‘One big family’ Harvard-Westlake eases past Southridge, eyes LSI, California Open Division titles

“No matter what, we always come together through adversity and we just show out”

Author:
Bob Lundeberg
Publish date:
Dec 29, 2023 2:59 AM EST

HILLSBORO — At the 2023 Les Schwab Invitational, two teams have separated themselves from the pack.

Florida’s Christopher Columbus has won its two games by 92 combined points, including an 83-54 quarterfinal rout of Beaverton. The Explorers, ranked ninth in the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25, appear destined for the championship game.

So does No. 15 Harvard-Westlake.

The Southern California power smashed Liberty, 101-62, in its LSI opener and followed that performance with a 77-43 romp over Southridge on Thursday night at Liberty High School.

The Wolverines’ LSI margin of victory is “merely” 36.5 points to Columbus’ 41, but the reigning California Open Division champions are playing like a well-oiled machine that can’t be stopped.

“As a team, we feel good, but we know we’ve got Perry up next and most likely Columbus in the finals,” senior guard Christian Horry said. “Last time we played Columbus, we lost. Last time we played Perry, we won, but we had a slow start at the beginning … and we had to fight our way back. This time we’re looking to come out strong, put away Perry fast and move on to Columbus."

Southridge Harvard Westklake boys basketball Les Schwab Invitational game December 28 2023 Naji Saker-65

Harvard-Westlake (14-0) and Perry (7-1) will meet for the second time this season at 8:45 p.m. Friday in the second LSI semifinal. Columbus (8-4) and Central Catholic (6-1) have a date in the 7:15 semi.

This month at the Hoophall West High School Invitational in Scottsdale, Arizona, Harvard-Westlake overcame a first-quarter deficit to defeat the hometown Pumas, 63-51.

“We just started off slow,” said senior guard Trent Perry, a four-star USC signee. “We came out a little sluggish, but that’s the great thing about us. No matter what, we always come together through adversity and we just show out.

“There’s a lot of great teams out here and we’re looking forward to competing against the best. We have a tough matchup tomorrow against Perry High School, so we’re going to watch film on them, study them and prepare our best.”

Southridge Harvard Westklake boys basketball Les Schwab Invitational game December 28 2023 Naji Saker-55

Perry had 14 points, six assists, two rebounds and two steals in Thursday’s dominant win. Southridge (8-1) made 12 3-pointers in its opening-round victory over Summit but went just 6 for 22 (27 percent) from long range against the Wolverines.

“We came out with energy and did things correctly on the defensive end,” said Horry, son of former NBA player Robert Horry. “Today I feel like we all locked in as a group and played hard for each other, especially on help. I feel like we did a great job with scrambling on defense.”

Perry forced a turnover with his sticky defense on the opening possession and buried a triple at the other end. After another Skyhawks giveaway, Perry drew a foul on a 3-point attempt and made all three free throws for a quick 6-0 lead.

Big man Dominique Bentho scored the next six points for the Wolverines, who had mismatches everywhere. Perry buried another from long distance for a 15-5 lead, and Harvard-Westlake continued to pour it on from there.

Southridge Harvard Westklake boys basketball Les Schwab Invitational game December 28 2023 Naji Saker-81

The Wolverines led 23-11 after one period, 35-11 at the four-minute mark of the second and 42-13 at the break. Harvard-Westlake nearly pitched a second-quarter shutout, but Drew Groenig got Southridge on the board with a late basket.

Perry said Harvard-Westlake played much better defense Thursday after some miscues against Liberty.

“We had to bounce back a bit from last game,” Perry said. “Even though we won, it wasn’t up to our standard. We knew (Southridge) shot a lot of threes, so we had to bounce back, lock in defensively and trust each other. I felt like we had a great showing tonight.”

Nikolas Khamenia, a four-star junior forward, led Harvard-Westlake with 16 points, six rebounds and five assists. Bentho added 14 points, six rebounds and three blocks, and Horry had 11 points and four rebounds.

Kaden Groenig paced the Skyhawks with 12 points.

“They’re a good team,” Groenig said of Harvard-Westlake. “They’ve got solid guys; most of them are going D1. They’re just a tough team to go against.”

Southridge Harvard Westklake boys basketball Les Schwab Invitational game December 28 2023 Naji Saker-35

Led by Perry and four-star Harvard-bound guard Robert Hinton, the Wolverines have more than enough pieces to contend for another California Open Division title. Depth is also a strength as Harvard-Westlake had 10 players get 10 or more minutes Thursday.

“You don’t feel like you have to do more than you need to,” Horry said. “Like (head coach David Rebibo) always says, do your own job. Especially coming off winning state last year, this team is super, super close. Everybody talks to each other in the hotel; there’s no separation. We’re just like one big family. That connection is what really brings us together.”

Added Perry: “Our coach keeps us in check. He makes sure that we don’t really talk about last year; we talk about the present. This exact team hasn’t won anything yet, so we’re just focused on winning not just this championship, but the other championship down the line.”

Southridge Harvard Westklake boys basketball Les Schwab Invitational game December 28 2023 Naji Saker-11

If the Wolverines take care of business Friday night, they’ll have a shot to bring their first major title of the season back to Southern California.

“We’re ready for it,” Perry said of a potential matchup with Columbus. “It would be pretty cool for both of us to come out on top in our individual games, but of course we want to focus on Perry High School, getting that job done and then worry about everything else later.”

Photos by Naji Saker