CIF-SS Championships: Division 2AA Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We've reached championship week in the CIF Southern Section boys basketball playoffs. St. Anthony and Rolling Hills Prep will meet Friday night in the Division 2AA championship game at Azusa Pacific University and both teams are led by veteran coaches and a strong core of players. Below we take a closer look at how each team got here, their major wins, top players and what each team needs to do to win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">St. Anthony | 24-7 overall | 6-4 Del Rey League (2nd)</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got Here: </strong>The Saints defeated Sonora (70-54), Loyola (69-55), Campbell Hall (91-86) and Heritage Christian (75-57) to reach the Division 2AA championship game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Best Non-Playoff Wins:</strong> Long Beach Poly (85-59), St. Bernard (twice) (75-72, 66-63), Serra (70-55)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1502869' first='Quincy' last='Phillips'] | 6-0 | PG | Phillips is one of the more underrated senior guards in SoCal and has put together a strong season as a scorer, defender and playmaker for teammates; [player_tooltip player_id='1956503' first='Joseph' last='Wicker'] | 6-3 | SG | the sophomore is a high-level floor spacer with his consistency as a catch and shoot threat from three-point range; [player_tooltip player_id='1630670' first='Darius' last='Williams'] | 5-9 | PG | Williams could be a late-bloomer special like his older brother (Makiah) and is showing that he's a crafty left-handed playmaker who can get into the lane and put pressure on the defense; <strong>Mikey Cortez</strong> | 6-0 | SG | Cortez has had a handful of games where he's changed the momentum with his shooting ability. The junior has a quick trigger and can get it going quickly</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Win: </strong>St. Anthony has operated this season as a team that will bring its hard hat to each game and test the toughness of its opponent early. The Saints must come out of the gate with that same aggressiveness and confidence to make an early statement and to establish their pace.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Rolling Hills Prep | 26-5 | 7-0 Coastal League (1st)</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got Here: </strong>The Huskies defeated Mayfair (73-62), Oak Park (52-49), Culver City (74-62) and Thousand Oaks (57-50) to reach the Division 2AA championship game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Best Non-Playoff Wins:</strong> Fairmont Prep (53-51), Serra (62-57), King/Drew (66-65), Bosco Tech (52-46)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1630655' first='Mateo' last='Trujillo'] | 6-2 | PG | Trujillo is by far the most important guy on the RHP roster. The junior is a playmaker and scorer for himself as well as a guy who gets the team into its offense, gets into the lane for paint touches, and dishes to two young but talented big men around the rim;<strong> Nick Welch</strong> | 6-8 | F/C | Welch is young but extremely talented big man who possesses a great combination of interior skill, footwork and touch around the rim; <strong>Kawika Suter </strong>| 6-7 | F | the sophomore is a high motor forward who has been a walking double-double throughout the playoffs. His slashing and finishing ability to go along with his rebounding on both ends are key for RHP. <strong>Casey Palmer</strong> | 6-4 | G | Palmer's shooting ability is vastly important for a team that does so much damage inside.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Win:</strong> The Huskies rely on a younger group of players to be major contributors and I believe they will look establish Welch and Suter early to get them some confidence in the beginning moments of the game. The faster those two get comfortable, the more difficult it will be for St. Anthony's undersized lineup to match-up in the painted area.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->