Harvard-Westlake boys basketball enjoys the cheers as it cruises past St. Francis

STUDIO CITY — As the seconds ticked down before halftime, Harvard-Westlake junior guard Pierce Thompson soared through the air along the baseline. His teammate, senior guard Joe Sterling, had to make a pinpoint pass to complete a potential alley-oop.

Of course he did.

Thompson caught the ball and slammed it as the clock hit zero and the crowd erupted with excitement.

It wasn’t the last of the cheers for Harvard-Westlake’s boys basketball team Tuesday as it celebrated senior night. The Wolverines used a 22-6 run in the third quarter to pull away and defeat St. Francis 90-56 in the Mission League finale.

“Senior nights are always difficult, just because there’s so much emotion and pride in what you’re doing,” Harvard-Westlake head coach David Rebibo said.

Emotions weren’t the only challenge for the Wolverines (22-4 overall, 5-2 league). They were caught by surprise when they learned pregame that St. Francis’ 7-foot-3 center, junior Cherif Millogo, wasn’t playing.

With a player that big and skilled, it changed the Wolverines’ game plan instantly.

Regardless, Rebibo had his team ready for the Knights (20-7, 3-4).

Harvard-Westlake sent traps, helped in the driving lanes and on screens, leading to St. Francis having 12 turnovers in the game.

“You have a 7-foot-3 guy who’s got great hands and can fly around a little bit,” Rebibo said of Millogo. “Keeping him at bay and crowding him and doing certain things was going to be a major focal point for us. But he didn’t play, and that kind of obviously changed their dynamic as well.”

Sterling, a Texas signee who has been a main staple of the Wolverines’ offense this season, finished the game with 28 points and seven 3-pointers.

From the start it was clear that Sterling would do damage from beyond the 3-point arc. His first four made shots were all 3-pointers.

As a team, the Wolverines made 15 3s to St. Francis’ five.

“He’s obviously a focal point of everyone’s defense, and he’s getting everyone’s best shot,” Rebibo said of Sterling. “But when he’s relaxed, composed and just playing good basketball, he’s as good as anyone. And we’re lucky to have him.”

Harvard-Westlake’s defensive effort picked up in the second half. The Wolverines forced turnovers and applied more ball pressure throughout the third quarter.

They scored 32 points in the quarter.

“We didn’t want them to be comfortable getting the spots,” Rebibo said. “I thought we didn’t do a great job of that in the first and second quarters. We did a much better job late second, third and fourth.”