Cypress players and coaches celebrate after victory over Pacifica Thursday night. (Photo courtesy Cypress basketball).
Cypress High School’s boys basketball team defeated Pacifica 72-64 Thursday night to clinch a share of the Empire League crown with Crean Lutheran.
It’s the first league title for Coach Derek Mitchell’s team since 2020 when the Centurions went 10-0. It was also the final game for Cypress in the Empire League. Teams will be in new conferences next year.
“The game was an exciting game as Pacifica put up a valiant fight the whole game,” Mitchell said Friday.
The Centurions (21-6, 9-1) were led by Jonah Kim who had 21 points and three 3-pointers. Michael Wright scored 21 points and had 12 rebounds and Ryan Gov scored 20 points.
“Really proud of our guys,” Mitchell said. “We faced adversity throughout the season and were able to win a share of the last Empire League championship. This is a special group. We have a lot of guys who have sacrificed personal glory for the good of the team. That doesn’t come around very often. We are a team.”
Cypress, ranked No. 3 in the CIF 2A ratings, opens the playoffs next week. Pairings will be announced Sunday.
Cypress and Crean Lutheran split their two league games this year.
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