ANAHEIM — The Edison boys basketball team was cruising along, ahead by nearly 20 points heading into the fourth quarter of its first-round playoff game Wednesday at Esperanza High School.
But then the Chargers’ star player, Derick Johnson, fouled out with just under three minutes remaining in Division 2 contest and the momentum rapidly shifted.
The Aztecs quickly got El Dorado’s lead down to single digits, then down to two possessions, and then one possession.
But the Aztecs’ desperation 3-point attempt in the final seconds didn’t come close and the Chargers hung on for a 79-76 victory.
Edison, ranked No.18 in Orange County, will play host to Valencia of Valencia in a second-round game Friday. The Vikings defeated Beverly Hills in their first-round game Wednesday.
Johnson scored 33 points, including 13 from the free throw line, before fouling out.
The Chargers didn’t help their cause by missing five of six free throws over the final minute and committed a turnover, which Esperanza’s Mason Moore converted into an easy basket to get the Aztecs within four points with 34.1 second left.
Moore also hit a 3-pointer about one minute earlier to keep the Chargers within range.
“I’ve never experienced a game where I’m relieved that I’ve won but I’m more angry, more upset,” Edison coach Josh Beaty said. “I think we’ll live and learn.”
The Chargers did enough right to take a 23-point lead in the third quarter, helped by an 11-2 run to start the quarter.
“We were playing as a team and Derek is just very difficult to keep in front of you and he was kind of doing his thing,” Beaty said. “But then everything kind of shifted when they made a little run and then he fouled out.”
Beaty also praised the tenacity displayed by the Aztecs, who elevated their game in the final quarter.
“When they got down, they really started being more physical,” the coach said. “They really started going after the boards. They just started destroying us on the glass.”
Johnson said playing a tough Sunset League schedule against teams such as Corona del Mar and Los Alamitos, which are ranked No.4 and No.7 respectively in the county, prepared him for the postseason.
The Cal State Dominguez Hills signee said he expected to get fouled often.
“That’s how it’s been during league, where they triple-team you in box-and-one and box-and-two, so I learned that they’re just going to foul,” Johnson said. “So, I learned that I have to knock down my free throws, because that’s very crucial at that point.
“It’s also just a team effort. Trusting my teammates at the end. It was a little scary. I knew we were going to come out with a victory. It’s just the fact of discipline and being good with the ball.”