St. Pius X-St. Matthias stuns short-handed Mater Dei in Open Division boys basketball playoffs
Tyrone Riley scores 28 points and grabs 12 rebounds to lead St. Pius X-St. Matthias to its first victory against Mater Dei
St. Pius X-St. Matthias center Douglas Langford looks to put up a shot as Mater Dei guard Joe Keegan defends in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, February 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Support our high school sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribe now
Mater Dei guard Brandon Benjamin, right, loses control of the ball as he tries to drive past St. Pius X-St. Matthias center Douglas Langford in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard David Mack, left, pushes away Mater Dei guard Brady Karich as Karich tries to steal the ball in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Tyrone Riley takes aim against Mater Dei in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias center Douglas Langford, right, scores over Mater Dei guard Brandon Benjamin in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias center Douglas Langford looks to put up a shot as Mater Dei guard Joe Keegan defends in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias center Douglas Langford, center, gets past Mater Dei guard Joe Keegan, right, to score in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias coach Donte Archie directs his team against Mater Dei in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard David Mack, left, gets through the Mater Dei defense to score in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard David Mack, left, scores over Mater Dei guard Luke Barnett in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Dayvon Gates, left, and center Douglas Langford, right, cheer after teammates score against Mater Dei in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Tyrone Riley, right, drives hard toward the basket around Mater Dei guard Joe Keegan in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Mater Dei guard Brandon Benjamin, right, gets to the basket, but is called for an offensive foul against St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Tylon Williams in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Mater Dei guard Scotty Belnap, left, and guard Brady Karich, center, watch as St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard David Mack, right, reacts after scoring a basket in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
A shot by Mater Dei guard Scotty Belnap, left, is blocked by St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Tyrone Riley in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias guard Dayvon Gates hugs Mater Dei guard Joe Keegan after winning in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Mater Dei coach Gary McKnight and his team can only watch as St. Pius X-St. Matthias take a commanding lead in the first round of the CIF-SS Open Division boys basketball playoffs in Santa Ana on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy’s sizzling shooters and tenacious rebounders made it a bumpy first leg.
University of San Francisco-bound guard Tyrone Riley scored 28 points, including all six of his 3-point attempts, and grabbed 12 rebounds as the sixth-seeded Warriors stunned the No. 3 Monarchs 76-54 in a CIF-SS Open Division pool-play game at Mater Dei.
It is Open Division debut, St. Pius X-St. Matthias (23-5) collected its first victory against Mater Dei, a 24-time section champion, and handed the Monarchs (26-3) their most lopsided loss of the season.
“It’s definitely big for us,” Riley said of the Warriors’ first victory in nine games all-time against Mater Dei. “(A few) years ago, we were Division 3, Division 4, so coming in and winning our first Open game in our first appearance against Mater Dei, a prestigious school, is definitely big for us.”
“We had a great week of practice,” the senior added. “All four days our coaches were telling us, we can beat them by 10 to 15 (points) if we work hard, if we execute, if we go by the game plan and we rebound and hit shots.”
St. Pius X-St. Matthias did all that against Orange County’s No. 1-ranked team. The Warriors made 10 of their 20 shots from beyond the arc and shot 52 percent from the floor. The outrebounded the Monarchs 30-24 and didn’t trail in the final three periods.
Point guard David Mack was steady with 15 points, five assists and two steals while Dayvon Gates added 11 points. Tylon Williams scored all seven points of his points off the bench to help key the third period.
“I think our schedule is the key and probably the key why we got in the Open,” St. Pius X-St. Matthias coach Donte Archie said. “We’ve played a lot of the top teams already. We’re not surprised. We just have to execute and make plays.”
“To me, (Riley) is the best player in the state,” the coach added. “He can do everything.”
Martinsen, a sophomore forward, suffered a broken tibia against St. John Bosco last week. The Monarchs tried to pick up scoring slack but couldn’t keep up with the Warriors. Brandon Benjamin (11), Blake Davidson (10) and Owen Verna (10) scored in double figures for the Monarchs, whose last lead came at 12-11 in the opening quarter.
Mater Dei coach Gary McKnight acknowledged Martinsen’s versatile scoring (17 ppg) but hopes the loss motivates his players.
“That’s a very good team,” he said of the Warriors. “We’re going to have to make some adjustments and hopefully this is a good wake up call but the Open Division is a different beast.”
St. Pius X-St. Matthias led 34-23 at halftime behind 12 points by Riley.
The Warriors took advantage of five turnovers by Mater Dei in the second quarter and closed the half on a 12-4 run. Riley capped the surge with a contested 3-pointer in front of the Monarchs’ bench.
St. Pius X-St. Matthias’ pesky defense forced a pair of first-half turnovers by drawing offensive fouls against key reserve Luke Barnett.
The Warriors, meanwhile, only committed four turnovers in the game.
On Tuesday, Mater Dei continues Pool B by playing host to seventh-seeded JSerra, which lost to Roosevelt 64-51 on Friday. The Monarchs and Lions split their two Trinity League games with each winning on their home court.
The encounter will be mark JSerra coach Keith Wilkinson’s first return to Mater Dei since his ejection and shoe-throwing incident with referees on Jan. 5. Wilkinson received a six-game suspension and later apologized.
St. Pius X-St. Matthias on Tuesday plays at Roosevelt, who it lost to 59-54 on Jan. 20.
“I know what we can do,” Archie said. “I feel like we can win the whole thing so we just got to keep grinding, stay humble and just keep competing.”
