Ventura Edges Mission Viejo in Overtime, 56-55, to Win CIF Southern Section Division 2AA Title

The Mission Viejo boys basketball team found itself in familiar territory 30 minutes into Saturday afternoon's CIF Southern Section Division 2AA title game at the Anaheim Convention Center Arena. The Diablos trailed top-seeded Ventura by four points and faced an uphill battle to stay in contention for the championship trophy.

Like so many instances before, coach Troy Roelen's group battled back, refusing to lose quietly and sending the contest into overtime with a clutch rally at the close of regulation. However, for just the second time this season, Mission Viejo didn't wind up with the last word.

The second-seeded Diablos fell to Ventura, 56-55, in a memorable matchup between deep teams. Senior guard James Cramer buried four clutch free throws in the final 20 seconds of the fourth quarter to bring Mission Viejo back from the brink of defeat, but his game-tying three-point attempt on the last possession of overtime rimmed out, preventing a second extra session and giving the Cougars their second section title since 2006.

“We’ve been in a lot of battles all year long and it seemed like a lot of things went our way this season,” Roelen said. “One or two things didn’t go our way today; sometimes that happens. We were tested during the year and showed some moxie by not giving up in the fourth quarter and overtime. We just need a little push to get us over that hump.”

The title clash between the top two programs in Division 2AA appeared destined for a dramatic conclusion from its beginning. Each team took turns exchanging jabs during the first quarter, which ended with the score tied, 12-12.

Ventura senior Jon McMurry made a three-point basket at the buzzer, which would be a sign of things to come for the Cougars’ perimeter game. Ventura converted on five of its first eight attempts from beyond the arc, keeping the team afloat while Mission Viejo found success inside.

The Diablos drove straight into Ventura’s interior, but surprisingly it wasn’t 6-foot-10 center Isaac Nielson doing damage. The BYU-bound senior was held scoreless during the first half, when teammates Evan Zeller and James Cramer combined for 17 points to lead Mission Viejo to a 28-23 advantage at intermission.

Both guards were able to slash into the paint and convert contested lay-ups, thanks in large part to the attention that Neilson received from Ventura’s defensive game plan. Neilson, who leads the Diablos in points and rebounds, hardly went to work in a one-on-one situation.

“I was inside hoping to get the ball but I had guys coming at me from high side and low side,” Neilson said. “It’s hard to make a move in a crowd like that. It was definitely a frustrating day, but you’ve got to get past it.”

The Cougars kept Mission Viejo’s big man off the scoreboard for the opening 20 minutes of the game before Neilson tallied his first of six points. Despite falling far below his 15-point average, he continued to be a dominant force inside, accounting for 16 rebounds and six blocked shots.

The Diablos struggled to make shots from three-point range throughout the contest, finishing two of 11 from long-distance. Ventura coach Dan Larson capitalized on those shooting woes by switching his team to a 2-3 zone in the third quarter.

“The zone was definitely a part of the game plan all along,” Larson said. “We worked on it all week because we did not want a talented player like Neilson scoring a bunch of points on easy shots. We didn’t anticipate falling behind at half, so it was time to change some things up.”

The maneuver paid off in a big way, shutting down driving lanes and daring the Diablos to painstakingly plug away from the perimeter.

“During the first half we did a pretty good job of attacking the basket,” Roelen said. “I think we got a little away from that as the game progressed and we began to take more jumpers. While they weren’t bad shots, I thought we had more success attacking the paint.”

Mission Viejo managed only nine points in the second half’s opening 10 minutes, while turning the ball over on a few occasions. The Diablos entered the fourth quarter ahead 36-30, but fell victim to a ferocious 11-1 Ventura run that gave the Cougars a 41-37 lead with four minutes remaining.

Ventura guard Richard Thomas scored four fast-break points on consecutive Diablos turnovers to secure the four-point advantage. The Cougars thrived on the run, pushing the ball off both turnovers and rebounds.

“When we stopped looking inside and started shooting threes, some of those missed led to long rebounds and transition baskets,” Roelen said. “I though if we kept them in the half-court, they’d have a difficult time scoring. That was the case, but those transition points obviously turned out to be a big difference in the game.”

Ventura had a chance to clinch the title in the fourth quarter’s final minute, but Neilson stepped up and rejected a shot attempt. Shortly after, Cramer stepped to the line for two free-throw attempts with Mission Viejo trailing, 47-45, and 20 seconds remaining on the clock.

He sank both to tie the score, before Ventura’s Dylan Houk netted two of his own to grab a 49-47 lead. Cramer wound up at the charity stripe again with three seconds to play for two more pressure-filled free throws, and he converted them both to send the game into overtime.

The Diablos looked to their senior guard once more on the game’s final possession. Trailing 56-53 with seven seconds remaining, Cramer received the inbound pass and fired up a three-pointer from the left wing.

His shot went a tad long and clanked off the rim, where Zeller grabbed the rebound and shot up a put-back to cut the deficit to one point as time expired. Zeller, a sophomore, led the Diablos with a game-high 22 points and will take the torch from Neilson as the face of the program next season.

However, before that happens, Mission Viejo will play in perhaps a few more games. The Diablos will compete, along with the area’s best, in CIF Southern California Regional tournament play next week, although the South Coast League champions were certainly frustrated to fall one-point shy of the program’s first section title in eight years.

“This is not the end of the world, even though there is some finality to it,” Roelen said. “We’ll take the remainder of our weekend to rest up and find out what we need to prepare for moving forward. We’ve built a lot of personal character on this team, and that transcends basketball.”