Birmingham Able to Hang No. 10

VALENCIA â€”  They’re not exactly a perfect 10, but they’d settle for No. 10.

Members of the Birmingham High boys’ basketball team, the 10th-ranked team in The Times’ preseason regional poll, defeated the current No. 10 team, Montclair Prep, 64-62, in a quarterfinal game of the Valencia tournament Wednesday night.

Stanley Fletcher and Emmanuel Evans supplied the offense, but Jermore Riley’s defense helped make the difference for Birmingham (6-2). Riley held Montclair Prep gunner Rocky Steryo to 8-of-24 shooting (33.3%).

“He’s our stopper,� Birmingham Coach Al Bennett said of Riley. “He’s been it all along.�

Steryo had only three points until he made a three-point shot with 18 seconds left in the third quarter. He finished with 20 points.

Montclair Prep (5-2) played without Kevin Bentley, who was on a football recruiting trip to Wisconsin, and trailed in the beginning of the fourth quarter, 44-39.

The Mounties tied Birmingham twice, at 48-48 and again at 52-52 with 4:20 left, but never took the lead.

Evans scored eight of his 16 points in the fourth quarter and Fletcher finished with 19 for Birmingham, which was knocked out of The Times’ poll after losing to Cleveland. As for a possible return to the Top 10?

“It really doesn’t matter to me,� said Evans, who also had 10 rebounds. “It just matters how we play on the court.�

In other quarterfinal games:

Compton Centennial 61, Antelope Valley 57--Roger Priez scored 17 points for the Antelopes, but Centennial advanced to a semifinal today with Birmingham at 6 p.m.

San Fernando 81, Crespi 59--Devin Montgomery scored 21 points for the Tigers (9-0), the region’s third-ranked team.

Valencia 75, Ventura 60--Eskias McDaniels scored 19 points for the No. 7 Vikings, who play San Fernando in a semifinal tonight at 7:30.