Bush Helps San Clemente Hold Off Aliso Niguel Rally

Good thing San Clemente guard Curtis Bush was ready.

With the Tritons’ other players struggling, Bush stepped up his game just as Aliso Niguel had whittled what had been an 18-point lead to three late in the third quarter.

The junior scored 11 of San Clemente’s next 15 points to help the Tritons put away the Wolverines, 70-53, in a Southern Section Division I-AA boys’ basketball first-round playoff game Wednesday at San Clemente.

“I’m one of the leaders out there,” explained Bush, who scored 18 of his game-high 19 points in the second half. “Someone had to pick it up for us.”

San Clemente (15-10) will face Glendora, a 77-55 winner over Camarillo, Friday in the second round at a site to be determined by a coin toss.

It was hard to imagine any anxious moments Wednesday after the Tritons sprinted out to a 20-2 lead over Aliso Niguel (12-14), which had qualified for the playoffs only because of the new rule that allows teams with 10 victories to participate.

The Wolverines certainly looked unworthy for the opening two quarters as San Clemente used its considerable height advantage to mount a 30-16 halftime lead.

But after Bush made a pair of free throws to put the Tritons ahead 36-24 early in the third quarter, Aliso Niguel went on a 9-0 run highlighted by Zach Zanolli’s three-point play to pull within 36-33. Zanolli finished with a team-high 16 points.

The Wolverines were hustling, slapping loose balls their way, and negating, for the moment at least, San Clemente’s strong inside game that featured 6-foot-7 Tim Burnette and 6-6 Gray Garrett.

That’s when Bush made two consecutive three-pointers and later added a free throw to help San Clemente regain control going into the fourth quarter.

“What are you going to do about that?” lamented Aliso Niguel Coach Paul Wachenheim.

In the fourth, Bush made several dazzling moves to the basket and hit all three of his free throws to close the door.

“We’d like him to play that way for four quarters,” said San Clemente Coach Brad Davis, who stomped the floor in apparent protest of several ill-advised shots by Bush in the first half. “He’s tough to guard. They didn’t know what to do with him.”

Each team played without a regular contributor. Aliso Niguel’s Sky Chambers was attending his uncle’s funeral and Mississippi while San Clemente’s Jordan Fleener was ineligible because of academic problems.