St. Paul boys basketball core starters from left: Alfredo Reyes, Nate Kasongo, Louis Bangai, and Kylann Mann have keyed the team to its first CIF-SS final since 2001. They are pictured at the Swordsmen’s Santa Fe Springs, Calif. campus gym March 1, 2017. (Photo by Leo Jarzomb, SGV Tribune/ SCNG)

By Stephen Ramirez
SANTA FE SPRINGS >> St. Paul High School is no stranger to making deep postseason basketball runs.But this time, it’s the boys team that’s creating the buzz at the Santa Fe Springs school.The Swordsmen, a program that had been mostly dormant over the past two decades, is suddenly alive and well. They have prospered over the past two seasons under coach Damaine Powell, who has brought in a nucleus that has St. Paul on the brink of its first CIF Southern Section title in 20 seasons and playing for its first crown since 2001.Senior Louis Bangai, considered one of the top inside players in the Section, is the leader, but St. Paul’s run to Saturday’s Division 3A title game against Twentynine Palms at Azusa Pacific has been keyed by its cohesiveness, which also includes seniors Kylann Mann, a transfer from St. Bernard, and Alfred Reyes, and junior transfer Nate Kasongo, who came to Santa Fe Springs from Switzerland.The fifth starter has been forward Chris Garcia.

“It’s a big transition,” Mann said. “My team last year was so anti-social. We never hung out like this team does. I think that’s a big reason why we are in the championship (game). We’re really close as a team.
“It’s nice to be on a loving team instead of one, where I don’t even know half my teammates. I feel that’s a big part why we’re here.”
Another is Bangai, who at 6-foot-10 is a tough nut to crack for opposing defenses. He’s shown his ability during the playoffs, averaging 25 points a game, including putting up 32 in a 61-60 victory at Lompoc Cabrillo in the quarterfinals. He fought through foul trouble to score 22 with eight rebounds in leading the Swordsmen to a 56-52 win over San Bernardino in the semifinals.
“I’m just trying to get better,” said Bangai, a three-star player who has been linked to some Western Athletic Conference schools, including UNLV. “I’m trying to work hard every time I come in the gym, for practice and the games. I want to play with the (mind set) of being a winner.”
He’s done that, and it hasn’t gone unnoticed.
“I’m proud of his amazing development in one year’s time from last year,” Powell said. “He has made tremendous strides. He’s a totally different player than last year.
“He’s our best player on offense and best player on defense. He’s the reason we made it this far.”
But he’s not the only reason. The Swordsmen, with the additions of Mann and Kasongo are a much deeper group than the unit that won the Santa Fe League and advanced two rounds in the playoffs. These group has more scoring options, which puts more pressure on the defense in trying to limit Bangai.
Kasongo has shown an ability to score inside and outside during the playoffs, putting 14 against Eastside in the second round and 17 against San Bernardino in the semifinals. Mann, who also is productive inside and out, had 12 and 13 points in those two games. Both were keys in the semifinals to help hold off San Bernardino while Bangai was on the bench with four fouls early in the fourth quarter.
“(Kylann’s) a born leader and a born winner,” Powell said. “He does it all for us from handling the ball shooting threes.
(Kasongo) has grown rapidly from the beginning of the year. As his confidence grew, so did his game. He’s plays four positions for us and has the best instinct and feel for the game of anyone on our team.”
Kasongo has done it while not only transitioning to a new team, but a new culture, coming from Switzerland. “It’s a big change for me,” Kasongo said. “I’m from Switzerland, so basketball is not the same here. We are like a family. I’ve never had a team like this before.
“I think that’s why we are successful, because we are so close.”
Reyes, the point guard, has provided a leadership role, and has a charismatic skill that can’t be measured statistically. But he’s brought a sense of winning from the football team, where he was quarterback and helped lead the Swordsmen to their first semifinal appearance in a decade.
“It’s great to come to basketball after football,” Reyes said. “I want a ring. Football, I didn’t get a ring, so I’m trying to get one for basketball.
“I give my heart to this team. I trust in them and I know they trust me. I just try to do the best I can for the team.”
Now the Swordsmen, in the title game for just the third time, hope to finish the job and bring home the school’s first title in 20 seasons.
“If we can win, it’s going to be so big for the school,” Bangai said. “It’s going to be exciting for everybody. Everyone (at the school) seems to be talking about it all this week. We’re going to do our best to get that title and bring it home.”