BOYS' BASKETBALL: POLAN FOCUSED IN BUCKLEY WIN.

Byline: SEAN CEGLINSKY Special to the Daily News

The face mask Richie Polan wears to protect his nose, which was broken two weeks ago, might appear bothersome, but his performance Tuesday night suggests otherwise.

The Buckley of Sherman Oaks senior scored 28 points and added 14 rebounds to guide the Griffins to a 71-66 victory over host Viewpoint of Calabasas, which entered the Liberty League showdown undefeated and in first place.

``Yeah, I'm getting used to wearing this mask,'' Polan said. ``Actually, it's helped me concentrate more and remain focused.''

That was apparent in the second half, particularly in the fourth quarter, when the Patriots (14-8, 4-1) made things interesting after rallying from a 16-point deficit.

Polan, however, answered with key free throws in the final eight minutes, including a pair with 30 seconds left to give Buckley (14-6, 3-1) an insurmountable 68-64 lead.

``Richie was huge for us tonight and we needed him,'' Buckley coach Mike Hamilton said. ``We count on Richie for a lot of things and he never lets us down.

``We knew this was going to be a tough game. I mean, coming into their house for a league game with pretty much everything at stake.

``It was a must win for us. Now we have a shot to win a league title again.''

Polan, who's being recruited by New York University, scored 13 points in the first half, and teammate Hussein Habibi scored 12 points before intermission as Buckley led 36-32.

Habibi finished with 21 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists.

Polan played with a sense of urgency in the third quarter, scoring nine points over the first four minutes to give Buckley a 49-35 advantage.

Matt Talamantes kept Viewpoint in the game by scoring five consecutive points that began a 16-6 run and cut Buckley's lead to 64-60 with 2:34 left.

But Polan's leadership proved to be too much.

``We had to have this game,'' Polan said. ``We came here confident and held them off in the end.''

Talamantes finished with 21 points, Brandon Gumaer had 11 and Hunter Carlin added nine points.

With the victory, Buckley moves into second place, a game behind Viewpoint and a half-game ahead of Providence of Burbank (12-7, 4-2).

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