Strong second-half effort from Julien Gomez lifts La Mirada boys basketball into Saguaro Bracket semifinals at Nike Tournament of Champions featuring Hoophall West

MESA, Ariz. – Although 6-foot-5 guard Gene Roebuck might be the emphasis of opposing defenses that match up against the La Mirada High boys basketball team, Julien Gomez is the Matadores’ all-time leading scorer and the senior guard demonstrated once again his ability to deliver when it mattered most Thursday in the opening round of the Saguaro Bracket at the inaugural Nike Tournament of Champions featuring Hoophall West.

Gomez, a University of Texas Rio Grande Valley signee, scored 25 of his game-high 34 points in the second half to help La Mirada rally from a third-quarter deficit and secure a 73-58 victory against Brophy College Prep from Arizona at Skyline High.

Post-game interviews

The Matadores (14-3) earned a semifinal showdown against Basha High of Arizona (11-3) – a 64-52 winner Thursday against Corona Centennial – at 6 p.m. MST Friday at Skyline High.

Roebuck, one of the elite sophomore athletes in the country, picked up his fourth foul in the third quarter and went to the bench for an extended stretch for La Mirada.

Gomez, who surpassed the 2,000-point mark for his career in November, responded with 15 third-quarter points, highlighted by a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Matadores a 54-46 advantage entering the fourth.

Julien Gomez of La Mirada | Steven Shaff photo

Gomez hit four 3-pointers overall – contributing to 14 made field goals and only two free throws – to help La Mirada outscore the Broncos by a 44-27 margin in the second half.

After Luke Wieskamp scored the opening basket of the final quarter for Brophy College Prep (6-4), La Mirada responded with 10 unanswered points to put the game away.

Roebuck, who led the Matadores with 12 first-half points, finished with 17 points and Andrew Castro contributed 10 points for La Mirada, which took third place Monday in the Platinum Division at The Classic at Damien.

MJ Smith and King Riley-Owens both added four points for the Matadores, who built their lead to as many as 19 points in the fourth.

MJ Smith of La Mirada, right, against Daylen Sharper from Brophy College Prep | Steven Shaff photo

Wieskamp led the Broncos with 22 points, including 15 in the first half, with Ryan Burbach adding 11 points.

Redondo Union 81, St. Mary’s Catholic (Arizona) 65: The Sea Hawks (14-2) built on a three-point halftime lead by outscoring St. Mary’s Catholic (2-7) by a 42-29 margin in the final 16 minutes to advance to the Saguaro Bracket semifinals at Skyline High.

SJ Madison scored 18 of his team-high 23 points in the second half for Redondo Union, which produced a 7-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to seal the victory.

Hudson Mayes added 13 of his 20 points after halftime for the Sea Hawks, who also received 11 points from Chace Holley and eight points from Brayden Miner.

Cameron Williams had a game-high 31 points, including 18 in the first half, for St. Mary’s Catholic, which trailed only 39-36 at halftime.

Basha (Arizona) 64, Corona Centennial 52: Despite 23 points – all in the first three quarters – from Isaiah Rogers, the Huskies (6-12) couldn’t get any closer than six points in the final 10 minutes of their opening-round setback in the Saguaro Bracket at Skyline High.

Freshman Kai Patton contributed 13 points, all in the second half, for Corona Centennial, which didn’t have another athlete score in double figures.

Mason Magee led Basha, which faces La Mirada (14-3) in Friday’s semifinals, with 18 points.

Layton Leonard and DeSean Middlebrook added 11 points apiece for the Bears (11-3), who built a 30-21 halftime lead and never relinquished the advantage.

Sonoran Bracket

Desert Vista (Arizona) 77, Campbell Hall 71: The Thunder erased a nine-point halftime deficit by outscoring Campbell Hall by a 24-12 margin in the third quarter and held on for an opening-round victory at Skyline High.

Isaiah Johnson had 31 points, including 14 in the fourth quarter, for the Vikings (10-4).

Johnson tied the score at 66-66 following two free throws with 2:13 remaining, but Desert Vista (9-3) responded by producing 11 of the next 14 points down the stretch to secure the win.

Deuce Newt added 16 points, including four 3-point field goals, and James Bass contributed 10 points for Campbell Hall.

DJ Spencer led Desert Vista with 24 points, highlighted by nine in the fourth quarter.

Alex Taylor added 17 points, including eight in the fourth quarter, with Tyus Thomas hitting three 3-pointers and scoring 15 points for the Thunder.

Nico Velez made a pair of 3-point field goals and had 11 points for Desert Vista, which faces Valor Christian of Colorado – a 72-68 overtime winner against Ironwood from Arizona – in the semifinals at 3 p.m. MST Friday at Skyline High.

Boulder Creek (Arizona) 57, Santa Margarita 56: A pair of free throws by Kaleb Conley with two seconds remaining lifted the Jaguars (8-3) to the opening-round triumph at Skyline High.

Santa Margarita (12-3) took a 56-53 lead with 57 seconds left on a layup by Drew Anderson.

Mick Riordan cut the deficit to 56-55 for Boulder Creek on a basket with 42 seconds remaining.

Anderson had an opportunity to add to the Santa Margarita advantage, but missed two free throws in the final 30 seconds.

Kaiden Bailey scored 15 of his game-high 24 points in the second half for the Eagles, who also received 12 points from Anderson.

Riordan had 18 points, 11 in the second half, for Boulder Creek, which is scheduled to square off against Higley from Arizona – a 54-51 winner against St. Pius X-St. Matthias – at 4:30 p.m. MST in Friday’s semifinals.

Andrew Bhesania scored 15 points and Matthew Delgado added 14 points for the Jaguars.

Higley (Arizona) 54, St. Pius X-St. Matthias 51: A potential tying 3-pointer by Dayvion Gates from the right wing bounced off the front of the rim as time expired in the first-round matchup at Skyline High.

Jaden Erami, who led the Warriors (9-4) with 19 points, tied the score at 51-51 following two free throws with 1:25 remaining.

Gavin Dabney produced the go-ahead layup for Higley (8-2) with eight seconds left and added a free throw in the final three seconds for the final margin.

Gavin Dabney scored 16 points, including eight in the final quarter, and Donovan Dabney added 10 points, with Noah Gloor contributing 13 points for the Knights.

Douglas Langford, Jr. had 14 points for St. Pius X-St. Matthias, with Omari Cuffe adding seven points and Gates scoring six points.