Playoffs

SUN VALLEY - The hole was too deep, the hill was too steep. The Bellarmine-Jefferson High boys' basketball team's rally from 14 points down against Village Christian came up short on Tuesday night. The eighth-seeded Guards fell to the top-seeded Crusaders, 70-63, on the road in the quarterfinals of the CIF Southern Section Division V-AA playoffs. “Turnovers killed us,” Bell-Jeff coach Julian Andrade said. “We made some good, defensive stops, and we couldn't go ahead and get a good possession off the defensive stops.

BURBANK - A potential blowout for the Burbank High girls' basketball team nearly turned into a blown victory in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division I-A playoffs on Saturday evening. The Pacific League third-place Bulldogs led by as many as 14 points before holding their collective breath and holding back visiting El Toro, which cut that deficit to one possession before running out of steam in a 53-41 victory for host Burbank. With the win, the Bulldogs (16-12)

The Providence High girls' basketball team has been a defense-first squad this season. However, the Pioneers also have the potential to put up big efforts on the offensive end as well. One of those examples came Saturday night in Providence's CIF Southern Section Division 5-AA second-round game against host Linfield Christian. The Pioneers made 10 three-pointers - five from freshman Fabi Jimenez - to earn an easy 69-44 victory. "We have our defense, and tonight we played pretty well on defense," said Providence Coach Andrew Bencze, whose team is seeded second in the division and improved to 18-9.

BURBANK - Trailing by 12 points with just an eight-minute fourth quarter to try and salvage its season, the Burroughs High girls' basketball team was running out of time. Poor shooting over the course of the first three quarters had put the Indians in a hole Saturday night in a CIF Southern Section Division I-A first-round contest against Fountain Valley. Faced with the mortality of their season, the Indians chose to fight. Burroughs was able to battle back from a 15-point deficit in the second half to tie the score in the fourth.

Marcus LoVett Jr., one of the most highly touted sophomore boys' basketball players in the country , has left Providence High, head of school Joe Sciuto said Friday in a statement. Earlier this month, LoVett, the reigning All-Area Boys' Basketball Player of the Year and Burbank Leader Male Athlete of the Year, left the team and didn't compete for the Pioneers in Wednesday's 72-66 loss to Lancaster Desert Christian in the first round of the CIF Southern Section Division V-AA playoffs.

GIRLS' SOCCER Arroyo Grande 2, Burbank 0 : The Bulldogs fell on the road Thursday in a CIF Southern Section Division III first-round game. The Burbank defense played well in the first half, as both teams went into halftime scoreless. However, the Bulldogs allowed two second-half goals. Burbank (13-9-1) was the fourth-place team from the Pacific League. Arroyo Grande (17-1-6) captured a championship in the PAC 7 League. GIRLS' BASKETBALL St. Bernard 66, Bellarmine-Jefferson 37 : The Guards fell on the road Thursday to the No. 4 seed in the CIF Southern Section Division IV-AA playoffs.

BURBANK - Using a suffocating defense against an offense that was already struggling was more than enough for the Providence High girls' basketball team in its CIF Southern Section Division IV-AA opener. Fueled by their full-court press, the second-seeded Pioneers tallied 34 steals and cruised to a 48-20 victory over visiting Downey Calvary Chapel Thursday night at Providence. The four-time Liberty League champions will have to travel for their second-round game and will face the winner of Sherman Indian and 15th seeded Linfield Christian on Saturday.

GLENDALE - The Providence High boys' soccer team was hoping to continue its historic season Thursday when it faced Tarbut V'Torah in a CIF Southern Section Division VII first-round playoff match. The Pioneers came into the postseason after winning a league championship for the first time in program history. The team's appearance in the postseason was also a first. However, in the early going against the Lions, it looked as if Providence would have to come up with some additional magic if it hoped to move on in the playoffs.

It was going to be a difficult task for the Providence High boys' basketball team to repeat its exploits from last season in the CIF Southern Section playoffs when it advanced to the Division V-AA championship for the first time in program history. That became apparent when Pioneers super sophomore Marcus LoVett Jr. departed the team last month. In fact, Providence just qualified for the postseason after placing fourth in the Liberty League. But the Pioneers were hoping to make some noise Wednesday when they opened the playoffs on the road against Lancaster Desert Christian.

Burroughs High girls' soccer Coach Eddie Garcia knows a little something about his team's first-round opponent in the CIF Southern Section Division III playoffs. To be more specific, he coached a pair of players on the team that will be the Indians' first-round opponent. Burroughs will take on host Flintridge Prep at 5 p.m. Thursday in a playoff opener. “I coached two of the girls on that team,” said Garcia, who is also a club coach. “I also know that [Prep] is a very good program and they usually have their share of good players.