PEEK AT THE WEEK:Mustangs catching break

As most high school basketball teams have reached the midway point in their respective league schedules, the Costa Mesa High boys’ squad is still in the thick of the title picture in the Orange Coast League.

The Mustangs, in a three-way tie for first with Laguna Beach and Calvary Chapel after one round of play in the four-team circuit, can take a big step toward thinning out the contenders when they visit Laguna Beach Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.

Costa Mesa (14-7, 2-1 in league), ranked No. 10 in CIF Southern Section Division III-A, defeated Laguna Beach (18-4, 2-1), ranked No. 3 in CIF Division III-A, 59-58, in the league opener Jan. 12 at home.

But the Mustangs should face an easier road against the Breakers this time around. That’s because Laguna Beach senior guard Cheyne Martin, who was averaging 28.5 points per game, including 31 in the first meeting against the Mustangs, is out for the season after sustaining a broken right wrist in a Jan. 15 game against Glendora.

Costa Mesa, led by Larry Puente and Moses Titus, is coming off an emotional 63-51 triumph Friday over crosstown rival Estancia.

Here’s a look at some other intriguing matchups during the week ahead.

Both schools battle virtually every year for the Academy League title and this year appears to be no exception.

The Lightning boys’ team (9-0-2, 6-0 in league) is ranked No. 4 in CIF Southern Section Division VI. Sage defeated St. Margaret’s. 2-0, in their first league meeting, Jan. 9 at Sage Hill.

The Sage girls’ squad (7-7-2, 4-1) suffered its only league loss to St. Margaret’s, 2-1, in overtime on Jan. 9.

The Tartans’ girls’ team is ranked No. 2 in CIF Division VI.

This is a rematch of familiar foes, as CdM (13-4), ranked No. 3 in last week’s CIF Southern Section Division I poll, knocked off the No. 2-ranked Oilers, 6-4, in the third-place game of the Santa Barbara Tournament of Champions Sunday.

The Mustangs (10-9, 2-1 in the Orange Coast League) enter as the favorite in this clash of crosstown and league rivals.

The Anteaters narrowly missed surprising the Titans with a late comeback Saturday, but were defeated when Frank Robinson drained a three-pointer with one second left to help Fullerton (14-5, 5-2) stay in the hunt for the Big West Conference title.

Long Beach State (13-5, 4-1) leads the eight-team conference standings, while UCI sits in fifth place with eight Big West games remaining.

A pair of wins this week would catapult Coach Pat Douglass’ Anteaters (9-11, 3-3) into a pack of teams battling for a league crown.

Two losses would give them little margin for error in trying to secure one of the conference’s top four spots for the eight-team postseason tournament, March 7-10 in Anaheim.

The Anteaters (8-0, 4-0 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation), hope to maintain their No. 1 national ranking against the Trojans (2-4, 1-4) and the Waves (3-1, 2-1), in MPSF matches this week.

Pepperdine entered last week ranked No. 5, but suffered its first loss Friday at home to Long Beach State.