Diablos Conquer Colony to Advance to Boys Basketball Semifinals

Since Mission Viejo had its unbeaten streak snapped at 23 games back on Feb. 3 with a two-point loss to South Coast League rival Tesoro, there have been some rumblings that the team, which had been ranked No. 1 in the CIF Southern Section Division 2AA coaches' poll, may have lost its edge.

The Diablos won their next game by four points, followed by a two-point win, then scored only 41 points in their first game of the playoffs in another two-point triumph. Last week, in a second-round game, they were pushed to overtime before escaping with an eight-point victory.

Of course, there’s nothing like a blowout to vanquish any such fears.

Mission Viejo played its best game in nearly a month by scoring double-digits in every quarter and outrebounding its opponent, 19-2, in the second half for a convincing 71-54 victory over Colony Tuesday night in a quarterfinal of the Division 2AA playoffs at Mission Viejo High.

“It feels good,” said Diablos point guard Frank "Q" Randall, who played perhaps his best game of the season against the Titans' pressure defense, finishing with seven points, seven assists, three steals and only two turnovers. “I knew we had to get this win, and we played great. We knew they weren’t a very good perimeter team, so we were able to run the break off the rebound and get some easy shots.”

Randall admitted that the Diablos initially were stung by their loss to Tesoro. But at practice the next day, the players recommitted to playing every game like it was their last from that point on. And while all the games have been close, Randall, a 5-10 senior who goes by the nickname “Q,” as in “Quad,” as in the fourth Frank in the Randall family, said he knew the Diablos were due for a breakout performance.

“That one loss got us on track,” Randall said. “We learned that we can’t take things for granted. We have to take one game at a time and play hard every game. I think that loss probably was the best thing to happen to us.”

The second-seeded Diablos (28-1) advance to the semifinals Friday where they will be on the road against Summit, a 70-63 winner over third-seeded Anaheim Canyon, at a site to be determined. The Colony Titans, champions of the Mt. Baldy League, finish their season at 20-10.

“This feels great!” said Misson Viejo senior guard James Cramer, who finished with 19 points and four assists. “Two more games left, but we need to win Friday first.”

Mission Viejo and Colony met earlier this season, in the third game, with the Diablos winning by four. But the Diablos were without several football players, including Randall, and without Michael Cramer, who was injured. James Cramer said the second time around they knew what to expect from the Titans and they were ready.

“I played a lot better this game, plus we didn’t have my brother and the football players, but we knew their guys liked to be aggressive,” James Cramer said. “We used that to get easy baskets down low.”

In the first half of the quarterfinals, Colony got an emotional lift with a quick start and led the Diablos by one after the first quarter. The Diablos took control for the first seven minutes, opening a 10-point lead on two free throws by James Cramer. But when Isaac Neilson left the game with 47 seconds left, the Titans scored five quick points on a three-pointer by Josiah Dennis (10 points) and a steal and basket by Shadrach Earby to cut their deficit to three, 32-29, at halftime.

Colony outrebounded the Diablos by six by the break, despite shooting only 41 percent from the field compared to 46 percent for Mission Viejo.

“During halftime, Coach [Roelen] just told use we’ve got to rebound,” Neilson said.

The BYU-bound senior took his coach’s words to heart. The Diablos outrebounded the Titans, 11-2, in the third quarter and 19-2 in the second half. Neilson finished with 17 rebounds, 12 in the second half, to go along with his game-high 20 points and five blocked shots.

Mission Viejo also used Colony’s aggressive full-court defense to its advantage by either scoring on the break, using pick-and-rolls for easy baskets underneath or free throw attempts when fouled. The Diablos finished with 18 assists for the game and converted 25 of 30 free throws, including 12 of 16 in the fourth quarter.

“We knew they would be pressing us, but they weren’t getting back so we kept going to [the pick and roll],” Neilson said. “I thought this game would be closer, but it sure feels good to win by this much. We’ve been playing a lot of close games lately.”

For the Titans, it was a frustrating way to end the season as the Diablos’ led 51-37 after three quarters and built a 22-point lead with under a minute remaining. Rayvon Poullard led the Titans with 14 points.

“They did a better job finishing. We didn’t,” Colony coach Jerry De Frabiis said “Then, in the second half, they did a good job rebounding. Real simple, honestly.”