BOYS' BASKETBALL: THURMAN PROVES A BIG PRESENCE FOR DESERT SENIOR LEADS THE ROADRUNNERS TO TITLE DESERT 49, ROSAMOND 44.

Byline: SEAN CEGLINSKY

Special to the Daily News

ONTARIO -- Robert Thurman had a hand on seemingly every ball on both ends of the court Friday night, and there was nothing Rosamond High could do about it.

The 6-foot-7 senior from Desert High of Edwards Air Force Base recorded a triple-double, finishing with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks to guide the second-seeded Scorpions to a 49-44 victory over the top-seeded Roadrunners in the Div.V-A championship game at Colony High.

"Robert is game-changer," Desert coach Phil Pleasant said. "He's our X-factor."

Thurman was particularly effective in the second half, scoring eight points, including six in the fourth quarter, highlighted by a layup with 1:48 left to give Desert a 46-41 lead.

"They were double-teaming me early in the game, but they lost energy late," Thurman said. "They couldn't stop me in the fourth quarter."

The Scorpions (23-2) led 27-19 at halftime, but Rosamond (22-7) cut the deficit to three points after Dominique Lewis' layup with 4:19 left in the third quarter.

Phil Pleasant provided Desert with a much-needed spark to thwart the comeback attempt, diving head-first across the scorer's table for a loose ball.

"I was going to leave it all out on the floor, even if I hurt myself," Pleasant said.

Desert responded and opened up a 42-33 lead after a Thurman layup with 3:49 left in the game. Teammates Brandon Lowe and Brandon Hordrichok added several key free throws down the stretch to put the game away.

"We worked hard all year to get to this point, and we weren't going to let this one slip away," Lowe said.

Christian Holden wasn't intimidated by Thurman's size early on and attacked the basket frequently, scoring the first eight points for Rosamond, which took a took a four-point lead midway through the first quarter.

Desert answered with an 8-0 run, highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers from Lowe to take a 15-13 lead, and the junior guard converted a 3-point play with 2:50 left in the second quarter to extend the lead to 27-18.

Lowe finished with 15 points and seven rebounds and Pleasant added seven points for Desert. Holden had 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Raymund Bernas had 11 for Rosamond.