Bolden Brace lets go an outside jumper on Monday. Brace tallied 26 points.
One team shot the lights out and breezed to a 34-point victory. The other needed a clutch three-pointer at the end to survive. Either way, Santa Barbara and Thousand Oaks will meet in the championship game of the Holiday Classic on Tuesday after winning semifinal games on Monday.
Santa Barbara, the tournament host, defeated Newbury Park 82-48 while making 12 three-pointers as a team. Thousand Oaks’ Josh Hauser helped the Lancers advance by knocking down a three-pointer with 7.1 seconds on the clock that gave TO a 54-53 win over Glendora.
Glendora’s AJ Bigornia took a potential game-winning shot in the final seconds but the outside jumper rimmed out.
Santa Barbara High’s Chris Wagonhurst led the Dons to victory with a career-high 28 points on 7-of-9 shooting from long range. Bolden Brace added 26 points while Ben Clay had 12 points and seven rebounds. Max Henderson was a defensive maven with six steals.
Wagonhurst came into the game having struggled with his accuracy the past few games but got hot from the opening tip. The senior guard had 19 points by halftime.
“He was obviously the difference tonight,” said Dons head coach David Bregante. “It’s great to see. I think it will help him mentally.”
The Dons, helped by Wagonhurst’s first 3-pointer, jumped out to a 12-2 lead. Chris Givens then dished to Brace for a fast-break layup, Ben Clay grabbed an offensive rebound and putback, and Brace and Wagonhurst each dropped another three-pointer to five the Dons a 22-8 lead after the first quarter.
Newbury Park trimmed the difference to 27-17 in the second quarter but a 17-6 run, capped by three 3-pointers in less than 30 seconds, pushed Santa Barbara’s lead to 44-23.
The offensively potent Dons, who had 69 points by the end of three quarters, scored 73 or more points for the 11th time in 15 games. It was a season-high in points allowed for Newbury Park, which falls to 6-9.
The semifinal matchup was a rematch of last year’s championship game, won by Newbury Park. This year’s title game will feature Santa Barbara (13-2) against Thousand Oaks (11-2) at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Santa Barbara High.
Santa Barbara High’s Chris Wagonhurst scores two of his game-high 28 points for the Dons in their 82-48 victory Newbury Park on Tuesday. It was a career high for the senior guard, who knocked down seven 3-pointers.
The Lancers were without leading scorer Matt Hauser on Monday but little brother Josh Hauser provided the big shot. He pulled up off the dribble a few steps beyond the 3-point line and knocked it down.
“We’re in the championship… really looking forward to it,” Hauser said. “Maybe we’ll have my brother back.”
Matt Hauser, who scored 54 points in Saturday’s tournament game, sat out because of illness. Without him, the Lancers found themselves down 53-47 with less than two minutes to go.
“We showed some heart,” Hauser said. “We played hard, got stops, boxed out. We did what we needed to do.”
Canoga Park, Lompoc, Roosevelt, Pioneer Valley, North Hollywood and Bishop Diego also picked up victories on Monday.
Canoga Park won on a last-second buzzer-beater to edge Carpinteria. Jonathon Cleek had just tied the game for Carpinteria on a three-point basket but left Canoga Park enough time to respond.
Marcos Schneider and Will Goodwin powered Bishop Diego’s 60-53 victory over Channel Islands. Schneider finished with 20 points and Goodwin 19. Both players delivered clutch baskets in the final three minutes after the Raiders were able to rally and tie the game.
TOURNAMENT SCORES
SANTA BARBARA 82, NEWBURY PARK 48
THOUSAND OAKS 54, GLENDORA 53
CANOGA PARK 48, CARPINTERIA 45
LOMPOC 73, FLINTRIDGE 47
ROOSEVELT 59, HUENEME 16
NORTH HOLLYWOOD 63, SANTA MARIA 47
PIONEER VALLEY 49, NORDHOFF 48
BISHOP DIEGO 60, CHANNEL ISLANDS 53
TUESDAY’S GAMES
9:00 a.m. – Hueneme vs. Channel Islands
10:30 a.m. – Bishop Diego vs. Roosevelt
12:00 p.m. – Nordhoff vs. Flintridge Prep
1:30 p.m. – Carpinteria vs. Santa Maria
3:00 p.m. – Canoga Park vs. North Hollywood
4:30 p.m. – Lompoc vs. Pioneer Valley (Consolation Championship)
6:00 p.m. – Glendora vs. Newbury Park (Third-Place Game)
7:30 p.m. – Santa Barbara vs. Thousand Oaks (Championship)
