Serra entered this season looking to push the tempo and run teams tired. The Cavaliers did just that in Thursday night’s quarterfinal game against Lawndale at the Trevor Ariza Tip-Off Classic.
After leading by 10 at halftime, the Cavaliers’ defense picked up and the lead ballooned to 28 after three quarters. It grew even more in the fourth as Serra cruised to a 77-33 victory at Westchester High.
Serra, which will face Westchester in the semifinals, used a halftime pep talk from coach Dwan Hurt to spark its second-half performance after leading only 30-20.
“Coach got into us at halftime, so we had to pick it up,” Tavrion Dawson said.
Dawson took the message personally, scoring 16 of his game-high 21 in the second half as Serra used defense to key its offense.
In the third, Serra turned up the pressure to forced Lawndale (1-4) into missed shots that turned into fastbreak opportunities. The Cavaliers opened the quarter on a 15-4 run and closed it with a 13-2 run.
It was a sharp departure from a nearly even first half in which Lawndale led 17-14 early in the second. Serra used its defense to key a 16-3 run to end the half, but it wasn’t enough to satisfy their coach.
“We weren’t playing up to our potential, so we made some adjustments and they performed it beautifully,” Hurt said.
Despite Lawndale having a size advantage in 6-foot-9 Chimezie Metu and Brodricks Jones, the Cavaliers also outrebounded the Cardinals as they pressured their ball-handlers into making difficult passes.
“Everybody picked it up in the second half and we just started getting steals. The offense won’t work if we don’t play defense,” Jason Richardson said.
Richardson added 18 points and Ron Freeman had 13 points for the Cavaliers (2-0).
“It’s a confidence boost that shows our offense works,” Dawson said of the win.
Lawndale only mustered 13 points in the second half as it struggled to find consistent offense against Serra’s pressure. The lone bright spot was Metu, who led the Cardinals with 18 points.
“We just didn’t focus in on the defensive end like we did in the second half,” Lawndale coach Chris Brownlee said. “I needed to slow our kids down and we didn’t need to take bad shots that led to fastbreaks,”
Brownlee added the game was a great measuring stick for the Cardinals, who beefed up their schedule yet have to adjust to when games get away from them.
“We have the talent but now we need to focus more on details and come together to get it going,” he said.
Westchester had no trouble in a 69-38 win over Hart. The Comets (4-1) led 41-15 at halftime as their balance and speed proved too much for Hart to contend with.
Elijah Stewart led the Comets with 21 points and Myles Stewart had 13.
Westchester will tip off against Serra in the first semifinal at 7 p.m. Bishop Montgomery faces El Camino Real in the other semi.
