Sierra Canyon comes back from 17-point deficit to beat Notre Dame

A battle of a pair of 2023-24 California high school basketball titans in front of an audience with celebrities lived up to its billing with a 17-point comeback by No. 20 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) to hand No. 19 Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) its first loss of the season 81-75.

The Notre Dame Knights, who entered the game with a 24-0 record, took a commanding 66-49 lead into the fourth quarter. Sierra Canyon launched a full-court press that turned defensive into offense, primarily from three-star forwards Bryce Cofield and Isaiah Elohim.

The Trailblazers forced 10 turnovers over the final six minutes of the game, according to the Los Angeles Daily News, as they chipped away at the lead. Cofield and Elohim combined for 21 points in the quarter, and Cofield gave Sierra Canyon the lead with a little over a minute left in the game.

Cofield finished with 14 points and Elohim with 18, per the Los Angeles Times. Justin Pippen, a three-star guard on the 247Sports Composite, led the team with 19 points.

For Notre Dame, four-star guard Mercy Miller led with 28 points. Lino Mark, ranked four-stars on the 247Sports Composite, scored 21.

Notre Dame and Sierra Canyon were battling for supremacy of the Mission League after both took down Harvard-Westlake, previously a top-5 team in the nation, a week earlier. In the stands included former Sierra Canyon player Bronny James, Justin’s dad Scottie Pippen, and Los Angeles Dodgers star Mookie Betts.

With the win, Sierra Canyon improved its record to 24-1 and pushed Notre Dame to an identical record. With 19 wins in a row, the Trailblazers enter the Mission League Tournament as the top seed, one spot ahead of Notre Dame. Both play their next respective games on Wednesday.