3A Boys | O'Dea into final yet again

O'Dea returning to the Class 3A state-championship game is becoming the basketball equivalent of the swallows returning to Capistrano or Santa Claus appearing at the mall.

The No. 2 Irish are in the championship game for an unprecedented fourth straight year after handling Southridge of Kennewick 60-35 in Friday night's semifinals.

Southridge was held scoreless for the final 11 minutes, 29 seconds of the game and didn't have a field goal in the final 11:55.

"We wanted to get back to that championship game for the fourth time in a row," said O'Dea senior guard Chris Banchero, who led the winners with 21 points.

The Irish won the title in 2004 and 2005 and then lost last year's title game to Seattle Prep.

Southridge coach Jason DeVere won't be surprised if O'Dea beats Bainbridge for the championship.

Asked the standard about the difference in the game, DeVere replied: "The difference is they are a heck of a basketball team."

The loss ended Southridge's dream of becoming the first Eastern Washington team since Othello in 1984 to win the 3A (then AA) title.

Southridge (21-6) made it interesting for awhile. The Suns had a 9-0 run to cut the Irish lead to 37-35 with 3:29 left in the third quarter but never scored again. They had eight turnovers and missed seven shots and a free throw on the way to the final buzzer.

O'Dea senior Jamelle McMillan, who had the pleasant surprise of seeing his NBA coach father, Nate, near courtside before tipoff, wasn't rattled when Southridge surged.

"The main thing was to stay calm," he said.

McMillan said the Irish (24-5) wanted to contain Travis Mattair, Southridge's leading scorer with an 18-point average.

"We had to control him," said McMillan, a 6-foot-2 guard who is the only O'Dea player who will play in all four title games.

Mattair, an Oregon State baseball signee who could go high in the draft, was held to 11 points.

O'Dea's only bad quarter was the second, when it was outscored 14-6 but still led 30-24 at halftime. The Irish had built a 24-10 lead after one period with three-point baskets, two of them by Banchero.

O'Dea committed four turnovers while forcing 17 in the win.

Southridge opened in the fall of 1995 and dropped from 4A last year to 3A in the reclassification that took effect last fall. The Suns went to state for the first time last year and lasted three games.

This will be O'Dea's eighth appearance in a state-title game, and all four of its championships have been won by coach Phil Lumpkin. This is the 25th tournament appearance for O'Dea, whose players wore warmup T-shirts that said, "Tradition Doesn't Graduate."

Craig Smith: 206-464-8279 or csmith@seattletimes.com

O'DEA — Johri Fogerson 0-2 0-0 0, Kelly Edwards 3-6 0-1 1, Brian Walker 2-6 0-0 5, Colton Christian 0-1 1-2 1, Chris Banchero 5-9 8-8 21, Jamelle McMillan 4-9 5-6 16, Ellis Pressley-Whitman 1-3 3-5 5, Josh Scott 2-6 1-2 5. Totals 17-42 18-24 60.

SOUTHRIDGE — R.J. Knight 3-4 1-1 8, Travis Mattair 2-6 7-8 11, Andrew Teimouri 0-0 0-0 0, Andrew Mendenhall 2-5 3-4 7, Kody Fullerton 2-3 3-4 7, Jason Munns 1-4, 0-1 2, Dylan Jones 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 10-24 14-18 35.

Three-point shooting — O'Dea 8-20 (Fogerson 0-2, Edwards 1-4, Walker 1-2, Banchero 3-6, McMillan 3-5, Scott 0-2); Southridge 1-6 (Knight 1-2, Mattair 0-2, Mendenhall 0-1, Munns 0-1). Rebounds — O'Dea 25 (Scott 5); Southridge (Knight 5, Munns 5). Assists — O'Dea 11 (McMillan 5); Southridge 7 (Munns 4). Steals — O'Dea 6 (McMillan 3); Southridge 1 (Mattair). Blocked shots — O'Dea 1 (Edwards); Southridge 1 (Fullerton). Turnovers — O'Dea 4 (Banchero 2); Southridge 17 (Mattair 6). Fouled out — Southridge: Knight, Munns O'Dea: None.