TORRANCE >> All season long, Oak Park had no worries about being selected to the Southern Section Open Division basketball playoffs.
The players embraced being on the watch list and when they were selected, the Eagles were eager to surprise No. 4 seed Bishop Montgomery on Friday.
Bishop Montgomery, however, leaned heavily on its balance and depth as the Knights used a big second quarter to help push to an 83-66 home first round win.
David Singleton had 17 of his game-high 29 points in the second as the junior matched Oak Park’s team total by himself. Bishop Montgomery, which travels to Santa Margarita for Tuesday’s quarterfinal, ended the quarter on a 12-2 run while Oak Park did not hit a field goal over the final four minutes.
VIDEO: Highlights of Oak Park-Bishop Montgomery
“They got going making shots and it was a tough quarter for us,” Oak Park coach Aaron Shaw said. “We could’ve let it get away but we kept fighting and that’s only going to help go forward as a young team.”
Oak Park’s (21-7) first trip to the Open was marked with foul trouble as Ezekiel Richards picked up his third foul early in the second quarter and Chris Stone had four before halftime. With both players limited, Bishop Montgomery (24-2) took advantage as Singleton and Jordan Schakel combined for 15 of the Knights’ last 19 first-half points.
Schakel added three consecutive 3-pointers in the third quarter as the San Diego State signee pushed the Knights’ lead to 58-36. Oak Park battled back with a 13-0 run but Singleton ended with a jumper to push the lead back to 62-51.
“They have so many weapons that it was hard to make up that deficit,” junior Riley Battin said.
Battin finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds and Clark Slajchert had 21 points. Wes Slajchert had nine points before fouling out.
Bishop Montgomery only led 14-13 after the first quarter and with Friday being their first game in 10 days, head coach Doug Mitchell expected his team to be out of sync before finding its form.
“Once we found our rhythm, we started balling,” Mitchell said. “Oak Park had size and great weapons and they showed why you don’t get any easy games in the Open.”
Ethan Thompson added 17 points for the Knights and although its the team’s fourth consecutive trip to the Open, they still had the excitement of a team making its first trip.
“Whenever we start the playoffs, we’re amped up but we all just try to rebound and play our best for all four quarters, no matter how we start,” Schakel said.
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