Sage Hill, in its first trip to the CIF finals, falls to top-seed Santa Clara 68-52

Sage Hill starters walk on to the court for the opening tip-off Saturday. (Photos: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Sage Hill’s boys basketball team put up a fight in its first CIF championship game.

But the Lightning could not slow down top-seeded Santa Clara which captured a 68-52 victory in the 5AA title game at Godinez Saturday afternoon.

Santa Clara’s talented center Christian Oliver scored 23 points, made 10 of 12 field goal attempts and grabbed seven rebounds to lead the Saints (27-6).

Sage Hill (22-11) was led by senior center Johnny King, who had 16 points and 15 rebounds and Cooper Green, who had 12 points. Jack Strohman scored nine points and Mitchell Frye eight points to the Lightning.

“Defensively, we were pretty good for three quarters and in the second quarter, it got away from us a little bit and we dug ourselves too deep of a hole,” said Sage Hill Coach Billy Conlon. “We weren’t quite able to overcome it in the second half.”

Santa Clara held an 11-10 lead after one quarter and then took control by outscoring Sage Hill 29-16 in the second quarter.

“I think we got it down to eight at one point in the third quarter and then they started getting to the free throw line and slowing down our momentum a little bit and converting at the line,” Conlon said. “Overall, they played a great game and we certainly weren’t at our best. But I couldn’t be more proud of our effort and the continuing fight of this team.”

Santa Clara made 45.3 percent of its field goal attempts while Sage Hill connected on 35.2 percent. Sage Hill outrebounded Santa Clara 39-28.

Santa Clara was up to the challenge after Sage Hill made a run in the third quarter before regaining control.

“Everything was open, the main thing is we needed to make sure we stay disciplined,” said Santa Clara Coach Bobby Tenorio. “They did a great job of stopping our momentum and they kind of slowed us down. It was basically what we were going to do.

“If we came out and switched our tempo, then I knew that they had to adjust to us. It was a battle for Chris (Oliver). I told him, ‘as long as you play some solid defense and block out, we are going to have a chance to win.’ Chris stepped up to the challenge.”

Santa Clara, despite the run by Sage Hill, led 56-41 after three quarters and was in control the rest of the way.

Santa Clara forced 15 turnovers and made just seven.

“I thought that what they did really well was adapting and what we were throwing at them,” said King, the Sage Hill center. “We started off in a zone where I was playing up high and the big guy was getting short layups and then they transferred me down to him and they started hitting some shots so the way they changed up their offense to our defense was really big.”

Conlon, the Sage Hill coach, said nerves may have been a factor for his team.

“I thought in the first couple of minutes, nerves were definitely a factor,” Conlon said. “We’ve always started games fast. It’s the strength of our team and it’s part of why we prepare so hard. And in the first couple of possessions, we kind of lost who we were and they jumped out to that 6-0 start.

“We called timeout and slowed things down and get back into who we were and we got into a nice rhythm. As the game went on, we got back to who we were and were able to adapt.”

Santa Clara made seven 3-pointers, including four by Josh Barocio and two by Oliver.

Still, it was a significant accomplishment for Sage Hill to reach the finals. No Sage Hill team has ever reached past the second round of the CIF playoffs. Sage Hill moves on to the state playoffs beginning Tuesday.

“It’s been kind of a record-breaking year,” Conlon said. “This group is so mentally tough that we took it in stride. We almost played as if we had been there a few times. The season as a whole has been a tremendous success but we still have goals that we want to accomplish.”

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com