The Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits defeated the Loyola Cubs 75-69 in front of a sold-out raucous crowd at Loyola High School Friday night to advance to the CIFSS 1AA semifinals.
Led by PAC-12 bound stars Jordan Bell and Roschon Prince, the Jackrabbits got out to a strong start and built an early lead. Hot shooting from the perimeter and some easy slam dunks on the interior gave Poly a 26-11 advantage after a quarter.
Loyola, led by the sharpshooting of senior Trey Mason and the playmaking of lightning quick junior Parker Jackson-Cartwright, were able to stay in the game but trailed 47-33 at halftime.
Long Beach Poly vs. Loyola: Full Game Highlights
Bell and Prince had 14 points apiece at the half for the Jackrabbits.
The third quarter was a stalemate as each squad scored 13 points and Poly maintained a 60-46 advantage heading to the fourth quarter.
Oregon Ducks '13 Commit Jordan Bell - Dunk
The Cubs mounted a furious rally in the final frame and nearly pulled off an incredible comeback. Strong play from sophomore Max Hazzard and junior Thomas Welsh fueled the Cubs.
Trailing 70-62, Loyola got a big three-pointer from Mason followed by a sweet little jumper by Hazzard to cut the margin to 70-67 with about 28 seconds to play.
Top 5 Plays: Long Beach Poly vs. Loyola
From there, it was Roschon Prince that sealed the victory for the Jackrabbits by hitting 5 out of 6 clutch free throws to ice the game. Prince finished with 27 points to lead Poly and Jordan Bell netted 18, while Jackson-Cartwright poured in 16 for the Cubs. Trey Mason added 19 points in a losing effort for Loyola.
Long Beach Poly will take on Etiwanda in the semifinals on Tuesday.
