Basketball: St. Francis Pulls off Stunner

The boys basketball team pulled off a stunner, beating Crespi of Encino, 66-52, in a Mission League game at St. Francis High School on Wednesday night.

It was only the second league win of the season for St. Francis, which snapped a three-game losing streak.

St. Francis forward Tei Vanderford said it was the biggest win of the year. He scored a career-high 24 points against Crespi, the No. 3 team in the Southern Section Division 4AA rankings, and emerged as a surprising scoring threat.

“We had no idea what to expect,” Vanderford said. “We knew they were missing one of their good guys, Milligan. We wanted to take advantage of them losing that height, box out and always hustle. We’re the happiest we’ve been all year.”

Crespi has lost three games in a row and have been playing without forward Michael Milligan Jr. for the past two games. The 6-feet-4 Milligan has been out with a concussion.

St. Francis co-coach Ray O’Brien said he’s been waiting for the team to break out in a game like this. St. Francis (9-13) is 2-6 and in fifth place in the Mission League standings.

“We don’t get a lot of respect because of our record in league,” O’Brien said. “With the exception of the Harvard-Westlake game, we’ve been in every game. If you believe in yourself at the end of the game and you hang around, you’re eventually going to win one of these. Tonight was the night.”

St. Francis opened league play with a 64-37 loss to Harvard-Westlake. The Golden Knights beat Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, 64-57, for their only other win in league.

St. Francis lost to Crespi, 71-50, on Jan. 6, but O’Brien said that game was closer than the score indicated.

“Last time we played them at their place, we led in the first and second quarter, but they’re relentless,” O’Brien said. “You have to be ready for that relentless pressure. That’s all we talk about is composure, composure, composure. Tonight they were able to pull it off.”

Emerson Castaneda scored 15 points, 12 in the second half. He was 5-for-5 from the field and 3-for-4 from the free-throw line.

“Emerson is going to get a lot of attention,” O’Brien said. “He’s been the leading scorer and everybody knows about him. We knew that he needed to stop forcing. I think that he was forcing a little bit in the last couple of games. We just said, ‘Take what they give you.’ We just convinced him don’t force it early. Let somebody else help you. Let the game come to you and he did just that.”

Zack Gardea scored 18 points and was 8-for-8 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.

St. Francis plays Alemany, the first-place team in the Mission League, tonight at 7 at St. Francis High School.

Here’s a Basketball Roundup for the Area

• 73, Kilpatrick 51: The Rebels beat Kilpatrick in a non-league game on Wednesday night. Flintridge Prep has won seven of its past eight games.

Flintridge Prep (12-7, 4-0 in league) plays Webb in Prep League game at Flintridge Prep tonight at 7.

• Price 68, 55: Jessy Cantinol scored 30 points and had nine rebounds for Renaissance Academy, the top-ranked team in the Southern Section Division 6.

Nick Troplent scored 10 points and had nine rebounds for Renaissance Academy (17-3). The Wildcats play Besant Hill from Ojai in the Oaks Christian Shootout on Saturday night.

• Full-court press for: The La Canada boys basketball team has a busy weekend. The Spartans (12-7, 4-1 in league) play Blair of Pasadena in a Rio Hondo League game tonight.  

La Cañada has a double-header on Saturday starting with a game against El Camino of Oceanside in the Fairfax State Preview Classic in the morning. The Spartans play Maranatha from Pasadena in the Azusa Pacific Shootout on Saturday night.

La Cañada has won six of their past seven games.