Tuesday. Division III seedings will be announced Sunday.

Harvard-Westlake and Morningside could meet again, most likely in the regional final next Saturday.

“I kind of think that will be the case,” Scott said.

In a strange twist, the Wolverines may draw inspiration from a motivational speaker who will appear on their campus Monday: former Morningside and USC All-American Lisa Leslie, one of the top female players in the world.

“We just have to get our heads back together any way we can,” Robnett said.

Wolverine forward Omelogo Udeze scored a game-high 23 points, but she made only six of 18 shots. She made 11 of 12 free throws.

“It’s frustrating,” said Udeze, who had 16 rebounds. “I don’t feel like I played nearly as well as I was capable.”

Still, her two free throws with 56 seconds left pulled the Wolverines within six, 48-42.

Robnett, who averages 10 points, scored her first basket 11 seconds later to make it 48-44.

But with top three-point shooter Brooke Porter on the bench because of an injury suffered in the fourth quarter, Robnett missing all six of her three-point shots and forward Rolake Bamgbose fouling out, Harvard-Westlake posed little threat of overtaking the Monarchs.

Morningside’s Acheve Barre, who had 15 points and 12 rebounds, made five of six free throws in the final 32 seconds to seal it.

Porter scored 11 points, including nine on three-pointers, before she collided with Lisel Tucker at midcourt with 2:44 left.

Porter, who suffered a severe cut to her lower lip, was immediately tended to by emergency technicians and did not return to the game. She was expected to receive stitches in the lip later Friday night.

Harvard-Westlake, which made nine three-pointers last week in a 65-46 semifinal rout of Santa Ynez, made only three of 16 attempts against Morningside.

The Monarchs made four three-point baskets, including two by Nicole Ingram, a transfer from Inglewood who scored all eight of her points in the second half.

The Monarchs, who last won a section title in 1993, received an additional boost from Donnisha Sanford, who scored 14 points.

Sanford’s nine rebounds gave her 285 this season, surpassing Leslie’s school freshman mark of 283.

“She’s quite a freshman,” said Scott, who also coached Leslie.