BENSON DELIVERS FOR MONTCLAIR\MONTCLAIR PREP 67, HORIZON 62.

Byline: Kathy Orton Daily News Staff Writer

Just call him Jeff Benson, Mr. Clutch.

With Montclair Prep High School clinging to a one-point lead in the Southern Regionals Division V boys' basketball championship game on Saturday, the unheralded senior guard drilled a 3-point basket with one minute, 45 seconds remaining.

Less than 30 seconds later, he converted a layup to put the Mounties ahead by six. Left alone while Horizon Christian of San Diego double- and triple-teamed Montclair Prep's usual two scoring threats - Anwawn Jones and Akil Anderson - Benson scored 10 points in the final three minutes of the game, helping the Mounties to a 67-62 win over the Panthers before 2,000 at Cal State Fullerton.

With the win, Montclair Prep (29-3), the Division V defending state champions, advances for the second consecutive year to the CIF state finals at Arco Arena in Sacramento. Next Saturday, the Mounties face St. Elizabeth of Oakland, which beat St. Bernard 61-59 in double-overtime.

While Horizon concentrated on stopping Jones and Anderson, Benson was pretty much ignored.

"They kept leaving me open on the wing," Benson said.

Horizon (26-6), which had lost to the Mounties 59-58 last year in the Regional finals, wasn't too worried about Benson, who finished with 14 points, since he went 0 for 3 (0 for 2 from 3-point range) in the first half.

"I think they knew who our players were," Montclair Prep guard Scott Stark said. "Jeff was just standing there wide open. He was hot."

Most of the first half, the Mounties were trying to get the ball to Jones in the low post. But Jones, who finished with 14 points, struggled to score as the Panthers collapsed their defense around him every time he touched the ball. All of his eight points in the first half came off free throws or putbacks of missed shots.

Still, Montclair Prep was able take a nine-point advantage early in the game even without the scoring of Jones, who did most of his damage on the boards. Jones grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds.

But the Mounties watched their lead shrink when Stacey Robinson (26 points) ended the half with a shooting spree.

Then with time running down on the clock, Anderson (team-high 20 points) threw up a 28-footer that swished through the net sending Montclair Prep into the locker room with a four-point advantage.

That boost of confidence didn't exactly carry over to the second half, as the Mounties allowed Horizon to go up by six.

"They made a run," Jones said. "We came back slowly but surely."

Crucial to the Mounties' win was their free-throw shooting down the stretch. Montclair Prep, which continually drove to the basket to draw the foul, made 9 of 10 shots from the line.

Although they had beaten them last season, the Mounties did not take the Panthers lightly. Fearing that Horizon would use last year's loss as extra motivation, Montclair Prep suffered from an acute case of nerves prior to the game.

Anderson spent his pregame along with Jones vomiting in the restroom from nerves. He was so worried about the game he woke up at 3 a.m. in a sweat and had to take a shower.

"It's not the same," Anderson said of Saturday's win. "It's a lot different. This year I was crying in A.J.'s (Jones) arms."

Jones echoed his teammate's sentiments.

"It's sweet," Jones said. "My last season I wanted to go out with a bang. If I only could have won one (title), it would have been this one because this year is my last year."