SACRAMENTO – Chatsworth sophomore Alijah Arenas made layups, dunks, triple-teamed mid-range jumpers and pullup 3-pointers as he scored a CIF Division IV state championship-record 44 points in the SoCal school’s 74-66 loss to Monterey.
He broke the old record of 35, set by Shon Tarver of Santa Clara-Oxnard in 1990.
Arenas made 17 of 32 field goal attempts and was 8 of 12 from the free-throw line as he scored 28 in the second half on Saturday afternoon at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
“I’m very grateful and very blessed to be in this situation,” Arenas said. “I feel like we played hard and gave it our all.”
His father Gilbert Arenas, now famous for being a podcast host, started his 12-year NBA career in the Bay Area with the Warriors. The man known as “Agent Zero” won the Most Improved Player in his second season, and made three All-Star teams and All-NBA teams with the Washington Wizards.
The elder Arenas sat courtside with his family and was seen giving tips to the Chatsworth team at halftime.
“He’s not in my ear too much, because he wants me to play my game,” Arenas said about his dad. “He just kind of guides me in the right way.”
SACRAMENTO — Chatsworth parent Gilbert Arenas talks to the officials during the game. Monterey beat Chatsworth 74-66 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 9 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
Aside from Arenas and Taj Unuakhalu (19 rebounds and nine blocks), the rest of the Chatsworth team struggled to make an impact. The other eight players shot a combined 5-21 from the field.
“I kind of knew he would get it going, and he hit a really good stride in the second half,” said Monterrey coach Greg Daniels. “In the third quarter, he started getting to his spots and it looked good every time it left his fingers.”
SACRAMENTO — Chatsworth guard Alijah Arenas shoots the ball. Monterey beat Chatsworth 74-66 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 9 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
It didn’t take long for Monterey to get comfortable in the spacious Golden 1 Center. Daniels called his team “road warriors” after the program won four consecutive road games in NorCal.
Seeded No. 14, the Dores saw the long bus rides to far-away gymnasiums as a positive after receiving an at-large bid following a soul-crushing loss to Santa Cruz in the Central Coast Section semifinals.
“The bus rides with the guys, those will always be great memories to look back on,” Monterey guard Ryan Roth said, with his coach adding on, “Travelling on the road for four games really made us closer as a team.”
Getting up at the crack of dawn to take a 6 a.m. bus ride from the Pacific coast to Sacramento on gameday was no big deal. And trying to get ready for a game without basketballs or a place to get shots up until a few minutes before tipoff?
Not an issue.
“We were out there moving in the hallway,” Daniels said. “We had no basketballs and nothing in the locker room. So it was like, just move your body as much as possible, and use the time on the court go get up shots.”
Even an incendiary Arenas wasn’t enough to take down the well-balanced Dores, who got 22 points from Kavon Collins, 19 from Joshua Roth and 18 from Ryan Roth.
SACRAMENTO — Monterey teams celebrate winning the Division IV state title. Monterey beat Chatsworth 74-66 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 9 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
SACRAMENTO — Chatsworth teammates Alijah Arenas (0) and CJ Gore (34) talk during a timeout. Monterey beat Chatsworth 74-66 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 9 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)