Harvard-Westlake defeats St. Joseph for the state boys’ basketball Open Division title

To see a 16-year-old sophomore basketball player blossom over the course of a five-month high school season and go from a player with potential to a player making three-pointers in an NBA arena and playing such suffocating defense that the other team’s star player is almost invisible explains how valuable 6-foot-8 Nikolas Khamenia has been during March Madness for Studio City Harvard-Westlake.

It culminated on the biggest stage at Golden 1 Center on Saturday night with Harvard-Westlake (33-2) validating itself as the No. 1 team in California after a 76-65 victory over Santa Maria St. Joseph in the state Open Division championship game. Though Harvard-Westlake has five starters who surely are headed to college, Khamenia was the one who elevated the Wolverines to state champion in the toughest division.

Harvard-Westlake’s Trent Perry drives past St. Joseph’s Luis Marin in the first quarter.

(Jose Luis Villegas / For the Times)

He took down three-time defending Southern Section Open Division Corona Centennial last week with a 20-point performance. This time, he was assigned to guard St. Joseph’s talented 6-8 Tounde Yessoufou, averaging 28.2 points. He limited him to six points in the first half and 14 points in 32 minutes. Khamenia also scored 16 points, making three three-pointers.

Harvard-Westlake led at halftime 35-31. The Knights were able to hang around because 6-6 guard Luis Marin kept using his size to maneuver inside and had 15 points, making seven of his eight shots. As usual, the Wolverines were getting contributions from all five starters and Christian Horry came off the bench to make a baseline three-pointer that had his father, Robert, sitting courtside, feeling good.

In the third quarter, the Wolverines made a big adjustment. Brady Dunlap, at 6-8, was assigned to cover Marin, who suddenly stopped scoring. Harvard-Westlake went on a 7-0 surge and took a 48-35 lead.

The players who needed to come through did for Harvard-Westlake. Point guard Trent Perry, the Mission League player of the year, had 12 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds. Dunlap scored 16 points. Jacob Huggins had 15 points and 11 rebounds.

The legacy of this Harvard-Westlake team might be in the discussion for best in school history. The teams of 1996 and 1997 that won consecutive state Division III championships with the Collins twins, Jason and Jarron, have always been used as the measuring stick for basketball greatness. The 1997 team went 36-1, was ranked No. 1 in California and lost only to national power Mt. Zion Christian Academy of Durham, N.C. Harvard-Westlake finished 33-2 with close losses to Henderson (Nev.) Liberty and Bellflower St. John Bosco. And each time, the Wolverines responded with a vengeance, learning from their mistakes.

Three of their five starters are underclassmen — Perry, Robert Hinton and Khamenia. Add Horry, the key sixth man, and developing freshman big man Dominique Bentho, and the Wolverines have the makings for another powerful starting lineup for 2023-24.