Templeton beats Mission Prep 76-70 in overtime thriller
A game that seemed bound for a comfortable Templeton High boys basketball win early on turned out to be anything but that as the Eagles clawed their way to a 76-70 overtime non-league victory over Mission Prep on Wednesday.
Looking to avenge last season’s blowout losses to the Royals by margins of 52 points and 63 points, Templeton came out firing in their home gym with an experienced roster to take an early 29-10 lead over Mission Prep.
The Eagles (15-5) used a balanced attack and ball movement to find openings and pour in early points, while Mission Prep (9-7) couldn’t find its rhythm to start, missing several 3-point shots in the first-half while looking for an answer against Templeton’s zone defense.
Facing a 36-20 halftime deficit, Mission Prep put together a valiant second-half effort, however, forcing turnovers with its full-court press defense, and also finding its shooting touch.
Senior Royals guard Hunter Drake buried six 3-pointers in the game, five in the second half, to lead Mission Prep with 18 points.
A wild sequence of events took place at the end of regulation as David “Deuce” Kellogg gave the Royals a 65-64 edge after a steal by Drake, followed by a one-legged midrange jumper by Harrison Bays to give the Eagles a 66-65 lead.
Mission Prep big man Kason Nico converted one of two free throws after being fouled with 3.8 seconds left to even the score at 66-66.
Then the game could have ended as the Eagles’ Kevin Sass drained a long-range 3-pointer presumably at the buzzer, but the game clock never started, and the referee determined that time had expired on the possession to the indignation of the home crowd.
Templeton pulled away with a key 3-pointer at 1:55 in the overtime frame by junior Mason Main to give Templeton a 72-67 lead, and the Eagles held on.
“They play hard, and we just came out and matched their intensity,” said Templeton Coach Lawren Ramos. “All credit to my guys that just came out, played hard, stayed locked in and focused on all the little things to carry us to a victory tonight.”
Ramos and Mission Prep Coach Terrance Harris played against each other during their high school years at their respective alma maters where they now coach.
“I have a ton of respect for Terrance,” Ramos said. “Mission is a fantastic program. ... Terrance and I have played against each other since we were in sixth grade. Now we’re coaching against each other and we push each other. We can be friends and push each other. It’s a great relationship.”
Templeton was led by Kevin Sass, who poured in 20 points. Mason Main added 15 on five 3-pointers, Bays tallied 12 and Colter Tannehill added 11 points.
“Basketball is a game of runs, so we knew they were going to get their run,” Bays said. “We just had to do our best to answer back. We’re a deep team, we play well together, and when we’re playing well together, it’s hard to beat us.”
Templeton players said the Mission Prep game is one that Templeton has looked forward to all season, and they elished the matchup.
“This is the game we circled (on the schedule),” Bays said.
Sass said that after the regulation 3-pointer was ruled too late, the team had to gear up for overtime.
“When it came time to get things done, we got it done,” Sass said. “Obviously, the game-winner didn’t count, so we just had to reset and just come out strong. ... I think we’re just really deep this year. We have a lot of guys that can do really good things.”
Mission Prep’s Colton Mott tallied 17 points, Kellogg added 15 points and Jackson Esparza had 12.
“Templeton came out ready to play,” Harris said. “I give them a lot of credit for executing and shooting the ball really well, and just playing with great intensity and passion. I thought we started off very slow, and I think that was a huge difference in the game. It took us till midway through the second quarter to start to get a little bit of a rhythm on offense, and that was really challenging for us.”
Harris said that the Royals are still growing as a team, which includes some experienced players in Drake and Kellogg, along with some new faces still getting used to the varsity level.
“We really do have a wide range of guys that can contribute and contribute at a high level, and we rely on a team game,” Harris said. “We have to play that way. And so takes it takes all 11 of those guys in uniform for us to get where we want to go.”
This story was originally published January 7, 2026 at 11:28 PM.
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