© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (02-15-08) — This seems to be an annual recording. Helix coach JOHN SINGER may have done his best job of coaching this season.

Those who saw the Highlanders stumbling about in the first 13 games where they were one peg below the .500 mark surely thought this would be dismal year for the Beast in the East.

Not so. Helix foes needed to remember who they were dealing with.

Singer’s squad never fails to rank among the state’s elite when it comes to playing defense. That part of the game never waned in this campaign as the Highlanders held opponents under 49 points for the 26-game season and to less than 44 markers during their current 13-game winning streak.

“It’s all about playing ‘D,’” Singer said after Helix put the finishing touches to its fifth Grossmont South League crown in eight seasons by defeating visiting Granite Hills, 61-47, in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) regular season finale. “If you do the job at that end, you’ve always got a chance to win.”

“To go 10-0 in our league when we were picked to finish third is something for our kids to be proud of,” said Singer, whose Highlanders finished 19-7 overall. This effort vaulted Singer’s career record to 520-205 with 13 league championships plus three San Diego CIF titles. And that doesn’t count his success as Helix’s girls coach in the 1970s, which also produced a SDCIF crown.

Albeit somewhat obscure to the opponent’s eyes, senior point guard KAREEM ABUKAR was again the key to Helix’s latest conquest. Abukar netted 12 points, dished 9 assists and grabbed 8 rebounds.

DEAN MILLER (17 points, 11 rebounds, 4 blocks) and WAYNE MARTIN (16 points, 6 assists) were Granite Hills’ leaders as usual. AARON HARRIS continued to climb all over the boards, yanking down a game high 16 for the Eagles (13-14, 2-8 GSL), who lost their fourth straight.

“Helix just kept kinda building the lead slowly,” said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON. “We shot very poorly in the 1st half – dug ourselves in a hole.”

Helix led 10-4 after one quarter and 27-14 by intermission.

Helix scoring: Donald McGowan 16 (9 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Kareem Abukar 12 (8 reb, 9 ast, 2 stl), Demond Narcisse 11 (3 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Derrall Chandler 10 (5 reb, 2 ast), Levine Toilolo 6 (6 ast, 2 stl, 3 blk), Andray Jackson 2 (2 reb, 1 blk), Anthony Anderson 2 (8 reb), Joubert Ballard 2 (4 reb, 4 ast).

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 17 (11 reb, 4 blk), Wayne Martin 16 (6 ast), Aaron Harris 4 (16 reb), Nico Sanchez 4, Ian Birmingham 2, Landon Turley 2, Vicente Stafford 1, Clint Davis 1.

MOUNT MIGUEL 58, MONTE VISTA 57 – MATT MILES has not been a prominent name in the Mount Miguel box scores this season. He’s contributed with his long-ball shooting ability but does not rank among East County ’s top 3-point shooters.

None of that mattered in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) regular season finale. Miles was the man of the hour as he hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer, giving the Matadors a 1-point victory. It was the only points Miles scored in the game.

“I’ll see that shot over and over in my dreams tonight,” said Monte Vista coach JAMES CARROLL. “One thing I told my kids in the last few seconds was ‘Don’t let them shoot a 3.’”

Leading by 10 points after the 1st quarter, Monte Vista maintained a 55-51 advantage with two minutes remaining. That did not hold up as the Matadors (17-9, 6-4 GSL) scrambled back to tie it at 55-all.

Monte Vista refused to fold as GEOFF HARTMAN put the Monarchs back in front with a bucket and 35 seconds left. Credit the Matadors for not going into panic mode.

Playing for the last shot, Mount Miguel sophomore guard A.J. STANFORD drove the lane and appeared to be satisfied to go for a tying basket which would have sent the game into overtime.

Suddenly Stanford turned and kicked the ball back out to Miles for his game-winning shot.

“We had a lot of guys step up since BRAD BARRETT hasn’t been here this week. DEVYN MOORE, J.J. NORTON and ARTHUR HOBBS had a great defensive effort tonight,” Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT said. “These three really played a brilliant game defensively.”

Stanford wasn’t too bad either, finishing with a triple-double of 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

TRAVON CAPLES was equally as powerful for Mount Miguel , working inside the paint for 27 points and 14 rebounds.

“Caples was tough to stop inside, got to the free throw line all night,” said Monte Vista’s Carroll. Caples converted 7 of 11 free throws.

Rowlett agreed. “A.J. and Travon stepped it up offensively for us. We have proven this week that we can beat two quality teams without our leading scorer, so we should be that much better when we have Barrett back.”

Hartman turned in another strong game for Monte Vista, hitting 9 of 12 shots from the field on his way to a 21-point night. He also gobbled up 14 rebounds, blocked 2 shots, made 2 steals and dished 4 assists.

“Hartman played a great game, he was a real horse down low,” said Carroll. “He sprained his ankle in the 1st half but continued to play. I’m glad he’s only a junior.”

The Monarchs RYAN HOUSER hit of 6 of 8 shots for 12 points, while MIKE WATKINS added 11 points and 6 rebound.

“Houser played a good all-around game,” Carroll noted.

Mount Miguel scoring: Travon Caples 27 (14 reb), A.J. Stanford 17 (10 reb, 10 ast), J.J. Norton 4 (2 ast), Arthur Hobbs 4 (4 reb, 3 stl), Matt Miles 3, Devyn Moore 2.

Monte Vista scoring: Geoff Hartman 21 (14 reb, 4 ast, 2 blk, 2 stl), Ryan Houser 12 (4 reb, 2 blk, 3 stl), Mike Watkins 11 (6 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Chris Jones (3 reb, 2 ast), Brian Williams 4 (3 reb), Anthony Bell 3 (5 reb).

WEST HILLS 55, EL CAJON VALLEY 50 – TIM NOWLIN scored 20 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead West Hills to a mild upset of visiting El Cajon Valley in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) Grossmont North League action.

Clinging to a 51-50 lead with 14 seconds remaining, the Braves elected to foul GARRETT CABRAL. It proved to be the wrong choice as Cabral hit 2 free throws, extending the Wolf Pack’s advantage to 3 points.

In its haste, El Cajon Valley fired up a long-range miss and KYLE NAVARRE grabbed the defensive rebound and was fouled. The junior guard then put the game away as he dropped in 2 free throws.

“It came down to the wire again,” said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG, noting that three of their last four games were decided in the final minute. “We shot the ball well from the free throw line in crunch time and Navarre came up big tonight. His defense was tough.”

Navarre got an offensive rebound, drove the baseline and landed a bucket to give West Hills a 51-47 lead. Then ANTHONY USSERY hit a long 3-pointer to make it a one-point game.

Cabral finished with 10 points.

Nowlin, averaging 11.1 rebounds per game, becomes West Hills’ all-time master of the boards, breaking Al Enriques’ 1996 record of 11.0 rpg.

West Hills scoring: Tim Nowlin 20 (17 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk), Garrett Cabral 10 (4 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Chase Senter 7 (3 stl), Kyle Navarre 6 (3 reb), Lucas Armstrong 4 (4 reb, 7 ast, 4 blk), Ryan Bozelle 3 (2 reb), Ashur Gelyana 3, Billy McGarvey 2, Kyle McLaughlin (3 reb, 3 ast).

El Cajon Valley scoring: Chris Franco 12, Anthony Ussery 8, Raylondo Ford 8, Lucas Stafford 8, Laroy McGee 8, Shivan Sulyman 5, Devin Lesch 1.

EL CAPITAN 49, SANTANA 48 – Junior guard MICHAEL LANDIS hasn’t received much playing time this season, but he has caught the attention of Vaqueros head JASON CAVAZOS in the latter stages of the season.

Landis enjoyed the biggest night of his youthful career in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) Grossmont North League finale in Lakeside . Landis knocked down a career-best 13 points – all in the 2nd half. But it was a JON MOLZEN putback in the waning seconds of the game that gave the Vaqueros the victory.

With 1:40 left, Santana led 48-44 and then Landis hit a 3-pointer to shave the deficit to one. That set the stage for Molzen’s eventual game-winner.

El Capitan (10-17, 4-5 GNL) had a chance to gain some breathing room but missed the front end of a one-and-one with 12 seconds remaining. That left the door open for Santana (14-13, 2-6 GNL) to launch a game-winning shot of its own, but CARLOS VARGAS’ 3-point shot missed its mark.

Santana coach TIM BARRY let the officials know that he thought Vargas was fouled.

“From where I was sitting, I think it was probably a foul,” said Cavazos. “Fortunately, they didn’t call it that way.”

Molzen was a force, playing all 32 minutes, ringing up a triple-double of 15 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. For good measure he chipped in 4 steals.

While Cavazos acknowledged Molzen’s quality performance, he turned his praise towards Landis.

“A couple of weeks ago Mike was only averaging about three minutes a game,” Cavazos said. “But he really stepped up for us, made a lot of key shots.”

In the early going it appeared that El Capitan was going to run away, as the Vaqueros led 22-11 with 3:53 left in the 1st half.

But Santana kept pecking away. TYLER BLACKLEDGE led the Sultans with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. CHRIS SODERGREN pitched in 11 points and 4 rebounds, while BRETT ROMERO contributed 10 points and 4 rebounds.

“I was extremely proud of our effort tonight,” said Barry. “It was telling of the adversity we’ve been through this season.”

Missing from the Santana lineup was BLAKE HARPER, who suffered a broken collarbone in practice the day before the Sultans’ previous game with West Hills.

El Capitan scoring: Jon Molzen 15 (10 reb, 10 ast, 1 blk, 4 stl), Michael Landis 13, Barrett Braun 7 (7 reb, 2 blk), Tila Case 6 (4 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Michael Overson 4 (12 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Jake Zawlacki 2 (2 reb, 2 blk), Armon Worrell 2.

Santana scoring: Tyler Blackledge 12 (11 reb, 5 ast), Chris Sodergren 11 (4 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk), Brett Romero 10 (4 reb), Carlos Vargas 4 (2 stl), Ryan Garlin 4, Kevin Engelke 2, Kyle Salzman 2, Sean Doyle (1 blk).

STEELE CANYON 66, VALHALLA 54 – Steele Canyon , winner of 9 of its last 10, should command a high-end seed in the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs which begin next week.

Despite the absence of starters ELIJAH CARTER and CAMERON MOSS, who were ill, the Cougars (15-12, 8-2 GSL) found a way to turn back upset-minded Valhalla in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) regular season finale.

A trio of new faces were the Cougars leaders in this one. ERIC GILBERT hammered down a trio of treys for a team-best 15 points, while ZANE KEITH notched a pair of 3-balls on his way to 14 points, and JOSIAH SMITH pitched in 13 points.

“All three of those guys are juniors,” noted Steele Canyon coach DEREK STEPHENS. “They did a good job of neutralizing Valhalla ’s inside strength while doing an outstanding job on the offensive end.”

JEBARI ROBINSON, yet another junior in the Steele Canyon cast, pitched in with 9 points and 7 assists for the Cougars.

“Our bench played solid tonight – they can be a big factor in the playoffs,” said Stephens.

Valhalla junior AUSTEN SUHAY, who was held to 8 points by Helix two days earlier, sank 5 of 9 three-point shots and landed 9 of 13 free throws on his way to equaling his career high of 28 points.

Eleven of Suhay’s points came in the 2nd quarter, which cut a one-time 24-10 deficit to a 29-25 gap by intermission.

“My kids played as hard as I’ve seen them play all season,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. “We had our outside game going but we struggled on the inside. That’s been a problem all year – getting both facets of our offense going at the same time.”

KYLE KRIEBEL was limited to 9 shots but made 4 of them count as he finished with 11 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks for the Norsemen (11-15, 2-8 GSL).

“I still think we’ll get in the (Division II) playoffs,” Jackson said.

Steele Canyon scoring: Eric Gilbert 15, Zane Keith 14, Josiah Smith 13, Jebari Robinson 9 (7 ast), Nick Stathas 6, Riley Balikian 4, Jake Ransom 3, Brandon Brown 2.

Valhalla scoring: Austen Suhay 28 (4 reb, 2 blk, 2 stl), Kyle Kriebel 11 (11 reb, 4 blk, 2 ast), Derek White 6 (4 reb), Trevor Cahoon 4 (2 reb), Josh Austel 2 (3 reb, 3 blk), EV Alcantar 2, Rod Fakhoury 1.

CHRISTIAN 62, CORONADO 39 – Christian’s Patriots used a 22-5 second-quarter outburst to club visiting Coronado and secure a second place finish in the Central League in Thursday’s (Feb. 14) regular season finale at the Ryan Athletic Center.

It was Christian at its best in that the Patriots battled the Islanders (13-9, 9-5 CTL) both inside and out. Senior guard DANIEL HAZLETT led all scorers with 25 points – the majority coming on 5 three-pointers.

Six-foot-8 VANDER JOAQUIM steadied the middle with 11 points, 16 rebounds and 5 blocks.

LAWRENCE WALKER, known more for his football runs, made one of his biggest offensive contributions from the outside, totaling 8 points and 5 assists.

“ Lawrence drove to the basket well tonight and if he didn’t finish with a layup he ended up with an assist,” said Patriots assistant coach TOBIN WILKINS. “Hopefully we can get that type of play from our role players in the playoffs.”

ANDREW SEXTON provided some positive work inside with 9 points and 5 rebounds.

“They were double-teaming Vander so Sexton was posting up strong,” said Wilkins. “If he can do that in the playoffs it will really help us – he played really well.”

“Our guys had a lot of energy on defense tonight,” Wilkins added.

Christian scoring: Daniel Hazlett 25 (3 reb), Vander Joaquim 11 (16 reb, 5 blk, 2 ast), Andrew Sexton 9 (5 reb, 2 ast), Lawrence Walker 8 (3 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Andrew Whitten 3, Taylor Eichhorst 2 (7 reb, 3 ast), Tyrone Sauls 2, Trent Brookshire 2, Bradley Johnston (7 reb, 3 stl).

MIRA MESA 71, FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 56 – It's hard to determine what to take out Thursday's (Feb. 14) contest -- the Knights' regular season finale.

On one hand, the huge disparity in rebounds (44-13) could leave Foothills worried about competing with bigger teams in the SDCIF Division V playoffs. On the flip side, if the team shot the ball any better than 7-for-36 from beyond the arc, the ballgame could've gone down to the wire.

Nevertheless, without the ailing AARON HALE to battle underneath, the Division I Marauders (19-9) dominated inside by shooting a season-high 67 percent from the floor -- mostly on layins -- to hold a double-digit lead throughout the second half over the visiting Knights.

KALOB HATCHER paced Foothills (18-9) with 25 points, while TROY LEAF was limited to just 14 points, although he did assist on 9 of the 18 baskets scored by his teammates.

Without Hale's presence near the basket, Mira Mesa center Damon Williams took advantage, scoring 20 points and grabbing 7 rebounds. Meanwhile, Marauders guard Eric Garcia-Bland added 19 points, including an early 3-point goal in each of the first three quarters to force the Knights to play catch-up all evening.

Foothills scoring: Kalob Hatcher 25 (5 stl), Troy Leaf 14 (9 ast, 5 stl), Brandon Hale 5, Ryan Smith 4, R.J. Najera 4, Andrew Atia 2, Zach Kaul 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-14-08) — The Foothills Christian Knights made another statement why they are clearly the choice for the No. 1 seeding position in the San Diego CIF Division V playoffs.

Scoring 57 points in the middle two quarters Wednesday night (Feb. 13), the Knights crushed Division V rival Vincent Memorial, 92-55, in a non-league encounter at Granite Hills. It was the 4th straight win for Foothills (18-8), which has won seven of its last nine.

The Knights canned 33 of 65 (.508 percent) led by the 10 of 16 connections from sophomore TROY LEAF, who totaled 26 points for the night, and ZACH KAUL, who buried 9 of 17 shots from the field, including 8 of 14 from long distance. Kaul matched Leaf’s 26 points.

“This was the night we have been looking for (shooting that is) for a while,” said Knights assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. “There was simply no stopping the ball movement and great shot set ups from the outset tonight.”

Kaul missed his first 5 shots before hitting 8 straight shots over the 2nd and 3rd quarters. He made 8 of 9 shots in the stretch and 8 three balls in the barrage, including a half court shot to end the half.

KALOB HATCHER, who scored 20 points for the night, logged 14 assists and 8 steals.

“Kalob moved the ball to everyone on the floor and it seemed like no one could miss when they received a pass from him,” noted McHugh.

The Knights netted 15 of 34 three-point shot attempts.

“Leaf and Hatcher really did a great job of getting everyone involved,” McHugh added, noting Leaf’s 7 assists. “When we started bombing threes they drove and dished to ANDREW (ATIA) and R.J. (NAJERA) and it was total confusion on D for Vincent. When Zach was hot they found him no matter where he was and he delivered over and over again.”

Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 26 (15 reb, 1 blk, 3 stl, 7 ast), Zach Kaul 26 (5 reb, 3 stl, 4 ast), Kalob Hatcher 20 (5 reb, 8 stl, 14 ast), R.J. Najera 8 (6 reb, 2 stl), Brandon Hale 6 (2 reb, 3 stl), Andrew Atia 4 (3 reb), Travis George 2.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (2-13-08) — Some things never change. In this case some things rarely change, as the Helix Highlanders wrapped up their 5th Grossmont South League championship outright in the last eight seasons by vanquishing visiting Valhalla, 66-47, Tuesday night (Feb. 12).

It was the 12th straight win this season for the Highlanders (18-7, 9-0 GSL), who presented veteran coach JOHN SINGER with his 13th league title in 28 seasons.

“I can’t argue about what we’ve done in these last 12 games,” said Singer, who seemed to take the title-clinching victory in stride. “We’re not a perfect team in any sense, but we’ve been fairly solid on the defensive end. Anybody that knows me knows how I feel about playing defense.”

Helix has limited its opponents to 43.7 points per game during its winning streak.

Singer noted the defensive efforts of KAREEM ABUKAR against Valhalla playmaker AUSTEN SUHAY.

“I think Kareem’s ability to control Suhay was the turning point in the game,” Singer said.

Abukar, who hit 4 of 8 from the floor, finished with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and one steal.

Six-foot-8 junior LEVINE TOILOLO was 6 for 6 from the floor and 3 for 6 from the free throw line en route to a game-high 15 points for the Highlanders.

“Toilolo gave us a good presence in the post,” Singer said.

DONALD McGOWAN clicked on 6 of 8 shots from the floor to finish with 14 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals. DEMOND “Red” NARCISSE netted 5 of 10 shots from the field while nabbing 7 rebounds, dishing 5 assists, making 3 steals and blocking 2 shots for Helix.

While the majority of Helix’s frontliners turned in decent performances, Singer wanted to heap accolades on JOUBERT BALLARD, who made 3 of 4 shots from the field for 6 points, snagged 3 rebounds and recorded 2 steals.

“In the few minutes that he played, Ballard played very well,” Singer said. “He went to the hole – took the ball to the basket.”

KYLE KRIEBEL led Valhalla (11-14, 2-7 GSL) with 14 points, including 6 for 9 free throw shooting.

JOSH AUSTEL chipped in 9 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks for the Norsemen.

Not to be overlooked was TREVOR CAHOON with 7 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals.

“Austel and Kriebel worked hard tonight, and Cahoon played good defense and rebounded well,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

Helix broke the game open in the middle two quarters with a 37-16 scoring advantage.

“We had eight turnovers in the 2nd quarter,” said Jackson. “Helix picked up the pressure in the 2nd quarter and we didn’t respond. We’re making strides and then we have a letdown.”

Helix scoring: Levine Toilolo 15 (5 reb, 1 blk), Donald McGowan 14 (9 reb, 6 ast, 4 stl, 1 blk), Demond Narcisse 12 (7 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk), Kareem Abukar 9 (6 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk), Derrall Chandler 7 (2 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Joubert Ballard 6 (3 reb, 2 stl), Bryant Johnson 2, Patrick Winston 1.

Valhallla scoring: Kyle Kriebel 14 (3 reb), Josh Austel 9 (7 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk), Austen Suhay 8, Trevor Cahoon 7 (7 reb, 3 stl), Rod Fakhoury 3, EV Alcantar 3, Derek White 2, A.J. Dobransky 1.

SANTANA 42, WEST HILLS 40 – CHRIS SODERGREN made one of two free throws to secure the 2-point victory for host Santana in Tuesday night’s (Feb. 12) game in Santee.

West Hills had a chance to tie the game and got the ball inside to TIM NOWLIN, where he was double-teamed by the Sultans. The Sultans stole the ball but fumbled it out of bounds. West Hills recoiled and once again put the ball in to Nowlin, who missed a 3-pointer that hit the rim and bounced off.

Coach TIM BARRY was amazed that his Sultans were able to pull out a victory despite shooting less than 27 percent (17 of 63) from the field. Barry noted that Santana missed 22 shots inside of four feet.

ANTHONY DeBARROWS paced the Sultans with a career-high 16 points, hitting 6 of 9 shots from the field. The 5-foot-8 senior included a trio of treys in his scoring total and also wrestled down 8 rebounds.

“DeBarrows had a wonderful night on Senior Night,” said Barry. “I always tell him ‘You’re a shooter.’”

Santana took the lead with a 17-8 scoring spread in the 3rd quarter. DeBarrows and TYLER BLACKLEDGE each hit 2 threes.

“That changed it big right there – that was the momentum swing,” Barry recalled.

“In the 3rd quarter we played a lot of seniors,” said Barry. “I said ‘It might be Senior Night but it’s time for a junior to take over’ – and put Sodergren in. He scored 9 of his 11 points in the 2nd half and did a tremendous job both defensively and offensively on both ends of the court. He was covering Nowlin.”

It was the 9th loss in 11 starts for West Hills (10-17, 2-5 GNL). Producing offense has been a problem for the Wolf Pack, which hasn’t scored more than 56 points in its last 12 games.

Although he scored only 8 points, Nowlin grabbed 17 rebounds.

“KYLE NAVARRE gave us good minutes tonight,” said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. “He defended well and came up with some big steals when we made our run at them in the 4th quarter.”

“Defensively we did not guard the perimeter very well – DeBarrows hurt us repeatedly,” Armstrong said.

Armstrong was pleased that the Wolf Pack “did take better care of the ball, committing only 10 turnovers.

“Santana was the more aggressive team tonight and they came away with a lot of the 50/50 balls,” he added. “They rebounded their offensive glass well, controlling shot after shot.”

Santana scoring: Anthony DeBarrows 16 (8 reb, 2 stl), Chris Sodergren (11 (8 reb), Tyler Blackledge 8 (14 reb, 3 ast), Brett Romero 3 (5 reb), Kevin Engelke 2 (4 reb).

West Hills scoring: Tim Nowlin 8 (17 reb, 2 blk), Lucas Armstrong 8 (7 reb, 2 ast, 3 blk), Chase Senter 6 (4 ast), Garrett Cabral 6 (2 reb), Ryan Bozelle 4, Kyle Navarre 2 (2 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), Kyle McLaughlin 2.

GROSSMONT 69, EL CAPITAN 58 – Nobody can accuse coach FRANK FOGGIANO’s Foothillers of backing into the Grossmont North League championship.

Although Grossmont had already wrapped up the title four days earlier, the Foothillers extended their margin of victory in the Grossmont North League race to two games as they concluded the regular season with marks of 18-7 overall and 7-1 in the GNL.

Senior guard MICHAEL GRAHAM put together a career day for himself, knocking down 22 points – the majority coming on four 3-pointers – while also gathering a dozen rebounds and 7 steals.

“Graham turned it around for us, he was everywhere – double-teaming, rebounding – he kept moving,” said Foggiano. “He had 10 of Grossmont’s 23 points in the 3rd quarter. The last time we played El Capitan KHALID WATERS was not there so Graham had to play point guard.”

RICHARD OGUNSALU rolled a double-double of 24 points and 15 rebounds, while IAN COCHRAN did the same, adding 18 points and 12 rebounds for Grossmont.

BARRETT BRAUN led El Capitan with 30 points, the majority of which came on six 3-pointers.

“We have a problem with the 3rd quarter and we’re trying to figure that problem out, but we’re running out of time,” said El Capitan coach JASON CAVAZOS, whose Vaqueros were outscored 23-6 in the decisive period.

“Grossmont is the league champs and I give them credit,” Cavazos added.

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 24 (15 reb), Michael Graham 22 (12 reb, 3 ast, 7 stl), Ian Cochran 18 (13 reb, 2 stl), Khalid Waters 2 (3 reb, 3 ast, 4 stl), Robert Sullivan 2 (3 reb), Billy Gange 1.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 30 (10 reb, 4 stl, 2 blk), Jon Molzen 13 (6 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk), Tila Case 5 (4 reb), Armon Worrell 4 (4 reb), Jake Zawlacki 4 (3 reb, 2 blk), Michael Overson 2 (2 reb).

MOUNT MIGUEL 59, GRANITE HILLS 46 – This Grossmont South League matchup Tuesday night (Feb. 12) in Spring Valley offered some interesting twists.

Playing without top player BRAD BARRETT (19.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg), the Matadors (16-9, 5-4 GSL) still managed to pull out a victory over preseason favorite Granite Hills.

With Barrett out of town tending to personal issues, the Matadors managed to pick up the slack thanks to the work of unsung heroes CHARLES GRAVES (8 points), DONTE ALLEN (4 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals) and ARTHUR HOBBS (6 points, 4 assists, 2 blocks).

“Playing without Barrett was a concern because you never know where you are going to make up those 19 points and six rebounds,” Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT said. “But guys like Graves – the ultimate team player – gave us the lift we needed.”

Hobbs, the Matadors’ defensive specialist, scored all of his six points in the opening quarter as Mount Miguel marched out to a 21-8 lead. Graves chipped in with five of his markers in the fast start.

Solid sophomore A.J. STANFORD churned out a team-best 18 points, half of which came on connections from above the arc. He also logged 7 rebounds and 6 assists.

TRAVON CAPLES chipped in with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds for Mount Miguel.

Rowlett pointed to the work of senior guard DEVYN MOORE for his defensive shutdown of Granite Hills’ long ranger WAYNE MARTIN. Moore rationed Martin, who came in averaging 15.5 points, was held to 5 points in this one.

“Moore is a great defender, the guy we put on the other team’s top offensive threat,” Rowlett said. “He does all the little stuff we need without complaining. Just a solid team player.”

DEAN MILLER led Granite Hills (13-13, 2-7 GSL) with 17 points and 10 rebounds. AARON HARRIS, although only 6-feet tall, collected a personal high 25 rebounds.

“Harris again had a great hustle game, a big game on the boards,” noted Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON. “He’s been playing his heart out – it’s too bad they have ended up as losses (Granite Hills has lost 7 of its last 8 games).”

Mount Miguel scoring: A.J. Stanford 18 (7 reb, 6 ast, 2 stl), Travon Caples 13 (10 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), Charles Graves 8, J.J. Norton 6 (2 reb, 3 ast), Arthur Hobbs 6 (2 reb, 4 ast, 2 blk), Donte Allen 4 (4 reb, 2 stl), Devyn Moore 4 (4 reb, 5 ast).

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 17 (10 reb), Aaron Harris 8 (25 reb, 5 blk), Nico Sanchez 6, Ian Birmingham 5, Vicente Stafford 5, Wayne Martin 5.

STEELE CANYON 56, MONTE VISTA 50 – Visiting Steele Canyon overcame a slow start with a 2nd quarter run of 16-4 in Tuesday’s (Feb. 12) Grossmont South League game that the Cougars (14-12, 7-2 GSL) held on to win.

It was the 8th win in the last nine games for Steele Canyon, which has locked up second place in the GSL.

“We played sloppy defense tonight, came out flat,” DEREK STEPHENS said. “I jumped on them between the 1st and 2nd quarters, appealed to their pride. The way we played in the 2nd quarter is what won us the game.”

Once again it was a balanced attack for the Cougars, who saw only junior guard JEBARI ROBINSON reach double scoring digits with 12 points.

No question Stephens had to be upset that his Cougars, who mauled the Monarchs 85-56 in the first round of league play, did little more than skip past Monte Vista.

On the flip side, Monte Vista coach JAMES CARROLL had to be somewhat pleased by the marked improvement of his Monarchs (10-17, 2-7 GSL) against the Cougars.

GEOFF HARTMAN powered in a game high 20 points and RYAN HOUSER tossed in 16 markers to keep the struggling Monarchs in contention. Hartman was his usual 9-for-19 shooting, while Houser, a defensive gem, was a remarkable 8-for-9 from the field.

“Hartman played real strong down on the low blocks in the 1st quarter,” Carroll said. “We did a good job of getting him the ball in that quarter.”

The bottom fell out of Monte Vista’s game in the 2nd period.

“I’m really disappointed in the way we played in the 2nd quarter,” Carroll said. “We stopped doing what we were doing well.”

Monte Vista generated a 17-10 scoring run a 4th quarter charge to cause a bit of nervousness on the Steele Canyon side of the gym.

“We made a good run at them in the 4th quarter,” Carroll noted. “We got to within 4 points with two minutes to play, came up with 2 steals and had two chances to cut our deficit down to 2 points, but missed shots down low both times.”

Steele Canyon scoring: Jebari Robinson 12, Zane Keith 9, Nick Stathas 7, Eric Gilbert 6, Cameron Moss 6, Elijah Carter 5, Jake Ransom 5, Josiah Smith 5, Riley Balikian 1.

Monte Vista scoring: Geoff Hartman 20 (6 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Ryan Houser 16 (5 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Mike Watkins 10 (2 reb), Tony Jackson 2 (4 reb), Anthony Bell 2 (3 reb), Trent Watkins (2 reb, 3 ast).

CHRISTIAN 72, CRAWFORD 39 – The host Patriots used a 29-point 3rd quarter to turn Tuesday’s (Feb. 12) Central League against Crawford into a rout at the Ryan Athletic Center.

VANDER JOAQUIM paced Christian (17-8, 6-3 CNL) with 25 points and 18 rebounds. Included in his totals was a trio of 3-balls.

Guard DANIEL HAZLETT nailed four 3-pointers on his way to a 22-point finish.

Christian scoring: Vander Joaquim 25 (18 reb, 3 blk), Daniel Hazlett 22 (4 ast), Taylor Eichhorst 8 (5 reb, 5 ast), Andrew Sexton 5 (4 reb, 3 stl), Lawrence Walker 4 (2 ast, 2 stl), Andrew Whitten 3, Aaron Whitten 2 (2 reb), Bradley Johnston 2 (2 reb, 4 ast), Trent Brookshire 1 (3 reb).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-10-08) — For the first time in quite awhile the Knights of Foothills Christian are healthy and playing at full strength.

Nice timing, considering the San Diego CIF Division V playoffs are only 10 days away.

The Knights (17-8), who have won three straight and six of their last eight, used their superior quickness to race past El Capitan, 72-46, in a non-league game Saturday night (Feb. 9) at Granite Hills High School.

Sophomore TROY LEAF was the key Knight in shining armor, producing 21 points, 14 rebounds, 7 steals, 5 assists and 3 blocks. He had plenty of help from his sidekicks, including KALOB HATCHER who hammered out 17 points, 7 assists, 7 steals and 7 rebounds.

The return of ZACH KAUL from the injury list further fortified Foothills. In a non-starting role, Kaul collected 10 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals.

Junior BRANDON HALE knocked in 4 of the Knights’ 10 three-balls, giving Foothills Christian a section-leading 218 treys in 599 attempts (.364 percent).

“I know in my mind that we are not an 8-loss team,” said Foothills Christian coach BRAD LEAF, who believes his club should be seeded No. 1 in the SDCIF Division V playoffs. “We had two starters out injured in five of those games.

“That’s beside the point now, because we are finally healthy again,” Leaf added.

El Capitan (9-16) managed to keep pace with the fleet-footed Knights for the first half. But the Knights racked up 14 of the first 16 points in the 3rd quarter and the issue was been decided.

Another plus for Foothills was keeping El Capitan scoring leader BARRETT BRAUN in shackles. Braun, who averages 21 points on the season, finished with 12 against the triple-teaming Knights. The 6-4 El Capitan senior netted only 4 of 22 shots from the floor, but did gobble up a team-best 13 rebounds.

Sophomore MICHAEL OVERSON led the Vaqueros with 13 points, and added 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.

Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 21 (14 reb, 3 blk, 7 stl, 5 ast), Kalob Hatcher 17 (7 reb, 7 stl, 7 ast), Brandon Hale 12 (2 ast), Zach Kaul 10 (5 reb, 3 stl), Aaron Hale 6 (4 reb, 2 blk, 3 stl), R.J. Najera 4 (2 reb), Ryan Smith 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 12 (13 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk), Michael Overson 13 (7 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), Jon Molzen 7 (5 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk, 3 stl), Jake Zawlacki 6 (2 reb), Michael Landis 4 (2 reb, 4 ast), Brian Deuel 4 (2 reb), Tila Case (4 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk).

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (2-9-08) -- To a player, members of the Grossmont Foothillers wanted to gift wrap coach FRANK FOGGIANO’s first Grossmont League basketball championship without waiting until the final game of the season.

According to the Foothillers players, the mission was accomplished by overcoming a huge second-half rally by Santana to secure Friday's (Feb. 8) 44-40 victory over the host Sultans, clinching at least a share of the Grossmont North title.

Or did it?

"Really, we haven't won the title until we win it outright," noted Foggiano, who has patrolled the sidelines inside East County gymnasiums for more than two decades. "I don't want a tie."

Although he probably didn’t know it until this morning, Foggiano’s Foothillers (17-7, 6-1 GNL) won’t have to share the league laurels. Grossmont’s win over Santana (13-12, 1-5 GNL), coupled with El Capitan’s loss to El Cajon Valley, 52-47, hands Grossmont exclusive rights to the 2008 GNL crown.

But it wasn't easy, especially after Santana, which made just three shots in the first half, stormed back from a 12-point deficit to catch the Hillers at 37-all with 3:53 to play.

"When Santana came back, coach told us to calm down and just play our game," said Grossmont senior guard KHALID WATERS. "We wanted to win it for coach, and we were able to do that when we made some clutch shots."

Santana coach TIM BARRY, whose team has lost six straight and nine of its last 10, pulled out all the stops in an attempt to spring an upset against his former coaching mentor.

"We tried something like 7 different sets in the first half and nothing, I mean, absolutely nothing worked," said Barry. "So I told the kids at halftime to just go and shoot the ball and keep shooting the ball."

Santana guards penetrated the paint, then kicked to the wings for a variety of outside shots, making a series of 3-point shots and some mid-range jumpers to trim a 22-10 halftime deficit to 26-25 in just six minutes.

Grossmont answered when IAN COCHRAN scored 8 of his game-high 19 points in the 3rd period, but he was shutout in the 4th quarter.

Santana finally got even at 37-all as BRETT ROMERO accepted a pass from BLAKE HARPER for a short jumper with 3:53 remaining.

“We promised coach before the season that we would win league for him,” added Waters.

The Hillers’ defense returned to their first-half form by challenging every shot. Included was a blocked shot by Cochran which led to a fast break, capped by a basket by center RICHARD OGUNSALU with 1:14 remaining. Santana missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer, but Grossmont didn’t miss when Waters answered with a long triple with 14 seconds to go.

Eight seconds later, Santana’s ANTHONY DeBARROWS countered with a triple -- one of six treys by the Sultans in the second half -- to set up a dramatic finish. But after a timeout, a length-of-the-court pass by the Hillers’ ROBERT SULLIVAN (6 assists) led to a breakaway layin by Waters at the buzzer.

Ogunsalu finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds. Santana received 14 points from KEVIN ENGELKE, including four 3-point shots.

“We did well in the first half, held them to 10 points,” said Foggiano. “Ian had a lot of offensive boards – 8 of his 14 boards were offensive boards.”

The limping yet never-say-die Sultans have now dropped four GNL contests by 4 points or less.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 19 (14 reb), Richard Ogunsalu 12 (14 reb), Khalid Waters 10 (3 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Robert Sullivan 3 (3 reb, 6 ast, 2 stl), Michael Graham (4 reb, 2 stl), Alex Leon (2 reb).

Santana scoring: Kevin Engelke 14 (6 reb), Tyler Blackledge 7 (8 reb, 4 stl), Brett Romero 7, Carlos Vargas 5, Blake Harper 4, Anthony DeBarrows 3.

HELIX 48, MOUNT MIGUEL 36 – The defending Grossmont South League champion Highlanders (17-7, 8-0 GSL) guaranteed themselves of nothing less than a tie for their fifth circuit crown in the last eight years on Friday night (Feb. 8) when they dumped host Mount Miguel .

The victory – Helix’s 11th straight – assured coach JOHN SINGER of his 13th league crown in 28 seasons.

“It was one of those games where we had to grind it out again,” said Singer, who owns a career coaching record of 518-205. “What we did is we defended really well. If you can do well on the defensive end you’ve got an excellent chance of winning.”

Considering the Highlanders shot only 33 percent (17 of 51) from the floor – hitting just 3 of 15 three-point tries – and 11 of 22 from the free throw line, it did not appear to be a winning formula.

“I keep telling my kids that the second round of league is going to be tougher than the first, especially when we go play in somebody else’s house like we did tonight,” Singer added.

Singer pointed to the defensive work of DEMOND “Red” NARCISSE against the Matadors’ long-range shooting specialist BRAD BARRETT.

“Red was all over the guy, and he got some help from DONNIE McGOWAN too,” Singer said. “Barrett didn’t get any 3s and he got only 3 points in the second half. Even when you’re not shooting well, that’s how you win games.”

Barrett finished with 13 points and 8 rebounds for the Matadors (15-9, 4-4 GSL), who lost for only the second time in seven starts.

“It was a defensive struggle,” said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. “We couldn’t score tonight. We needed to make plays on the offensive end. We were in the game but we just couldn’t do it.”

McGowan carried the offensive load for Helix with 19 points. The senior southpaw connected on 6 of 12 shots from the field – 2 of them treys – and 5 of 9 free throws. McGowan also snagged 7 rebounds, dished 3 assists and blocked 2 shots.

Narcisse led all rebounders by collecting 14 caroms and notching 4 steals, while LEVINE TOILOLO pitched in with 8 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks for Helix.

TRAVON CAPLES was Mount Miguel ’s top threat with 16 points and 8 boards.

Helix scoring: Donald McGowan 19 (7 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk), Kareem Abukar 8 (5 reb, 6 ast), Levine Toilolo 8 (7 reb, 3 stl), 2 blk), Joubert Ballard 7 (5 reb, 3 ast), Demond Narcisse 4 (14 reb, 4 stl), Derrall Chandler 2 (4 reb), Patrick Winston (5 reb, 3 ast, 4 blk).

Mount Miguel scoring: Travon Caples 16 (8 reb), Brad Barrett 13 (8 reb), A.J. Stanford 7 (4 reb, 2 ast), Devyn Moore (2 ast, 2 stl).

STEELE CANYON 76, GRANITE HILLS 70 – Visiting Steele Canyon scored 48 second-half points in Friday’s (Feb. 8) Grossmont South League run-and-gun affair. It was the 7th win in the last eight starts for the Cougars (13-12, 6-2 GSL).

Perhaps the greatest thing Steele Canyon has in its favor is opposing defenses cannot focus their attention on muzzling any particular player.

No doubt junior guard JEBARI ROBINSON is the ringleader for the Cougars, as he proved with 18 points – half coming on 3-point bull’s-eyes at Granite Hills.

Another pleasant surprise for coach DEREK STEPEHENS’ Cougars was the career-high 15-point contribution of junior ERIC GILBERT. Gilbert also landed a trio of treys.

JOSIAH SMITH put together one of his top outings for the Cougars with a dozen points and 7 boards.

ZANE KEITH came off the Steele Canyon bench to match Smith’s team-best 7 rebounds while blocking 2 shots and punching in 2 points.

Granite Hills (13-12, 2-6 GSL), which has lost 6 of its last 7, appeared to have this game in control as it led 38-28 by intermission.

“I was concerned going in at halftime, I thought we were prepared to play but we came out very flat,” said Stephens. “I challenged them at halftime to play with some heart. We played outstanding defense during the entire 2nd half.”

Steele Canyon hit 5 of its 7 threes in the game during the 3rd quarter, enabling the Cougars to cut the deficit to 52-51 with 8 minutes to play. All three of Robinson’s treys came during that flurry.

The 4th quarter was a true mismatch. Granite Hills junior DEAN MILLER scored 18 of his career-high 40 points in the final period, but none of his teammates registered a single marker.

Steele Canyon countered with a 25-point burst to pick up the win. While Stephens was pleased with the outcome, he could not ignore the efforts of Miller.

“Miller played a great game against us,” Stephens said. “He scored all 18 of Granite Hills’ points in the last quarter, including 4 threes.”

The Eagles, who have been saddled by a basketful of bad luck, lost their No. 2 scorer, WAYNE MARTIN to a knee injury late in the 2nd quarter. Martin did not play the rest of the game and finished 12 points below his season scoring average.

On a more positive note, the Eagles got 14 rebounds from AARON HARRIS – 3 more than Miller.

Sophomore guard NICO SANCHEZ, who joined the Granite Hills late in the season, nailed a pair of treys to finish with 8 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.

“Sophomore NICO SANCHEZ had a real good game, his first real extended action,” sais Eagles coach RANDY ANDERSON. “I was really happy with his play. He has a promising future. “AARON HARRIS got in foul trouble early in the 2nd quarter and only played half a game.”

Steele Canyon scoring: Jebari Robinson 18 (2 reb, 2 ast), Eric Gilbert 15 (3 reb), Josiah Smith 12 (7 reb), Elijah Carter 8 (3 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk), Jake Ransom 8 (3 reb, 2 ast), Zane Keith 5 (7 reb, 2 blk), Nick Stathas 5 (3 reb, 2 ast), Cameron Moss 4 (4 reb), Brandon Brown 1.

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 40 (11 reb), Nico Sanchez 8 (5 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Landon Turley 7, Vicente Stafford 5, Kyle San Nicolas 4, Wayne Martin 4, Aaron Harris 2 (14 reb).

MONTE VISTA 61, VALHALLA 51 – Qualifying for the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs is becoming more and more a long-shot for these two Grossmont South League teams.

Entering this faceoff of desperate teams, the visiting Norsemen (11-13, 2-6 GSL) were a darkhorse at the very least. Valhalla started out strong, taking a 15-9 first-quarter lead in Friday night’s (Feb. 8) encounter against the Monarchs (10-16, 2-6 GSL).

“We dug ourselves a hole early,” said Monte Vista coach JAMES CARROLL. “We were down 12 early in the 1st quarter and cut it to 5.”

The Monarchs eventually gained a 30-29 halftime edge and then took control in the 2nd half.

GEOFF HARTMAN popped in 18 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, made 3 steals and blocked 3 shots to blaze the trail for Monte Vista.

MIKE WATKINS also tallied 18 points for the Monarchs, half of which came on 3 for 7 shooting from beyond the arc.

As stout as those two were, Carroll pointed to the quality job done by reserves ANTHONY BELL and TONY JACKSON. Bell , a 6-foot senior guard, made the most of 7 shots for 9 points and also claimed a team-best 4 steals. Jackson, a 6-4 sophomore, led the Monarchs with 13 rebounds.

“ Jackson and Bell came off the bench and played great,” said Carroll. “We picked up the pressure and played hard after the 1st quarter. We led by 14 early in the 4th quarter.”

It was a night of frustration for Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

“Our inside guys executed very well even when (Monte Vista) collapsed on us,” said Jackson . “But we got virtually nothing from the perimeter.”

Valhalla committed 21 turnovers.

“We call those ‘empty possessions,’ and they killed us,” Jackson added. “That’s what let (Monte Vista) back into the game.”

Six-foot sophomore KYLE KRIEBEL turned in another sterling performance for Valhalla with 16 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. He also made 10 of 13 free throws while knocking down 3 of 7 shots from the field.

JOSH AUSTEL, a 6-4 sophomore, dropped in 6 of 9 shots from the floor on his way to 14-points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.

TREVOR CAHOON, a 6-3 junior, was also potent in the paint for Valhalla , hitting 5 of 7 shots on his way to a 13-point finish, which included 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

“Our big guys were 14 for 23 shooting,” Jackson said. “You can’t complain about that.”

But the Norsemen coach was quick to note that his team was 0-for-10 from 3-point range.

“You can complain about that,” Jackson said.

Monte Vista scoring: Geoff Hartman 18 (7 reb, 2 ast, 3 blk, 3 stl), Mike Watkins 18 (4 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Anthony Bell 9 (3 reb, 4 stl), Ryan Houser 6 (7 reb, 3 stl, 1 blk), Tony Jackson 6 (13 reb), Brian Williams 2 (3 reb), Trent Watkins 2 (3 stl), Richard Whitfield (5 reb).

Valhalla scoring: Kyle Kriebel 16 (9 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk), Josh Austel 14 (9 reb, 2 blk), Trevor Cahoon 13 (6 reb, 3 stl), Austen Suhay 5 (3 reb, 3 stl), Steven Kleist 3.

CHRISTIAN 59, CLAIREMONT 30 – After a dismal performance against Madison three days earlier, Christian clearly dominated visiting Clairemont in Friday’s (Feb. 8) Central League action at the Ryan Athletic Center .

The Patriots (16-8, 5-3 CTL) jumped out to a 17-8 first-quarter lead and continued to out-point the Chieftains in every period. Nine Patriots contributed to the scoring total, with DANIEL HAZLETT setting the pace with 28 points. The senior guard connected on 10 of 20 shots from the field, including 8 of 13 from above the arc.

Nobody in East County has more 3-pointers than Hazlett, who owns 84.

“He had a great night,” said Christian coach KELVIN STARR. “It was a really good back-up game for him – the game before he was 1-18 against Madison from the floor. Without Hazlett we are in big trouble – he’s very valuable to us.”

He plays defense, too.

“Hazlett guarded (Clairemont’s) Marc Campanero and held him to 12 points, scoreless in the 2nd half,” added Starr. “The last time we played them Campanero scored 23.”

It was business as usual for Christian’s 6-foot-8 VANDER JOAQUIM, who pitched in with 14 points, 14 rebounds and 5 blocks.

Christian scoring: Daniel Hazlett 28 (2 stl, 2 ast), Vander Joaquim 14 (14 reb. 5 blk), Taylor Eichhorst 5, Aaron Whitten 3, Bradley Johnston 2 (3 reb), Andrew Sexton 2, Michael Pitts 2 (4 reb), Tyrone Sauls 2, Trent Brookshire 1, Manny Walker (3 reb).

EL CAJON VALLEY 52, EL CAPITAN 47 – Teams in the Grossmont North League are obviously familiar with the Bad News Braves. That is, when East County teams meet coach NATE REED’s SDCIF Division II playoff-bound El Cajon Valley Braves, it usually results in bad news. Seven East County quintets have succumbed to the Braves (13-15, 4-3 GNL).

El Cajon Valley had the visiting Vaqueros pinned down 28-13 by halftime Friday night (Feb. 8), but sophomore MICHAEL OVERSON injected new life into El Capitan ’s anemic attack, scoring 16 of his 20 points in the final two quarters.

Known more for his defense, Overson accounted for half of El Capitan ’s four 3-pointers.

BARRETT BRAUN also punched in 20 points – including two 3s – while grabbing 13 rebounds.

The remainder of the El Capitan cast accounted for only 7 points.

The Braves produced better balance, led by LUCAS STAFFORD’s 13 points. Steady LAROY McGEE added 12 points for the Braves – 7 of which came in crucial stages of the second half.

The loss was the third straight for El Capitan (9-15, 3-3 GNL), which saw its dreams of a league championship vanish.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Lucas Stafford 13, Laroy McGee 12, Shivan Sulyman 11, Raylondo Ford 6, Chris Franco 4, Anthony Ussery 4, Stone 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 20 (13 reb), Michael Overson 20 (3 reb, 4 stl), Tila Case 6, Jon Molzen 1 (13 reb, 5 ast, 2 blk), Armon Worrell (3 reb).

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (2-6-08) — Although neither team wanted to believe that Helix has secured its 2nd straight Grossmont South League championship, and 5th in the last eight seasons, Mount Miguel and Steele Canyon were virtually playing for 2nd place when they collided in the Matadors’ gym Tuesday night (Feb. 5).

In a bit of a free-wheeling affair, visiting Steele Canyon used its overall depth and strength off the bench to edge the Matadors 66-60. The bottom line is Steele Canyon's bench outscored the Matadors’ reserves, 29-3.

Senior guard NICK STATHAS scored a team-leading 14 points in a reserve role to give the Cougars (12-12, 5-2 GSL) sole possession of second place in the Grossmont South.

“I’ve been the 6th man all year and that’s OK because I’m going to do what it takes to help us win,” said Stathas, who hit 6 of 8 shots from the field, including a pair of 3-balls.

Clinging to a 41-40 late in the 3rd quarter, the Cougars embarked on a 13-2 scoring run to take command with 6:11 remaining. Stathas contributed a key 3-pointer plus a steal and transition lay-up during that streak.

“I just try to bring some intensity to the team when I come off the bench,” he said. “I try to provide a spark.”

Stathas, Steele Canyon's varsity quarterback, was all over the floor, scooping up loose balls and making key steals.

“I’ve always been more of a defensive player my whole life,” Stathas said.

JEBARI ROBINSON added 12 points, 5 assists and 3 steals for the Cougars, who also received a strong effort inside the paint from CAMERON MOSS. A 6-foot-5 junior, Moss connected on 6 of 9 shots from the field and captured 4 rebounds.

“We had a little rocky start because we were coming off a hard loss to Helix (Feb. 1),” said Robinson. “I think Mount Miguel came back really strong from the last time we played them (when the Cougars won 83-54).”

A steal and basket by Robinson staked Steele Canyon to a 56-46 advantage with 4 ½ minutes left to play. But the Matadors (15-8, 4-3 GSL) just kept coming.

A bucket by TRAVON CAPLES pulled Mount Miguel to within 62-57 and BRAD BARRETT sank both ends of a one-and-one free throw situation, leaving the Cougars with a precarious 62-59 edge with 1:15 remaining.

It became a free throw shooting contest from there.

Steele Canyon's RILEY BALIKIAN nailed a pair of free throws, extending the Cougars advantage to 64-59 with 1:01 left.

DEVYN MOORE countered for Mount Miguel with one free throw, making it a 4-point game with 48 seconds unplayed. With Mount Miguel forced to foul, Steele Canyon could have put the game away but missed the front end of consecutive bonus free throw situations.

The Cougars, however, came up with the offensive rebound on both misses.

Robinson iced the game by hitting both ends of a one-and-one with 9 seconds remaining.

Even though Mount Miguel failed to capitalize on Steele Canyon's late misfires from the charity stripe, Matadors coach JAY ROWLETT did not blame those lost opportunities for the outcome.

“You have to look at some other things, like when we didn’t score for the first 4:10 of the 3rd quarter,” said Rowlett of the Cougars’ ability to break a 32-all halftime tie with a 6-0 run in the 3rd period. “That’s too many wasted offensive possessions.”

Mount Miguel was further dinged when Caples drew two fouls in a 54 second span of the 3rd period, giving him 4 personals and a seat on the bench with Steele Canyon leading 41-36.

“We just didn’t make plays when we needed to make plays,” Rowlett said.

Not that Barrett, who rang up game highs of 22 points and 14 rebounds didn’t try to carry the load. Barrett banged a pair of 3s and was 6 for 6 from the free throw stripe.

Mount Miguel sophomore guard A.J. STANFORD, who was 7 for 13 from the field, also contributed 17 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds. The majority of his markers came from above the arc as he landed a trio of treys.

Caples finished 8 for 16 from the floor en route to 17 points and collected 7 rebounds.

“Even though the score was what it was, I think Mount Miguel has one of the best defenses we’ve played against,” said Robinson.

Steele Canyon scoring: Nick Stathas 14 (2 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Jebari Robinson 12 (2 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl), Cameron Moss 12 (4 reb), Eric Gilbert 7 (4 reb, 2 ast), Josiah Smith 6 (5 reb), Jake Ransom 6 (5 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Elijah Carter 5 (9 reb, 3 ast), Riley Balikian 2, Zane Keith 2.

Mount Miguel scoring: Brad Barrett 22 (14 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), Travon Caples 17 (7 reb), A.J. Stanford 17 (4 reb, 5 ast), Matt Miles 3, Devyn Moore 1 (4 reb, 3 ast).

GROSSMONT 55, WEST HILLS 43 – For the Foothillers to capture the Grossmont North League title, the conference schedule-maker gave them the unenviable task of closing the season with three straight road contests.

Needing at least two victories among the trio to gain at least a share of the crown, Grossmont survived its first test with a phat -- as in Tuesday (Feb. 5) -- victory.

Forcing a pair of Wolf Pack starters to the bench with foul troubles, the Hillers took advantage on each occasion with short runs to expand the lead. The offense was center around RICHARD OGUNSALU, who registered a career-high 31 points in dominating the paint. Ogunsalu got 24 of those points in the second half.

"No one can play with us inside when we execute," said Ogunsalu, who scored 24 of his points in the second half to overcome an early 11-4 West Hills advantage. "We were patient and everyone kept their heads up with our passing."

When West Hills' TIM NOWLIN and GARRETT CABRAL registered two fouls by the second period, Grossmont took advantage to take a 27-21 halftime lead.

When the pair returned, the Pack rallied to tie the contest at 39-all on a LUCAS ARMSTRONG 3-point goal. But with Ogunsalu and IAN COCHRAN dominating inside, more fouls meant additional time on the bench, allowing the Hillers to expand their lead into double figures.

"We just kept doing what we do best and worked the ball inside," noted Cochran, who recorded 10 points and 8 boards. "Our guards did a great job passing the ball."

“They got up on us in the first quarter and we came back on them in the second quarter,” noted Foothillers coach FRANK FOGGIANO. “It was exactly what happened in the last game (a 52-42 Grossmont win over the Pack on Jan. 16).

Nowlin helped West Hills get an early jump by hitting his first three shots in the first 5 minutes, en route to a team-high 13 points. But when he hit the bench with foul difficulties, the rest of the team shot just 4-for-17 from the floor in the second and third periods.

Grossmont's completes the regular season with road games at El Capitan and Santana.

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 31 (7 reb), Ian Cochran 10 (8 reb), Khalid Waters 9 (4 ast, 4 stl), Michael Graham 4 (7 stl), Alex Leon 1.

West Hills scoring: Tim Nowlin 13 (8 reb), Garrett Cabral 11, Chase Senter 10 (3 ast), Lucas Armstrong 5 (3 ast), Kyle McLaughlin 2, Ryan Bozelle 2.

VALHALLA 57, GRANITE HILLS 54 – In a Grossmont South League battle with playoff connotations, host Valhalla held off a 4th quarter charge by the Eagles to snap a four game losing streak Tuesday (Feb. 5) and keep its post-season hopes alive.

“Just a huge win for us,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

Junior point guard AUSTEN SUHAY turned in a powerful leadership performance to spearhead Valhalla. Suhay tallied 10 points (8 in the 2nd quarter), 9 assists and 4 steals for the Norsemen (11-12, 2-5 GSL).

“No doubt his best statistic was that he turned the ball over only one time,” said Jackson. “As a team we only had eight turnovers.”

Sophomores KYLE KRIEBEL and JOSH AUSTEL were dominating inside for Valhalla. Kriebel scored 9 of his game-high 20 points in the opening quarter as the Norsemen advanced to a 21-14 lead.

The 6-foot-5 Kriebel was 9 for 10 from the floor and 2 for 2 from the free throw line. He grabbed 6 rebounds, as did the 6-foot-4 Austel, who totaled 13 points.

The Norsemen led 49-38 entering the final period.

The Eagles scrambled back and had a chance to tie but DEAN MILLER’s attempt to beat the buzzer was off the mark.

“It was a tough shot for Dean,” Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON said of Miller, who finished with 18 points and 8 rebounds. “I called timeout with 18 seconds left to set up the play. We made it look like it was going to go to WAYNE MARTIN (16 points, 3 treys), and then he gave the ball to KYLE SNYDER. When the shot wasn’t there for Snyder he swung it over to Miller. Dean had to rush his shot and it didn’t go.”

“But give credit to Valhalla,” Anderson said. “We were inconsistent and they weren’t. By my count they got 16 offensive rebounds. When we turned the ball over it was more a case of bad passes leading to lay-ups at the other end.”

Valhalla scoring: Kyle Kriebel 20 (6 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk), Josh Austel 13 (6 reb, 1 blk), Austen Suhay 10 (9 ast, 4 stl, 2 reb, 1 blk), Trevor Cahoon 6 (6 reb, 3 stl), Ev Alcantar 3, Steven Kleist 3 (2 reb), David Zetts 2 (3 reb, 2 stl), Damaine Bradshaw (3 reb).

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 18 (8 reb), Wayne Martin 16, Aaron Harris 8 (12 reb, 4 blk), Vicente Stafford 8 (5 ast), Ian Birmingham 2 (8 reb, 4 ast), Nico Sanchez 2.

HELIX 63, MONTE VISTA 52 – No question senior guard KAREEM ABUKAR has paid bonus points for the Grossmont South League-leading Highlanders (16-7, 7-0 GSL) since he shook off a series of problems to finally make it into the Helix lineup this season.

Helix coach JOHN SINGER has directed praise Abukar’s direction for nearly a month now and for good reason. With Abukar at the point, Helix has won 10 straight and needs only two wins in its final three regular season games to lock up the 13th league flag in Singer’s illustrious 28-year career.

Abukar’s game has been more about providing stability for the Highlanders. Sure, he’s been scoring at a respectable 12.2 clip, while dishing assists and making steals. In Tuesday’s (Feb. 5) GSL victory over visiting Monte Vista, Abukar went to the whip, pouring in a career best 25 points.

Nearly half of Abukar’s points came on 4-of-5 shooting from above the arc. He also handed out 8 scoring passes.

Senior DONNIE McGOWAN, suffering from the flu, did not start for the Highlanders, but came off the bench to deliver 18 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocks.

“We really didn’t play with a lot of intensity,” Singer said. “Right now it’s all about getting ‘Ws’ and winning league.”

GEOFF HARTMAN paved the way for Monte Vista (9-16, 1-6 GSL) with 21 points and 7 rebounds. The Monarchs, who have lost 4 of their last 15, need a strong finish in their final three regular season games to have a shot at making the playoffs.

Helix scoring: Kareem Abukar 25 (4 reb, 8 ast), Donald McGowan 18 (9 reb, 2 ast, 4 blk), Derrall Chandler 8 (6 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Demond Narcisse 5 (4 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl, 2 blk), Anthony Diaz 3 (3 reb), Levine Toilolo 3 (10 reb, 4 blk), Patrick Winston 1 (8 reb).

Monte Vista scoring: Geoff Hartman 21 (7 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk), Mike Watkins 15 (6 reb, 3 ast), Tony Jackson 8 (6 reb, 2 blk), Chris Jones 5 (3 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk), Ryan Houser 3 (4 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk).

EL CAJON VALLEY 64, SANTANA 60 (OT) – ANTHONY USSERY sank 7 of 7 free throws – 3 in the waning minutes of regulation and 4 in overtime – to lift the Braves to the come-from-behind Grossmont North League win over struggling Santana Tuesday night (Feb. 5).

“Ussery was money – no wavering,” said Santana coach TIM BARRY of the Braves’ 6-foot-5, junior, who finished with 11 points.

El Cajon Valley (12-15, 3-3 GNL) used a 17-11 rush in the 4th quarter to send the game into overtime. The pace continued in the extra four minutes.

“We gave a game away again,” Barry said. “We led from start to finish, then we missed 5 free throws in a row at the end of regulation and 4 shots within two feet (of the bucket) down the stretch.

With 19 seconds left in regulation SHIVAN SULYMAN penetrated and scored from the paint to send the game into overtime at 52-52.

“I’m feeling like Job,” Barry said. “I’m being tested.”

BLAKE HARPER and TYLER BLACKLEDGE shared game-high scoring honors with 17 points for Santana (13-11, 1-4 GNL).

“Harper is the player that is a coach’s dream,” Barry said. “He plays every single day as hard as he can.”

In the 3rd quarter Santana led by 11 points.

Five players reached double scoring digits for El Cajon Valley with RAYLONDO FORD’s 16 points setting the pace.

“We played harder and smarter than they did, but El Cajon is scrappy and they never stopped,” Barry said.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Raylondo Ford 16, Laray McGee 13, Lucas Stafford 12, Anthony Ussery 11, Shivan Sulyman 10.

Santana scoring: Blake Harper 17 (6 reb), Tyler Blackledge 17 (7 reb, 2 ast), Kevin Engelke 10 (6 reb), Carlos Vargas 5 (6 reb), Brett Romero 4, Anthony DeBarrows 3 (4 reb), Jerrell Patacsil 2, Chris Sodergren 2.

MADISON 44, CHRISTIAN 41 – Having been nearly unstoppable by tallying 115 points and nailing 23 three-pointers in his previous four games, Christian High senior guard DANIEL HAZLETT was shut down by a smothering Madison defense in Tuesday’s (Feb. 5) Central League contest at the “Madhouse.”

Hazlett connected on only one of 18 shots from the floor – his East County-leading 76th three-pointer.

“ Madison double-teamed Hazlett, said Christian assistant coach TOBIN WILKINS said. “Daniel didn’t get any open looks at all.”

On the bright side, Hazlett did continue his torrid free throw shooting going 3-for-3 from the foul line. In his last three games, Hazlett has netted 22 of 24 charity shots.

As a team, Christian connected on only 17 of 56 shots from the field (30 percent). That includes an 11-of-19 effort by VANDER JOAQUIM, who finished with 23 points, 20 rebounds and 5 blocks.

“It’s tough to win when you can’t make a shot,” Wilkins said. “They did a good job defending us tonight.”

Madison (12-9, 5-2 CNL) used a 31-25 second half to leap-frog the Patriots (15-8, 4-3) into second placed in the Central circuit.

Christian scoring: Vander Joaquim 23 (20 reb, 2 ast, 5 blk), Daniel Hazlett 6 (3 reb), Taylor Eichhorst 4 (2 reb, 3 stl), Bradley Johnston 2, Lawrence Walker 2 (4 reb, 2 ast), Andrew Sexton 2, Andrew Whitten 2.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (2-3-08) — It was a long-ball shooting contest when Santana hosted Foothills Christian (16-8) in a non-league game Saturday night (Feb. 2). The two teams combined for 19 three-point baskets in a game won by the visiting Knights, 78-68.

The game wasn’t as close as the final score might suggest. But one thing is for certain, the night belong to Foothills Christian’s sophomore guard KALOB HATCHER, who rang up a season high 34 points, including 4 three-pointers.

Overall Hatcher hit 12 of 21 shots from the field and 6 of 7 free throws. The 6-foot Hatcher also led the Knights with 8 rebounds, 3 steals and logged 7 assists – 2 fewer than team leader TROY LEAF.

“Kalob pretty much had his will on offense for the whole night,” said Knights assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. “Troy Leaf played well, racking up 9 assists in the 1st half.”

Leaf finished the night early due to a nagging injury, totalling 19 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks.

“ Troy played two minutes of the 3rd after sitting down for two minutes of the 2nd, then he sat the rest of the game,” said McHugh.

It was a zany night from the outset. Two quick fouls called against Santana point guard TYLER BLACKLEDGE did not sit well with Sultans’ coach TIM BARRY, who – after pleading his case – was tagged with a technical foul. Much off the court drama ensued.

After the officials eventually booted out one Santana fan, they asked Coach Barry to talk to the fans and ask them to calm down, which he did.

Foothills Christian took a 26-16 first-quarter lead and maintained its advantage throughout.

Santana made a game of it with a 24-point burst in the 4th quarter anchored by a hail of 3-point buckets. ANTHONY DeBARROWS hit 4 treys to finish with a season-high 12 points for Santana (13-10).

CARLOS VARGAS led the Sultans with 17 points – the second-highest scoring output of the season for the 5-foot-8 senior guard.

“This is the best game we’ve played since losing (sophomore point guard) JESSE VARGAS to a knee injury for the season,” said Barry. “I hope this helps us make a strong run in the second half of our Grossmont North League season.”

Foothills Christian, almost certain to be the No. 1 seed in the San Diego CIF Division V playoffs, closes the regular season with games against El Capitan, Vincent Memorial and Mira Mesa.

“We got to rest a few guys and get some other guys a good amount of playing time so all in all it was a good day,” said McHugh.

Foothills Christian scoring: Kalob Hatcher 34 (8 reb, 1 blk, 3 stl, 7 ast), Troy Leaf 19 (4 reb, 2 blk, 9 ast), Brandon Hale 13 (7 reb, 1 blk), Aaron Hale 6 (4 reb, 4 blk), Ryan Smith 6, R.J. Najera (3 reb).

Santana scoring: Carlos Vargas 17 (2 reb, 5 ast), Anthony DeBarrows 12, Kevin Engelke 12 (6 reb, 2 ast), Brett Romero 10, Tyler Blackledge 8 (7 reb), Blake Harper 8 (6 reb), Chris Sodergren 1.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (2-2-08) -- Despite wasting a 26-10 advantage, El Capitan was poised for the game's final shot to snap Friday's (Feb. 1) 56-all deadlock. Then disaster struck.

With 8 seconds remaining, Wolf Pack forward GARRETT CABRAL stole the inbounds pass. Although he missed the ensuing layin with a defender draped over him, TIM NOWLIN followed with the putback as time expired, sending the Wolf Pack to a thrilling 58-56 decision over the visiting Vaqueros in an evening of upsets in the Grossmont North League.

Nowlin's shot capped a 29-point, four-quarter outburst by the Wolf Pack, matching their point total over the first three periods of dreadful play.

Moments earlier, CHASE SENTER capped a frantic rally to tie the contest by taking a Nowlin pass and nailing an NBA 3-point shot with 11 seconds remaining. El Capitan called a timeout to set-up a final shot, but Cabral had an indication on where the inbounds pass was headed.

"El Cap's big men had fouled out and their first pass never seemed to go long to them," explained Nowlin. "It always seemed to be the second one, so I was able to anticipate the pass."

The Vaqueros, which once led 11-10, ran off 15 straight points early in the second period, when center BARRETT BRAUN scored 7 of his game-high 17 points. He also was the co-leader with 11 rebounds.

However, even though the margin remained in the 12-14 range, topping out at 49-31 with 6:14 remaining, massive foul trouble hampered El Capitan. Eventually, three Vaqueros fouled out in the final 3 minutes, but West Hills was already on a 12-2 run before the first disqualification.

"We lit a fire underneath us," added Nowlin. "There were big plays by everyone."

The other difference was West Hills' ability to take care of the ball, with only one turnover over the game's final 10 minutes. And if they missed a shot, the Pack held their own on the boards with 20 offensive rebounds to overcome El Cap's 50 percent shooting (21-for-42) from the floor.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 17 (11 reb), Michael Overson 10 (5 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl), Tila Case 8 (5 reb), Jonathan Kulp 7, Jake Zawlacki 6 (4 reb), Matt Hobby 4 (8 reb), Jon Molzen 2 (5 reb, 3 ast, 3 blk), Michael Landis 2.

West Hills scoring: Chase Senter 14 (3 ast, 3 stl), Lucas Armstrong 12, Tim Nowlin 10 (11 reb), Garrett Cabral 10 (8 reb, 3 ast, 7 stl), Billy McGarvey 4, Kyle McLaughlin 4 (5 reb, 3 stl), Garrett Middleton 3 (3 reb), Ryan Bozelle 1.

HELIX 60, STEELE CANYON 47 – A full house and a fast start Friday night (Feb. 1) at Steele Canyon gave the host Cougars hope that they could indeed derail perennial power Helix’s drive to a second straight Grossmont South League championship and a 5th circuit crown in the last eight seasons.

Six-foot-5, 220-pound post CAMERON MOSS was unstoppable in the early going, scoring 10 of the Cougars’ first 14 points and helping stake Steele Canyon to a 14-7 lead that left the home crowd howling.

It did not, however, halt the Highlanders, who embarked on an 11-0 run to take a 4-point lead.

“For some reason I think our kids are intimidated by the Helix jerseys,” said Cougars coach DEREK STEPHENS.

Helix (15-7, 6-0 GSL), which has won 9 games in a row and is only two wins shy of securing the 13th league championship during coach JOHN SINGER’s 28-year reign at the helm, was on the verge of turning the game into a blowout after DEMOND “Red” NARCISSE sank a bucket to hand Helix a 36-23 advantage in the 3rd quarter.

“Our hustle and ability to crash the boards was the difference in the game,” said Narcisse, who finished with 14 rebounds and 10 points. “We picked up on defense and maintained a Helix tempo.”

Four Highlanders reached double scoring figures and three reached double digits in rebounds. Senior DONALD McGOWAN led the Helix onslaught with 19 points, 16 rebounds and 3 steals.

Senior point guard KAREEM ABUKAR did an excellent job of directing the offense with 5 assists and 14 points, while LEVINE TOILOLO added 10 points and 12 boards.

Toilolo, a 6-foot-8 junior, gave one of his more physical performances, netting 5 of 10 shots from the field, blocking 3 shots and taking a charge.

“He’s an intellectual assassin,” Singer said of Toilolo.

Steele Canyon (11-12, 4-2 GSL) trailed only 50-45 after JOSIAH SMITH sank a pair of free throws with 3:29 remaining. From there though, Helix closed out the game with a 10-2 scoring run.

“Our game plan was to force them to drive – we wanted them to take shots,” said Stephens. “But give credit to Helix because they did make their shots when they needed to.”

Helix shot 41 percent (23 of 61) from the floor while Steele Canyon netted slightly less than 33 percent of 58 chances.

Steele Canyon ’s JEBARI ROBINSON – arguably the best guard in the league – hit 8 of 16 shots from the field, including a trio of treys, for 19 points. Other than Robinson the Cougars hit just 26 percent from the field, which included Moss’s 5 for 10.

Helix scoring: Donald McGowan 19 (16 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), Kareem Abukar 14 (Reb 2, 5 ast, 3 stl), Demond Narcisse 10 (14 reb, 3 stl, 1 blk), Levine Toilolo 10 (12 reb, 2 stl, 3 blk), Derrall Chandler 4 (2 reb, 2 ast), Joubert Ballard 2 (2 reb, 2 ast), Patrick Winston 1 (6 reb, 2 blk).

Steele Canyon scoring: Jebari Robinson 19 (3 stl), Cameron Moss 10 (7 reb, 3 stl, 1 blk), Elijah Carter 6 (3 reb, 2 ast), Eric Gilbert 4 (4 reb), Nick Stathas 2 (5 reb, 2 stl), Josiah Smith 2, Riley Balikian 2 (2 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Zane Keith 1, Jake Ransom 1 (3 reb).

GRANITE HILLS 53, MONTE VISTA 37 – DEAN MILLER was healthy Friday night (Feb. 1) and therefore so were the Granite Hills Eagles.

Having battled the flu bug most of the week, the 6-foot-3 junior made it clear that he was back on his game. Miller hit 10 of 15 shots from the floor, including 4 of 5 three-pointers attempts as he finished with 26 points to help the Eagles (13-10, 2-4 GSL) snap a 4-game losing streak.

Miller completed a triple-double with 11 rebounds and a career-high 10 blocked shots.

It was a banner shooting night all around for Granite Hills, which hit better than 57 percent of 35 shots while maintaining a deliberate tempo.

Despite the outcome Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON probably thought the recent horror episode of his season was going to continue, as visiting Monte Vista grabbed a 10-2 first-quarter lead.

That didn’t happen, as the Eagles turned the tables on the Monarchs (9-15, 1-5 GSL) by claiming a 22-2 second-quarter scoring advantage.

“In the 1st quarter we played good defense, but we couldn’t score a bucket for a long stretch,” Anderson said. “In the 2nd quarter we played great defense and ran our offense patiently and got some really good looks.”

Leading a band of unsung heroes for Granite Hills was junior AARON HARRIS, who contributed a team-best 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals and 9 points.

“Even though Harris was in foul trouble he still managed to have a great game, playing in a little over 2 ½ quarters,” Anderson said.

Anderson was especially complimentary of senior guard WAYNE MARTIN, who made the most of only 4 shots to finish with 8 points and 5 assists. Half of his shots resulted in 3-point buckets.

“Martin was patient on offense and shot the ball well,” said Anderson.

Granite Hills’ speedy guard VICENTE STAFFORD chipped in with 5 points and 5 steals, while steady IAN BIRMINGHAM crashed the boards for 8 rebounds.

Coming off back-to-back Grossmont crossover wins, JAMES CARROLL and his Monarchs had high hopes for making a belated run for the playoffs. This game did not help.

GEOFF HARTMAN was strong in the middle for Monte Vista, tallying 13 points and 13 rebounds, and RYAN HOUSER had 9 points and 9 boards for the Monarchs. They each had one block.

“Granite Hills caught fire in the 2nd quarter and we could not respond,” said Monarchs coach JAMES CARROLL. “They had an answer to everything. We made a run on them in the 2nd half but couldn’t pull it out.”

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 26 (11 reb, 10 blk), Aaron Harris 9 (13 reb, 6 ast, 5 stl), Wayne Martin 8 (5 ast), Vicente Stafford 5 (5 stl), Nico Sanchez 2, Landon Turley 2, Ian Birmingham 1 (8 reb).

Monte Vista scoring: Geoff Hartman 13 (13 reb, 1 blk, 2 stl), Ryan Houser 9 (9 reb, 1 blk, 3 stl), Chris Jones 3 (5 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), Mike Watkins 4 (2 reb, 2 stl), Trent Watkins 4, Tony Jackson 2 (2 reb), Anthony Bell 2 (6 reb, 3 blk), Josh Gossmeyer (3 reb), Richard Whitfield (2 reb).

MOUNT MIGUEL 60, VALHALLA 53 – Despite a sluggish start in which they trailed host Valhalla 8-4 after the first quarter of Friday’s (Feb. 1) Grossmont South League game, the Matadors caught fire in the second period to gain a 25-21 halftime advantage over the Norsemen.

But it wasn’t until after a 21-16 spread in the final stanza that the Matadors (15-7, 4-2 GSL) could celebrate their 5th straight victory.

A GSL championship is mathematically within reach for the Matadors, who are tied with Steele Canyon for 2nd place – two games behind front-running Helix. But it is unlikely that the Highlanders will fold in the final four games of the regular season.

“We have probably the most important week of our season coming up next week,” said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT, whose Matadors host Steele Canyon on Tuesday (Feb. 5) and Helix on Friday (Feb. 8). “That’s gonna make us or break us as far as league goes.”

TRAVON CAPLES anchored a balanced Mount Miguel offense with 17 points and 6 rebounds. BRAD BARRETT pitched in 15 points while garnering 6 boards, while A.J. STANFORD notched 11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots.

ARTHUR HOBBS, a senior forward recognized more for his defense, chalked up 8 points, captured a team-high 7 rebounds, dealt 7 assists, made 5 steals and blocked a shot.

“ Valhalla ran a lot of junk defenses on us – triangle-and-2, box-and-one,” said Rowlett. “We had to have some other guys step up because they were focusing on Barrett.”

DEVYN MOORE, another Matador who has toiled in the background creating assists and steals, popped in a pivotal 3-point shot in the 4th quarter to help Mount Miguel secure the victory.

“ Moore ’s shot pretty much sealed it,” said Rowlett. “All-around our guys played pretty good.”

Valhalla woes centered around its inadequacies shooting from long distance. The Norsemen netted only 1 of 13 shots from above the arc, which is far below their season average.

Valhalla sophomore post JOSH AUSTEL scored a career-high 18 points on 8 of 10 shooting while bagging 8 rebounds to lead the Norsemen (10-12, 1-5 GSL).

Sophomore veteran KYLE KRIEBEL added 12 points, 9 boards, 3 blocks, 2 steals and 6 assists for the Norsemen.

“Our sophomore post players – Josh and Kyle – did a really good job working together,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

Obviously Valhalla is looking at a pretty promising future.

“I thought we played really tough tonight, as tough and spirited as we’ve played all year,” said Jackson. “I couldn’t ask for any more effort. There were a couple of plays that changed the momentum.”

“Tonight we asked AUSTEN SUHAY to control the ball and he did a good job,” Jackson added. “He does what the team needs. DAMAINE BRADSHAW and DAVID ZETTS did a great job defensively. We held Barrett to 15 points.”

Mount Miguel scoring: Travon Caples 17 (6 reb), Brad Barrett 15 (6 reb), A.J. Stanford 11 (6 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk), Arthur Hobbs 8 (7 reb, 7 ast, 5 stl, 1 blk), Devyn Moore 5 (2 reb, 3 stl), Donte Allen 2, J.J. Norton 2.

Valhalla scoring: Josh Austel 18 (8 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk), Kyle Kriebel 12 (9 reb, 6 ast, 3 blk, 2 stl), Austen Suhay 8 (2 ast, 4 blk), David Zetts 6 (2 blk), Trevor Cahoon 4, EV Alcantar 3, Damaine Bradshaw 2 (4 reb).

EL CAJON VALLEY 52, GROSSMONT 44 – Any thought the Grossmont Foothillers might have entertained of sailing through the Grossmont North League unscathed was destroyed Friday night (Feb. 1) by visiting El Cajon Valley.

The Braves (11-15, 2-3 GNL) outscored Grossmont in three quarters en route to posting only their second victory in eight starts while halting a four-game losing skid.

Grossmont (15-7, 4-1 GNL) saw its nine-game win string snipped and lost for only the second time 13 starts.

“I’m quite happy,” said El Cajon Valley coach NATE REED, who took his team out for a post-game meal following the upset. “We played as a unit – it was a total all-around good game. We came together when we needed to.”

SHIVAN SULYMAN knocked down a game-high 18 points for the Braves, who suffered a 65-47 first-round league loss to Grossmont on their home court. Sulyman has rung up 35 points in his last two games.

“We go with our ups and downs, and this was one of the times that the guys reached down inside and played ball,” Reed said.

After the Braves took a 15-9 first quarter scoring edge, Grossmont rebounded to earn a 2-point halftime edge. It was all about El Cajon Valley in the second half, as Grossmont misfired on 10 of 18 free throw attempts.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Shivan Sulyman 18, Laroy McGee 12, Lucas Stafford 11, Raylondo Ford 8, Anthony Ussery 3.

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 17 (11 reb), Ian Cochran 16 (8 reb), Khalid Waters 7 (2 ast), Michael Graham 3 (2 stl), Robert Sullivan 1.

HOOVER 72, CHRISTIAN 56 – Depending on which bench you were sitting on for Friday’s (Feb. 1) Central League showdown, this one definitely had its pivotal points.

The majority favored host Hoover (18-4, 6-0), which all but wrapped up the league laurels by slipping past the Patriots (15-7, 4-2, CTL) for the second time in as many meetings.

Christian pointed to the free throw line where the Cardinals nailed 25 of 31 chances compared to the Patriots’ 10 of 15 shooting accuracy.

Hoover could also take pride in that its defense virtually shut down Christian’s 6-foot-8 center VANDER JOAQUIM, limiting the big fella to 10 points, 13 rebounds and 3 blocks. Joaquim was a forgettable 4 of 11 from the field.

“They were double- and triple-teaming Vander all night,” said Christian assistant coach TOBIN WILKINS.

Senior guard DANIEL HAZLETT continued his torrid scoring streak for Christian. The 6-foot Hazlett tagged the Cardinals for 22 points, including a quartet of 3-balls and 6-for-6 free throw shooting.

Hazlett has netted 115 points and a whopping 23 three-pointers in his last four games. His last two starts have seen him drop in 19 of 21 free throws.

Christian crashed out of the gate to take a 9-2 lead only to see Hoover gear up its pressure to reverse the trend, then storm to a 16-2 scoring streak.

“We turned the ball over way too much, didn’t handle their pressure at all well,” Wilkins said. “We thought we’d compete a little better than we did.”

Christian scoring: Daniel Hazlett 22 (2 ast), Vander Joaquim 10 (13 reb, 3 blk), Manny Walker 6 (4 reb), Lawrence Walker 5, Andrew Whitten 5, Bradley Johnston 2, Aaron Whitten 2, Tyrone Sauls 2, Trent Brookshire 2, Michael Pitts (3 ast).