ALHAMBRA — Alhambra High boys basketball coach Bryan Gonzalez said his team’s run in the postseason has been a fun ride.

It’s a ride that will continue thanks to senior forward Landon Winslow. His game-high 27 points and 17 rebounds led the Moors to a hard-fought 72-59 win over Sierra Vista in the second round of the CIF State Division 5 playoffs on Thursday night.

Alhambra (19-14), the No. 3 seed, will host Math & Science Academy Prep on Saturday.

Gonzalez praised Winslow for his consistency, not just in this game, but all season.

“Honestly, he’s just done what he’s done for us all year,” he said of Winslow. “You have to appreciate it because he’s come such a long way in the three years since he’s been here.”

Winslow was joined by four other teammates who scored in double figures. Senior Ryan Cerros scored 13 points, junior Justin Chay had 12 points, and juniors Ethan Thai and David Chang each scored 10.

Sierra Vista was led by senior Aaron Buna, who scored 26 points, hitting four 3-pointers. Ethan Guevara and Peter Albir added nine points each for the Dons.

Alhambra led 23-15 after the first quarter thanks to the hot shooting of Winslow. He scored 11 points in the period.

Chang scored seven of his 10 points in the second quarter as the Moors led 36-27 at halftime.

However, Sierra Vista came storming back with a strong start to the third quarter thanks to Albir and Buna. Albir scored seven points during a 15-5 surge for the Dons that gave them a 42-41 lead. Buna hit two impressive step-back 3s in that run, including one that put Sierra Vista up by one after the Dons trailed by as many as 14 in the second quarter.

But Alhambra wasted no time responding. Winslow grabbed an airball and put it into the basket to put Alhambra up 43-42. The Moors never trailed again.

In fact, that basket sparked a 12-0 run that gave Alhambra 53-42 lead late in third quarter. That was capped by a 3-pointer from the baseline from Chay and a 3 from Chang shortly after.

A 3 at the buzzer to end the third quarter from Buna and a layup from Buna to start the fourth quarter cut the Moors’ lead to 53-47, but Alhambra was able to pull away to finish the game.

“We’ve been kind of struggling with having that killer mentality,” Gonzalez said. “We came out in the third quarter a little dry like we have been, but I’m proud of the kids for figuring it out and getting that lead back up.”

Gonzalez also praised his team’s resiliency.

“We set goals for ourselves at the beginning of the year,” said Gonzalez. “One of them was to win a league championship. We came up short there but I kind of feel like we started to play our best basketball at that time. In the second half of league, we were playing where we wanted to be and I think it’s carried over into some matchups in the playoffs as well.”

Alhambra qualified for the CIF State playoffs by advancing to the CIF-SS Division 4A semifinals, where the the Moors lost to eventual division champion California, 81-61. Alhambra bounced back quickly by defeating No. 14 seed South El Monte 63-42 on Tuesday in the first round of the state playoffs before facing Siera Vista.

Sierra Vista (22-12) ends its season with another Montview League championship. The Dons advanced to the CIF-SS Division 5AA semifinals before losing to eventual division champion Kaiser, 48-43. The sixth-seeded Dons defeated No. 11 seed Downtown Magnets from Los Angeles 78-42 on Tuesday before facing Alhambra. This was Sierra Vista’s second state playoff appearance in the past six seasons. The Dons also made it in 2020.

Sierra Vista has become a league power under coach Earl Sanchez in this decade. The Dons were 4-24 in 2019 in his first season but haven’t had a losing season since.

The future looks just as bright as the present. Sierra Vista started three underclassmen against Alhambra in sophomores Dolan Dease and Guevara and junior Isaiah Aguayo. Albir is only a sophomore who figures to push for a starting role next season.