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  • Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson, right (with teammate Elijah Brown and...

    Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson, right (with teammate Elijah Brown and Monarch coach Gary McKnight) had plenty of reason to celebrate with a regional finals victory.

  • Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson continually has come through in the...

    Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson continually has come through in the Monarchs' biggest games.

  • Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson will be playing in his third...

    Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson will be playing in his third state championship game in three years.

  • Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson is the Register's 2012-13 boys basketball...

    Mater Dei's Stanley Johnson is the Register's 2012-13 boys basketball player of the year.

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SANTA ANA – Mater Dei forward Stanley Johnson missed all 10 of his shots in the first half of last week’s CIF state regional final. The shots weren’t forced and they were mostly on line, they just weren’t falling.

Good misses, he called them. His coach, Gary McKnight, saw it differently, remembering Johnson covered in sweat following a workout about 90 minutes before tip-off.

“I didn’t say anything at the time,” said McKnight, initially trusting the 6-foot-7, 232-pound junior whom he’d grown accustomed to seeing play at his best against the best, before scolding him at halftime. “I said, ‘You’re a high school All-American. We can’t win with you not scoring.’ ”

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All-County boys basketball team

Boys basketball player of the year: Stanley Johnson

Boys basketball coach of the year: Todd Dixon

All-County boys basketball: Also honored

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Johnson didn’t cower, but instead offered a suggestion. Etiwanda had been collapsing the paint and forcing Johnson to his left. Mater Dei on its opening possession of the second half planned to have Johnson isolated at the top of the key and drive right, with another Monarch cutting to the basket from the left side. Johnson convinced his coaches it’d be better to have his teammate remain on the perimeter.

“I did one dribble right and I spun back to the left, it was wide open,” Johnson said. “Easy layup.”

Johnson erupted for 14 more points in the quarter, making four 3-pointers, and finished with a game-high 25 points in what became a rout for the Monarchs.

“He sees what’s going on,” McKnight said. “He knows the player personnel of other teams. He’s very sharp when critiquing other players, his teammates and himself.

“Someday he’ll be a coach.”

For now, he stands as the best player in Orange County, earning the Register’s award for the boys pasketball player of the year for the 2012-13 season.

“I’ve had a lot of good players, but not from their freshman year on,” McKnight said. “He’s never let us down.”

Johnson’s latest season has been by far his greatest. Entering tonight’s CIF state championship game against Archbishop Mitty of San Jose, he is averaging 19.2 points and 8.7 rebounds. More importantly, the 16-year-old has assumed the lead role following the departure of three seniors to NCAA Division 1 programs, carrying Mater Dei to a 25th consecutive league title and the CIF-SS Division 1AA final.

The Monarchs (33-2), who own a record nine state titles, are looking to win their third in a row for the first time in school history. Competing in the newly formed Open Division, which includes California’s top teams, has made the task even tougher for the two-time defending Division I state champions. No team has won three successive Division I titles.

“We have a chance to make history,” Johnson said. “If you make history at Mater Dei, you’re doing something pretty big.”

Johnson, as he has throughout his career, did big things this season in the biggest games.

In December, he had 23 points and 13 rebounds in a tournament final against Nevada state champion Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas. A week later, he had 27 points and 12 rebounds in the Orange Holiday Classic final against CIF-SS Division 3AAA champion Tustin. In February, he had 21 points and 16 rebounds in the Nike Extravaganza against L.A. City Section Division 1 champion Westchester.

And then there were the January bouts with St. John Bosco of Bellfower. Some media outlets, as well as people within Bosco’s program, touted the Braves as preseason Trinity League favorites.

Johnson didn’t get mad, he got even better. He went off for 25 points and 21 rebounds in the first meeting and 31 points and 12 rebounds in the second, as Mater Dei won each game handily.

“Few people could do that,” McKnight said. “The bigger the game, the better Stanley plays.”

So goes the narrative with Johnson, who as a freshman grabbed 15 rebounds in the state title game. He followed that up with 21 points and 11 rebounds in last year’s state championship. McKnight points to Johnson’s preparation to explain such performances when the pressure to win is at its peak. Johnson revealed another type of pressure pushing him.

“I’ve been in the spotlight since my freshman year,” Johnson said. “Coming here you can’t hide. That makes me want to work harder. There might be somebody in the stands who’s never watched me play before.

“My mom always says leave a picture in their head.”

The sight of Johnson has been worth so much more than a thousand words.