By Ed Piper
Reed Farley took command of the game in the second quarter, finding the outside shooting touch he had been missing all season, and Morgan Albers became physical inside down the stretch to help protect the lead La Jolla had built up earlier, as the Vikings basketball team upset number-one seed West Hills on its home court 51-44 Tues., March 1 to sail into the CIF finals for the first time since 2010.
La Jolla will face Country Day for the Division 2 championship Friday night, March 4, at Jenny Craig Pavilion. Game time is 6:07 p.m.
Farley, the 6'4" junior point guard who has been a starter since his freshman year, caught fire to take La Jolla from a 12-11 deficit at the start of the second quarter to a 32-15 bulge by the end of the half, a 21-3 blitz that the favored Wolf Pack never overcame.
After hitting a three-pointer in the opening quarter, a good sign for him, and forcing the tempo by repeatedly pushing the ball up court against a cold-shooting Wolf Pack, Reed was everywhere on offense in the second period. He went especially high on a jumper for the 15-12 lead, then he immediately canned another three.
The sandy-haired history buff, on the Vikings' next possession, drove, scored, and was fouled. Though he missed the free throw, his team was up 20-12 and now led by eight points after a one-point deficit at the end of the first quarter, a nine-point turnaround all within the span of two minutes.
With 2:45 left in the half, Farley didn't hesitate before shooting another three, as La Jolla continued to pull away, leading by 11. Wolf Pack coach Jeff Armstrong immediately called a timeout.
Fast forward to the third quarter. The hosts, who under the pressure of the semifinals hadn't played like the number-one seed in the initial two stanzas, recovered to score six baskets to La Jolla's one to start the second half to fight their way back into the game, drawing within seven at 34-27. They were led by seniors Bryce Parsons and Miguel Nava, both sporting long locks, the one blonde, the other dark.
Albers, who had made a nifty pass inside to teammate Alex Pitrofsky for an assist at the end of the second quarter, began to really make his presence known near the end of the third quarter. Repeatedly slipping behind the defense against the Wolf Pack's press, he scored on a left-handed layup at 37-27. He then forced another timeout by Armstrong with a bucket the next time down the court.
In the fourth quarter, as the possibility of a trip to the finals loomed closer and the tension rose before large contingents from both schools, the 6'4" Albers--a three-year member of varsity--was fouled on a drive and made one of two free throws. The senior forward was fouled again with 3:23 left in the game. This time he made both free throws. La Jolla led, 48-34.
Albers made another layup in crunch time and grabbed a key rebound to secure the ball after missing a free throw with 24 seconds left. The Vikings led by eight. They gave up a meaningless basket at the buzzer to win by the final margin of seven.
"It pissed me off this year coming off the bench," said Albers, who had been a starter part of his junior season, in a forthright moment after the game. "I used it as motivation."
"We call him 'Savage'," said teammate Tony Coan of the mild-mannered Albers.
Farley was aided on his hot shooting hand by his mother Kara's doctoring earlier in the day. She popped a blood blister on the middle finger, which still showed the effects of the earlier swelling.
"It is no mystery why West Hills is the number-one seed," said LJHS coach Paul Baranowski before the game. But the Wolf Pack repeatedly misfired on shots in the first half, and the Vikings' torrid streak in the second quarter pinned West Hills' collective ears back. Outside of their six-basket skein to start the third quarter, they never completely regained their footing. At least partial credit for that goes to La Jolla's effective defensive execution, which Baranowski said would be a key.
Pitrofsky himself once again became a vending machine dispensing points as the 6'6" center was the beneficiary of timely passes from Farley and Albers, besides making his own aggressive drives to the hoop.
It wasn't a one- or two-man show by La Jolla, by any means. Eddie Parker blocked a layup attempt by Parsons, West Hills' star, after a Viking turnover in the final period. He also teamed with Farley to surprise the Wolf Pack to score on a long inbounds pass over the press to start the quarter. The senior guard earlier in the game contributed to the Vikings' 21-3 tear in the second quarter by scoring on a drive all the way to the basket from the point.
Forward Charlie Gal, a sophomore who has a lot more time to play for La Jolla, bulled his way in for some points. His fellow human earth mover up front, Daniel McColl, helped start the Vikings up with some early aggression.
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