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Prep basketball playoffs: Joe Sterling & Co. lead Harvard-Westlake past La Mirada

· Yahoo Sports

Joe Sterling is the owner of so many headbands (more than 20) that he could use an NIL deal when he reaches his next destination, the University of Texas at Austin. He also should make sure his shoes don't malfunction like they did in the second quarter Tuesday night against La Mirada.

With his white headband working and his shoe repaired, Sterling helped lead a second-half surge by Harvard-Westlake that resulted in a 71-57 victory, sending the Wolverines into the Southern Section Open Division championship game Saturday.

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The Wolverines (26-5) will play Mission League rival Sierra Canyon (26-1) at 6 p.m. at Toyota Arena. Sierra Canyon defeated Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 70-46 in the other semifinal. Do the Wolverines have any chance of toppling the top-seeded Trailblazers?

"If we didn't have a chance, we wouldn't show up. We're showing up," Harvard-Westlake coach David Rebibo said.

Sterling finished with 25 points and was supported by Amir Jones and Cole Holden, each of whom scored 14 points. Dominique Bentho played a big role in Harvard-Westlake's second-half surge, scoring six of his eight points in the fourth quarter. The Wolverines trailed 36-34 at halftime, then started the third quarter on an 8-0 run and led 56-43 with eight minutes left.

The big adjustment the Wolverines made was making La Mirada's Gene Roebuck work a little harder. Roebuck finished with 29 points and was punishing the Wolverines with his strength driving and drawing fouls. Harvard-Westlake tried to tire him out in the second half denying him the ball and pushing him away from the basket.

"He's a bulldog," Rebibo said.

Harvard-Westlake has clearly gotten its mojo back after losing three of its last four regular-season games and now reaching the final.

"The season is long," Rebibo said. "We hit our lull. We got to hit the reset button."

Said Sterling: "We used it as motivation. We were playing through the adversity."

The Wolverines are playing loose with nothing to lose. They were laughing and smiling before the game. The one advantage they might have Saturday is that Sierra Canyon has played so many home games in February that the players might not remember what playing outside of Chatsworth looks like.

Girls

Sierra Canyon 66, Etiwanda 62: Down by 18 points at halftime, Etiwanda made a frantic comeback, coming within two points with two seconds left until Sierra Canyon's Jerzy Robinson clinched the Open Division semifinal victory with two free throws. She finished with 24 points.

Sierra Canyon will play top-seeded Ontario Christian in Saturday's 8 p.m. final at Toyota Arena. Ontario Christian defeated Sage Hill 86-54.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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