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In legendary coaching matchup, Xavier Edmonds' 22 points gives Bishop Montgomery state playoff win over Mater Dei

Bishop Montgomery beat Mater Dei 58-53 to advance to the second round of the CIF State Open Division boys basketball playoffs.

TORRANCE, Calif. -- The CIF State Open Division boys basketball playoffs pits the best against the best and Wednesday night's showdown between No. 5 Mater Dei and No. 4 Bishop Montgomery delivered a coaching matchup for the ages.

Coming into the game, Mater Dei head coach Gary McKnight had won 1,214 games and Bishop Montgomery head coach Doug Mitchell had won 758. 

When the final buzzer sounded, it was Mitchell who added to his legendary tally as Bishop Montgomery beat Mater Dei 58-53 behind 22 points from junior forward Xavier Edmonds.

“This feels great," Edmonds said. "I’m happy for my team and I’m especially happy for my coach. [McKnight] is one of his biggest rivals.”

Bishop Montgomery trailed 43-40 after three quarters, but held Mater Dei to only two fourth quarter field goals to clinch the win. At the 3:45 mark of the fourth, senior guard Jalen Vazquez hit a floater to put Bishop Montgomery up 48-47 and from there, the Knights led for the rest of the game. 

“I thought we defended pretty good the whole game, I’ll be honest with you," Mitchell said. "…I thought they got a little tired and that helped us a little bit.”

Mater Dei freshman Tee Bartlett scored 22 points in the loss. 6-foot-8 Edmonds and 6-foot-10 Bartlett battled all night with both having to sit for spells due to foul trouble. It may have been a great matchup for the neutral, but Mitchell is glad it's over. 

"He's a handful," Mitchell said of Bartlett. "He's a big cat, man. He's got a really nice shooting touch."

BISHOP MONTGOMERY GETS SECOND CRACK AT CORONA CENTENNIAL

Bishop Montgomery will travel to Corona on Saturday to face off against No. 1 Corona Centennial in the second round. 

Corona Centennial has beaten every team they've faced in the playoffs so far by at least 20 points, which includes a 78-53 win over Bishop Montgomery. 

“Nobody’s really given them a game," Mitchell said. "I thought when we played them we played pretty poorly and I thought we played nervous and tight. Since then we’ve beaten three teams ranked in the top ten in the state so I’m hoping we’re more confident. It’s not going to be an easy task. They’re really good. They’ve deserved every plaudit they’ve gotten. I just want our guys to play more like themselves.”