Boys' basketball: Bullard upsets Taft, 70-63

Fresno Bullard outscored Woodland Hills Taft 48-32 in the second half to pull off a 70-63 upset in a Southern California Regional Division I quarterfinal game at Taft.

Corey Silverstrom scored 23 points and was nine of 10 from the free throw line for the two-time Central Section champions, who opened the fourth quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 56-50 lead. The sixth-seeded Knights (31-3) made 23 of 33 foul shots while Taft converted only 13 of 32.

"Free throws are what cost us," said Anthony January, who scored 14 points for Taft before fouling out with 25.4 seconds left and the Toreadors trailing 68-63. "That and not enough rebounding. They're very skilled and we knew we'd have to play hard. This loss is disappointing, but it was still a great season."

Kris Yanku led the third-seeded Toreadors (29-4), the defending City Section champions, with 18 points and Brandon Perry added nine before fouling out with 1:19 left in the fourth quarter.

"They're a great team and very well-coached," Bullard Coach Tony Amundsen said. "We knew we had to limit their second-chance points and neutralize their rebounding. That's hard to do because they're so athletic above the rim, but if you can do it, you give yourself a chance. At halftime, we talked about how to attack their 1-3-1 zone."

-- Steve Galluzzo

Photo: Taft's Steven Jones (left) guards Bullard's Chris Russell in the second half of Bullard's 70-63 victory in the Southern California Regional quarterfinals. Credit: Steve Galluzzo / For The Times