CORONA — Centennial boys basketball coach Josh Giles was looking for the right moment to put starting point guard Mike Price back into the game.
The Huskies were rolling with Robert “B.J.” Taylor on the floor, however, so Giles decided not to make any changes to his lineup down the stretch.
And Taylor rewarded his coach’s faith in him by sinking a momentum-changing 3-pointer to give the Huskies the lead with 2:28 left on the clock. Taylor’s fourth-quarter effort at both ends helped the Huskies edge Sierra Canyon 68-63 in CIF Southern Section Open Division pool-play game Friday evening.
“B.J. has had two knee surgeries since he’s been here and has had to overcome a lot,” Giles said. “He’s a great kid who always puts in a tremendous effort when he gets the opportunity to play. For him to step up in a big game like this one tonight, I was extremely excited to see him come through.
“And I have to give a lot of credit to Mike. He was a great teammate who understood the situation and said we should stick with what we had out there.”
Centennial (26-3) held a double-digit lead at halftime, but Sierra Canyon’s Ashton Hardaway scored 10 points in the third quarter to help the Trailblazers get back in the game. Sierra Canyon (20-8) took a brief lead in that period and only trailed 45-44 heading to the final quarter.
Hardaway sank a 28-footer to tie the score at 53 and drained another shot from behind the arc to give Sierra Canyon a 56-55 lead with 2:47 to play.
On the ensuing possession, Aaron McBride drove to the basket and was double-teamed. McBride kicked the ball to Taylor, who nailed a 3 in the corner.
“I was just looking to help my team win,” said Taylor, a senior guard. “When I saw my defender help, I knew I had to be ready to take a shot.”
Centennial, the two-time defending champion of the Open Division, led 62-58 with about a minute to play, but Bronny James sank a 3-pointer in the corner to bring Sierra Canyon back within a…
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