By Michael LEVITSKY

Coming off a three-point victory against Muir High School on Friday, Shawn Zargarian’s boys went into their final road game of the season hoping to get one step closer to that elusive Pacific League title.

A 20-point victory against Tuesday’s opponents, the Hoover Tornadoes, surely helped. The last time these two foes met, the Falcons barely edged Hoover with a 53-48 win at home.

CV quickly jumped out to a 16-3 lead to begin the first period, forcing Hoover into taking two early timeouts. Following the second timeout, Coach Zargarian broke out a full court press and, with 3:35 remaining in the second quarter, was sitting on a 25-7 advantage.

Following several turnovers and a pair of three pointers, Hoover minimized its early deficit, scoring 10 straight points to cut the Falcons’ lead to just seven.

Falcon senior guard Danny Khani hit a layup plus a foul on the ensuing possession to put an end to the 10-0 Tornadoes run. He missed the free-throw, but successfully slowed Hoover’s momentum and CV took a 30-17 lead into the break.

CV extended its lead to 20 points, leading 40-20, after igniting for a 10-0 run of their own to begin the second half. After Hoover countered with six straight points, starting point guard Tyler Carlson hit an and-one shot to squash the Tornadoes’ hopes of getting back into the game.

The Falcons maintained a double-digit lead through the fourth quarter and Carlson, who led the way with 13 points, sealed the deal with a foul-line jumper at the one and a half minute mark.

“Defensively, I thought we were really sharp today,” said Zargarian postgame. “We did a good job of contesting their shots and running the shot clock down. We made some mistakes offensively that I think we could have been better about. But honestly for us at this point we got the win, and we have one more to win a league title.”

Improving to 12-1, the Falcons have one final home game, senior night against rival Arcadia tonight, Thursday, at 7 p.m. They sit atop the Pacific League standings, alongside Pasadena High, which also won on Tuesday. CV split its season series with Pasadena 1-1, and would share the league title given both teams win their final games.

  Michael LEVITSKY