Senior Stability: Fish, Cougars peaking

By Ramon Scott
Updated: February 13, 2018

Steele Canyon seniors JORDAN ANDERSON, DIAR SADIQ, GAGE SANDERS and THOMAS FISHBURNE.

Senior THOMAS FISHBURNE, of Steele Canyon, defends during the fourth quarter of the Cougars’ win over Grossmont. / EastCountySports photo

2018 EAST COUNTY PREP BOYS BASKETBALL

By Ramon Scott

EastCountySports.com

SPRING VALLEY – It’s a little late to rewrite the headlines, but Steele Canyon senior THOMAS FISHBURNE led his school to a state division football title while playing with a fracture in his right knee last December.

But there was little time for concern for the Cougars’ athletic superstar.

“After all, we had a state championship to win,” said the quarterback who also runs a decent point for the SCHS basketball team, which stayed alive in the Grossmont Hills League championship race with a 59-42 win over visiting Grossmont on Senior Night Tuesday.

Fishburne said he injured the knee in a 51-14 loss to Grossmont, in which he was knocked from the game.

Of course, Fish returned the next game and led Steele Canyon to nine-consecutive wins on the way to the school’s first state football banner.

Whether “Touchdown Tommy” knew he was actually playing with a break wouldn’t be discovered until he went to the floor in a game during the last week of September, where he re-injured himself.

Steele Canyon and Grossmont in action on Tuesday night. / EastCountySports.com photo

He spent the next month resting the bone, but the Cougars have now won six of their last seven since his return, including 28 points in a win over Helix last Tuesday, which gave Steele a season sweep of the Scotties and helped keep the Cougs alive for a share of the title into the final night of the season on Friday night.

These ‘Cats were already looking good while Fishburne was sidelined, but the team – which includes standout senior scorer GAGE SANDERS and rising junior GRANT CHILDS – looks to be in peak form at just the right time in a competitive playoff division that the Cougars have to think they have a shot against nearly all of the teams above them in the likely bracket.

Childs had 19 points and Sanders added 11 for the Cougars.

Steele Canyon improved to 6-3 in the Grossmont Hills League, trailing first-place Helix by one game.

The Cougars play at league-winless rival Valhalla, which will be playing their “playoff” game in a spoiler role in the Friday night contest at 7:30.

Steele Canyon would need the win over the Norsemen and a Helix loss at West Hills to share for the Grossmont Hills patch.