LA City Section basketball championships: King/Drew boys, Birmingham girls win Open titles
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA – There's a new sheriff in town: King/Drew boys basketball.
No. 2-seeded Golden Eagles won their first City Section Open Division crown in program history with a 51-45 victory over LACES Saturday night at Pasadena City College.
It was the program's second Open Division final appearance after falling short to Fairfax in 2022 (76-64).
- NOTE: Keep an eye out for a column by Tarek Fattal on the new era King/Drew's victory might spark in the City Section
Jayshawn Kibble led King/Drew with a dazzling 20 points while Josahn Webster added 18 points to cap what was a parity-filled season in the City Section.
LACES, which is the first City Section team to ever reach the Open Division final as the No. 8 seed, was led by senior duo Donovan Cornelius and Ryan Conner.
Cornelius had 12 points and Conner finished with 10.
LACES was 15 of 25 from the free throw line. Seven misses came in the fourth quarter.
BIRMINGHAM GIRLS WIN OPEN
Birmingham Charter storms the court after the buzzer sounds, beating Westchester 55-50 in the City Section Open Division girls basketball finals at Pasadena City College on Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024.
Tarek Fattal/SBLive
Birmingham Charter girls basketball hoisted its second City Section Open Division crown in three years after edging Westchester 55-50.
Lili Martinez' layup gave he Patriots a 51-48 lead with 31 seconds left before free throws helped to ice the game in the waning moments.
Nat Lopez led Birmingham with 13 points. DeeDee Berry and Annette Jones added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Westchester's Mariah Blake had nine points. Reigne Waugh led all scorers with 17 points.
VERDUGO HILLS WINS DII
Verdugo Hills lifted its first City Section title since 2010 after defeating Garfield 53-43 in the Division II final.
Georges Abdulnour led the Dons with 15 points, Gianmarco Figueroa had 13 and Alex Martinez added 10. Garfield was led by Jayden Barnes' game-high 18 points.
OTHER CITY FINAL SCORES
Boys Division I: Washington Prep 64, San Pedro
Girls Division I: Sun Valley Poly 57, Arleta 47
Girls Division II: Kennedy 53, Van Nuys 43
Boys Division III: Carson 62, Jordan 60
Girls Division III: Banning 53, Bernstein 24
Boys Division IV: Bernstein 67, Math & Science 61
Girls Division IV: Gardena 54, Fremont 12
