CIF State Playoffs: Santa Barbara Comeback Halted by San Marcos Knights in Season-Ending 85-81 Loss
Luke Zuffelato Tied His Own School Record With 46 Points for Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara’s magical run to the CIF Division 3 State Tournament ended in the first round as the Dons’ thrilling comeback fell short in an 85-81 loss to San Marcos out of the San Diego Section.
Luke Zuffelato tied his own school record with 46 points, including 17 points in a wild fourth quarter that saw Santa Barbara trim a 13 points deficit to one with under a minute remaining in the game.
Freshman Owen Horn chipped in nine points on three 3-pointers and senior Waylon Finkle added eight points in his final high school game.
The Dons led 17-8 at the end of the first quarter, but San Marcos dominated quarter two and three outscoring Santa Barbara 58-38 over those two quarters to take a 66-55 lead into the fourth quarter.
The Santa Barbara defense found life late in the game forcing a flurry of turnovers to spark an 18-6 run from the 4:15 mark of the fourth quarter until there was 40 seconds remaining in the game.
San Marcos converted eight of 11 free throws in the fourth quarter to secure the victory.
Santa Barbara finished the season with a 24-9 overall record, a Channel League title, A run to the CIF-SS Division 3A semifinals and a berth into the state tournament for the first time since the 2018-19 season.