MISSION VIEJO – The Capistrano Valley boys basketball team had its season come to a jarring end Wednesday, as it lost to Orange Glen of Escondido, 68-65, in the first round of the CIF Southern California Division III Regionals.
With 13 seconds remaining in the game, Orange Glen guard Michael Diaz was at the free throw line. Diaz missed the free throw, grabbed his own rebound and scored while drawing a foul. He made the ensuing free throw to cut Orange Glen’s deficit to one point.
Dawson Baker made a pair of free throws on the other end for Capo Valley to extend the lead to three. After an Orange Glen timeout, Diaz made a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the game to overtime.
Damian Miller scored 9 points in overtime for the Patriots.
“Number 10 (Miller) is a natural-born leader and was spectacular down the stretch. He’s the guy that blew us away,” Capo Valley coach Brian Mulligan said.
Baker did it all offensively for the Cougars (25-7). The junior had a game-high 28 points and six rebounds.
“Dawson is really good. He’s probably the CIF player of the year. I’d be shocked if he’s not,” Mulligan said. “He got knocked down a few times and got back up.”
Diaz and Miller made the game difficult for the Cougars throughout. Diaz had 22 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four blocks. Miller had 17 points and two steals.
“We’ve got to keep them in front of us. Had we done that and made them shoot challenged shots, it might have turned out differently,” Mulligan said.
Capo Valley captured its first CIF-SS championship since 1992, and the first with Mulligan at the helm, with a victory over Oxnard on Saturday. The loss Wednesday was disappointing, Mulligan added, but it didn’t diminish what the Cougars accomplished this year.
“To be honest, everybody takes state differently,” Mulligan said. “This is one of my favorite teams I’ve ever coached. They bought in from the beginning and are a great group of dudes.”
