Elijah Harkless locks down Westchester to deliver Etiwanda the upset

During the summer, Elijah Harkless of Etiwanda was the guard mate of LaMelo Ball on a travel team coached by LaVar Ball. Who says LaVar doesn’t teach defense? Harkless might not be able to shoot like Ball, but few point guards have played post defense better than the 6-foot-3 senior pulled off on Friday night in rallying the Eagles to a 68-60 upset of City Section Open Division champion Westchester.

At halftime, with his team behind 31-24, Etiwanda coach Dave Kleckner decided to have the 185-pound Harkless guard Westchester’s 6-6, 260-pound Kaelen Allen, who had torched the Eagles for 16 points.

“I stood my ground,” Harkless said. “It was something I had to do to win.”

Allen was limited to five points in the second half as Etiwanda won the Southern California Open Division regional game to advance to Tuesday’s semifinal. The Eagles will get to host Fairfax, a 50-47 upset winner over top-seeded Santa Ana Mater Dei.

Harkless finished with 15 points. Kleckner always tells college recruiters coming to watch practice, “You’re not going to find a tougher kid in Southern California than Elijah Harkless.”

“Last year Corona Centennial was beating us and he asked to guard Jalen Hill,” Kleckner said. “He’s not afraid of any challenge.”

Etiwanda (29-3) trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half. Pepperdine signee Kessler Edwards struggled through one of his worst shooting nights, contributing only four points. But they came at the outset of the third quarter when the Eagles made their move.

Kleckner decided it was time to give three young players their chance to shine. Jahmai Mashack, a freshman who led the junior varsity team to a 21-0 record, made two three-pointers in the third quarter. Sophomore Tyree Campbell, another JV player, made a three in the fourth quarter. And sophomore Camren Pierce finished with 16 points, including three threes in the fourth quarter.

It was a tough end to a terrific season for the Comets (30-6), who won their 14th City Section championship. Maurice Tutt finished with 17 points and Zellie Hudson had 14 points.

The shocker of the night happened in Santa Ana, where Fairfax opened a 17-point lead and held on to beat Mater Dei. Jamal Hartwell made five threes and finished with 21 points.

“We had something to prove,” Fairfax coach Steve Baik said. “We wanted to make one last run. We made some shots, we defended and rebounded well.”

Mater Dei has rarely lost on its home court, but Fairfax also defeated the Monarchs in a state playoff game in 2009, led by future NBA player Solomon Hill.

Chatsworth Sierra Canyon and Torrance Bishop Montgomery set up a Tuesday semifinal rematch. Sierra Canyon defeated El Cajon Foothills Christian 88-61. Cassius Stanley scored 27 points and KJ Martin 23. Bishop Montgomery defeated San Diego Mission Bay 56-34. Gianni Hunt scored 16 points.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

Follow Eric Sondheimer on Twitter @latsondheimer