On the road again: Mission Prep set to play in division finals

The Mission Prep girls basketball team will play its fourth road game in a row on Saturday when it takes the court against Flintridge Prep on Saturday in Santa Ana.

After traveling a little less than 2,000 miles in the past two weeks, the Royals won’t have to travel far on game day. The team stayed in a hotel near Godinez High School, the site of the game, on Friday night. The travel schedule has been difficult, but the competition hasn’t been. Mission Prep has won by an average of over

30 points points per game.

Mission Prep (18-8) will likely face its biggest challenge of the playoffs so far when it takes on Flintridge Prep (19-4). The Rebles have won 13 games in a row and have three players who can fill it up.

“This is a solid a team,” Mission Prep head coach Andrew Richardson said of the Prep League champions from La Cañada. “I would compare them to Arroyo Grande. They are bigger and stronger, but we will be quicker and more athletic.”

Mission Prep can counter the Rebels’ bigger and stronger play with forward Noelle Laird, who has been a double-double machine for the Roayls this season. The athleticism comes in the form of Noelle’s sister Jennifer Laird and point guard Jacqueline San Jule.

All three are averaging about nine points per game.

On paper, Mission Prep has the advantage. Accoriding to MaxPreps, Mission Prep is the No. 1 seed in 5AA, with the most difficult strength of schedule. Flintridge Prep is ranked third on the same scale. The Southern Section has Flintridge as a No. 4 seed and Mission Prep at No. 6 in the Southern Section Division 5AA playoffs, but Mission Prep has already proved that ranking wrong by defeating No. 2 seed Oxford Academy (39-24) in the semifinals and No. 3 seed Loma Linda (44-25) in the quarterfinals.

Richardson said the team is going to stick to what is working: deceptive pressure defense. The Royals will need to shut down the big three for Flintridge Prep in junior Taylor Yoshida (13 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 3.5 apg), junior Renae Tamura (10.9 ppg, 5.9 rpg) and senior center Tala Ismail (9.8 ppg, 8 rpg).

Mission Prep will also have to navigate a large home crowd.

“We have been used to that. We had the last three games on the road,” Richardson said. “It will probably be a little bit louder, but I told them, there’s no better way to shut them up then by putting the ball through the basket.”

The crowd might even be bigger than normal because the girls game is followed bythe boys 5AA championship featuring Flintridge Prep and St. Joseph (Santa Maria). Mission Prep will try to relax and watch a few games on Friday before the 2 p.m. start Saturday — but that’s easier said than done.

“The nerves are going to play a heavy role,” Richardson said. “For all of the girls, it is their first time in a championship game. It’s my first time, too.”

The Mission Prep crowd will be lighter than expected after the school was unable to get a bus for fans. But fans will be able to watch the game online at NFHS Network.

If Mission Prep wins on Saturday, it would be its first section title since 2012.

This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 4:17 PM with the headline "On the road again: Mission Prep set to play in division finals."