What was billed as the Fairfax State Preview could accurately be described as a measuring stick.

The 10 participating teams in Saturday’s event at Fairfax High School allowed some of the premier boys basketball teams in the state to see how they stack up against each other.

With the playoffs just a couple of weeks away, the value of the five games was evident.

“This was called a State Preview Classic and that was just what it was,” Crenshaw coach Ed Waters said after his team dropped a 90-86 overtime decision to Price, maybe the leading contender for the State Division IV title.

“This was the type of game you can draw back on when you’re down in the playoffs,” Price coach Michael Lynch said. “We were down 18 points to Gahr and came back, so we’ve come from behind before, but not this late.”

Serra, which competes in Division III of state and was No. 1 ranked overall in California by maxpreps.com until losing to No. 7 Taft, 71-64 in Saturday’s feature  game, also got a taste of what the postseason will be like.

“They (Toreadors) exploited some of our weaknesses,” Serra coach Dwan Hurt said. “Their pressure and length bothered us. We turned the ball over a lot and missed a lot (12) of free throws. But I think it was good for us. Now we have the kids’ attention and we can learn from this.”

The game with the intensity of a state championship game was the one between Price and Crenshaw.

It featured spectacular individual performances, scoring runs by both teams and clutch shots.

As Waters said, “It was a great high school basketball game.”

As for big individual performances, none was bigger than Price’s Allen Crabbe,  who finished with 38 points, eight rebounds and five assists. The 6-foot-4 University of California-signee scored on a variety of long- to mid-range jumpers and dunks to score 28 of his points in the second half and overtime.

In the final minute of regulation, he hit two free throws to bring the Knights (22-2) within three points, setting the stage of Askia Booker’s banked-in 3-pointer from the top of the key with 22 seconds left that sent the game into overtime.

Then in the final minute of regulation, Crabbe hit a 3-pointer of his own and added a couple of free throws to send the Knights on the way to victory.

“Cal got a good one,” Lynch noted in a bit of understatement.

They had other heroes.

Richard Solomon, the Knights’ 6-10 Cal-bound center, had 17 points and eight rebounds before fouling out.

Senior point guard Casey Trujeque, a Montana State-signee, had 12 points and seven assists while running the offense flawlessly.

On the other side, Crenshaw (13-3) drew its inspiration from 6-2 guard Reynaul Baker and his 6-foot backcourt mate Deuce Zaid.

Baker scored 33 points to go with eight rebounds and four assists while trying to defend Price’s big men in the low post.

Zaid had 26 points, nine rebounds and three assists. He had six of the team’s 11 points in overtime.

Freshman guard Isaac Hamilton had 14 points and eight rebounds.

“All I told the team in the locker room afterwards was, ‘There’s no reason to be down, you played a great game.’” Waters said. “We found out what we needed to know about our team. A bank shot that that kid would never make again kept us from beating the No. 5 team in California.

“Our team played hard and even with the loss, I see Crenshaw headed toward the level we want it at. The big players stepped up for us. Reynaul was huge and so was Zaid. We had guards guarding big men.

“We just played a team with three (college) Division I players. We don’t have any, but we’re a team people need to look at. Teams ignore us at their own risk.”

Price, which has won five State Division V championships under Lynch, has already played a rugged schedule to prepare itself for the postseason run. The two losses have been by three points to Serra and one point to Newark Memorial, the state’s ninth-ranked team.

“We played a monster schedule, so we’ve seen just about every style,” Lynch said. I truly believe we’re ready to go (as far as the postseason).”

Taft 71, Serra 64
DeAndre Daniels, a 6-8 junior, scored 26 points, and Pierson Williams hit four 3-pointers on the way to 14 points to help Taft (17-3) get past Serra (22-2).

The Cavaliers, who had their 18-game winning streak snapped, were behind by double digits  most of the night, but closed to 50-47 late in the third quarter. But Williams hit a 3-pointer to end the period, then another to start the fourth and Serra never could completely recover.

Vaughn Autry led Serra with 24 points and Marquise Lee added 12. Ronnie Stevens scored nine.

Pioneer League
Centennial 64, South Torrance 34
Centennial (16-5, 6-0), the state’s 10th-ranked team, leads the Pioneer League with two weeks remaining in the regular season.

Pacing the Pioneers has been senior guard Deonta Burton, who had another solid outing in Friday’s 64-34 rout at South Torrance with 14 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.

Kurt Davis had 17 points and eight rebounds and Kevin Smith added 10 points.

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Pioneer League
South Torrance 44, Centennial 36
The Apaches trailed by only two points entering the fourth quarter, but got outscored 12-6 over the final eight minutes and lost to league-leading South Torrance, 44-36.

Kelsie Sampson, the Spartans’ 6-1 center, had 14 points and nine rebounds and Tori Caporaso had 12 points on four 3-point baskets as South improved to 17-6 and 5-1.

Mercedez Jefflo led Centennial (12-6, 2-3) with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Jazlyn Fuller had 10 points.