© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-20-10) — While Mount Miguel was claiming its first league title in 23 years, the Foothillers of Grossmont were capturing their third straight circuit crown in Friday’s (Feb. 19) contest as the regular season came to a close.

Mount Miguel (22-6), which figures to earn the No. 1 seed in the San Diego CIF Division III playoffs, finished atop the Grossmont Valley League with a 7-1 mark.

Grossmont (18-9, 9-1) won the Grossmont Hills League laurels after having won back-to-back titles in the now defunct Grossmont North League.

Not to be overlooked in the SDCIF Division II playoffs are the Helix Highlanders (18-8), who concluded the regular season with a 7-game winning streak and 12 triumphs in 14 games. Although the Highlanders were the only league team to beat Grossmont, they still finished second one game back.

Playoff pairings are expected to be announced Saturday (Feb. 20) at 7 p.m.

HELIX 68, GRANITE HILLS 60 – The visiting Highlanders strong-armed Granite Hills inside the paint in Friday’s (Feb. 19) Grossmont Hills League regular season finale.

Juniors JAYLEN LINSON and KENNY KEYS roughed up the Eagles (19-8, 6-4 GHL) for 41 points and 36 rebounds between them.

“We wanted to dominate down low and I think we were able to do that,” said the 6-foot-3 Linson. “They could not stop both of us inside because we are too powerful. (Granite Hills) is a great team but tonight was our night to shine.”

Linson matched his season high of 24 points, dropping in 9 of 19 shots from the floor. Keys added 17 points and 19 rebounds.

As a unit, Helix crashed the boards for 27 offensive rebounds with Keys collecting 11. That led to 14 second-chance points for the Highlanders.

“Obviously, we got a lot of putbacks,” Keys said. “Second-chance shots won the game for us. That and we made our free throws at the end of the game.”

Coach JOHN SINGER’s Highlanders made a clean sweep in the second half of league play.

“I’m just happy with what these kids have done,” Singer said. “We’re not the most talented group in the world but I think we’ve proved we have grit.”

Granite Hills led 20-14 in the 2nd quarter before the Highlanders embarked on an 18-1 scoring spree to lead 32-21.

That advantage held up until the Eagles caught and passed the Highlanders 56-55 on a drive and layup by ANDRE LEWIS with 4:33 remaining. That edge was short-lived as a bucket by Keys and a pair of free throws by Linson pushed the Scotties back in front.

A basket by the Eagles’ GARRETT LARCH-MILLER pulled Granite Hills back to within 59-58 with 2:13 left. But that was as close as the Eagles would get.

Four free throws by TOMMIE YOUNG, a three-point play by Linson and a basket by Keys finished off the Eagles, who won the first round meeting with the Eagles 64-55.

“We’ve got the momentum now and I hope we carry it over to the playoffs,” Linson said.

It was a frustrating end to the league season for the Eagles, who suffered three straight losses.

“We battled back and there was certainly not a lack of heart or effort on our part,” said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON, who noted that his team was called for 22 fouls compared to 10 against Helix.

Lewis led the Eagles with a game high 25 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

Larch-Miller was only 9 for 23 shooting but included 4 triples on his way to a 23 point night. Although he’s only 6-foot-2, Larch-Miller led the Eagles with 13 rebounds.

“We gave up too many offensive rebounds and too many second chance points,” Anderson said. “We wanted to make rebounding an area of emphasis because we’re not the tallest team in the world. For about two-thirds of the season rebounding was not so much a factor since the majority of the teams we played wanted to play a fast break game.

“But once we got into our league, where the coaches and players know us, they exploited us inside,” Anderson added. “For the most part we were not able to play our up-tempo game.”

Helix: Jaylen Linson 24 (17 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Kenny Keys 17 (19 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl) Darien Peterson 4 (5 reb, 8 ast, 1 stl, 2 blk), Tommie Young 10 (5 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk), Titus Young 9 (6 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Sam Meredith 2 (6 reb, 2 stl, 2 blk), John Henry Singer 2 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk),

Granite Hills: Andre Lewis 25 (5 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Garrett Larch-Miller 23 (13 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Jason Gaines 7 (9 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl, 2 blk), Kyle Snyder 2 (3 reb, 1 at, 2 stl, 1 blk), Dalton Otineru 2 (8 reb), Scott Atkinson 1 (4 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk), James Sadik (3 reb).

GROSSMONT 67, WEST HILLS 45 – One thing Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO can count on game in and game out is JAKE HAAR.

A 6-foot-5 senior post, the reliable Haar is so consistent that Foggiano has penciled him in for a double-double every night.

Such was the case in Friday’s (Feb. 19) Grossmont Hills League finale at West Hills.

Haar recorded game highs of 19 points and 16 rebounds as the Foothillers posted their 10th win in their last 11 starts.

“Jake is strong and knows how to get position inside,” Foggiano said.

Few in East County are better at executing the put back than Haar.

Sophomore ROBBY NESOVIC added 15 points for Grossmont, which benefitted from the superb play of junior point guard DESEAN WATERS.

Senior ADRIAN MARAZITI hit a trio of 3-pointers en route to a 16-point night to pace the Wolf Pack (5-21, 0-10 GHL).

Grossmont: Jake Haar 19 (16 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Robby Nesovic 15 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Anthony Bowden 10 (8 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Michael Wnek 6 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jason Lakis 6 (2 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Desean Waters 5 (3 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl), Alex Ortiz 3 (1 reb), Derrick Rustich 3 (2 reb).

West Hills: Adrian Maraziti 16, Jonny Preston 12, Nick Findley 6, Shedrick Collier 5, Jeron Satterfield 2, John Magoon 2, Jadarion Blackemore 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 65, EL CAJON VALLEY 49 – AJ STANFORD and HARRY BRAZELTON cranked out 9 points apiece, propelling host Mount Miguel to a 27-13 first quarter lead in Friday’s (Feb. 19) Grossmont Valley League title-sealing victory over winless El Cajon Valley.

Brazelton finished the Matadors balanced attack with 19 points and a dozen rebounds. Stanford connected for five 3-pointers, while BRYANT MITCHELL collected 21 rebounds.

Stanford, the quarterback for Mount Miguel ’s football team, is the ringleader of the Matadors’ basketball unit.

“AJ is a difference-maker,” said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. “And Mitchell is unbelievably tough on the boards.”

KENDALL CONLEY led El Cajon Valley (0-27, 0-8 GVL) with 22 points.

“We did what we had to do to win the game and get ready for the playoffs,” Rowlett said.

Mount Miguel: Harry Brazelton 19 (12 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), AJ Stanford 16 (5 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Yuel Hagos 12 (2 reb, 2 stl), JJ Norton 9 (6 ast, 5 stl), Marcus Booker 4 (2 stl), Jaymes Brazelton 4 (2 stl), Bryant Mitchell 2 (21 reb, 2 blk), Thomas Butler (3 reb).

El Cajon Valley: Kendall Conley 22, Jacquelle Morris 7, Dominique Miller 7, DeShea Wade 6, Dontae Baily 4, Alin Alyadako 3.

SANTANA 79, EL CAPITAN 62 – The visiting Sultans surged to an 11-0 advantage in the 1st quarter and then staved off a late El Capitan rally Friday (Feb. 19) to pick up the Grossmont Valley League victory.

“We really needed to bounce back after losing those last two games to ( Mount Miguel and Monte Vista),” said Santana coach TIM BARRY.

Sophomore LANDON LOZOYA registered a career high 27 points to pace second place Santana (19-9, 6-2). He nailed 8 of 15 shots from the floor, including 5 triples.

“This was a big time break out game for Lozoya,” said Barry, noting that his budding superstar also had 6 rebounds, 6 steals and a pair of assists. “Every time we needed a shot he got it.”

TREY BASS pitched in with 17 points and 8 boards, doing the bulk of his damage from the free throw line where he converted 11 of 13 chances. JASON CORBISEZ contributed 16 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals.

MATT LUCIUS notched a dozen rebounds for the Sultans, who hope to earn a No. 4 seed in the SDCIF Division III playoffs.

Steady MIKE OVERSON made the most of El Capitan ’s Senior Night with 26 points and 15 rebounds, while ROBERT CRAIGHEAD rolled a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds.

El Capitan (9-17, 3-5 GVL) pulled to within 5 points in the 4th quarter before the Sultans pulled away for keeps.

Santana: Landon Lozoya 27 (6 reb, 2 ast, 6 stl), Trey Bass 17 (8 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Jason Corbisez 16 (6 reb, 1 ast, 4 stl), Jesse Vargas 11 (2 ast), Matt Lucius 8 (12 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Jason Dale (1 reb, 1 ast).

El Capitan: Mike Overson 26 (15 reb, 6 ast, 4 stl, 2 blk), Robert Craighead 10 (10 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Armon Worrell 7 (2 reb), Andrew Cable 5 (8 reb, 1 stl, 1 blk), Andrew Agunat 5 (6 reb, 1 stl), Brian Celeste 4 (2 reb, 1 ast), Tyson Kygar 3 (3 reb, 2 ast), Cody Kygar 2 (2 reb, 1 ast), Kevin Kapka (4 ast), Eric Nunez (3 reb).

VALHALLA 54, STEELE CANYON 36 – A year ago the Norsemen were battling Steele Canyon for the Grossmont South League title on the final night of the regular season. And they lost.

The visiting Norsemen did not forget that night. In fact, they gained a touch of revenge Friday (Feb.19) in a Grossmont Hills League game they needed to win to make themselves more attractive to the playoff seeding committee.

“We didn’t want it to end like last year,” Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON said. “What happened back then has stuck with my guys.”

Steele Canyon (5-20, 2-8 GHL) was sitting on a 21-15 edge late in the first half when the Norsemen scored the last 4 points before intermission.

That was only the beginning to a Valhalla rally that turned the game into an onslaught. The Norsemen scored 35 of the first 43 points in the second half making it 54-29.

STEVEN KLEIST scored all 13 of his points in the 3rd quarter as Valhalla (14-13, 5-5 GHL) claimed a 24-8 advantage during that 8-minute stanza en route to its third straight win.

“I didn’t have to say much at halftime,” Jackson said. “The guys came out in the second half and showed how much they wanted this game. Kleist gave us a spark.”

DAVID WILCHETZ contributed 13 points, 8 rebounds and a block, while DAVID ZETTS zipped in 10 points. KYLE KRIEBEL had 7 blocks to go along with 9 points and 8 boards. JOSH AUSTEL and JORDAN CUNNINGHAM chipped in with 5 and 4 blocks, respectively for the Norsemen.

“When we made that run we went to our big lineup,” Jackson said. “The smallest guy we had on the floor was 6-2.”

Valhalla: David Wilschetz 13 (8 reb, 2 stl, 1 blk), Steven Kleist 13 (3 ast), David Zetts 10 (1 reb, 2 stl), Kyle Kriebel 9 (8 reb, 3 ast, 7 blk), Josh Austel 6 (8 reb, 5 blk), Jordan Cunningham 3 (6 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl, 4 blk).

Steele Canyon: Cody Wells 10, Justin Norwood 7, Michael Cederoth 5, Andrew King 4, Wes Judish 4, Casey Balikian 3, Michael Jordan 3. No other information was reported.

© East County Sports.com
LAKESIDE (2-18-10) — Foothills Christian romped past host El Capitan 89-60 in a non-league game Wednesday (Feb. 17) to conclude the regular season with a 10-game winning streak.

“Kalob had a great night; there wasn't much anyone did to stop him,” said Foothills Christian assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. “The only thing that really stopped Kalob from scoring was his decision to pass the ball.”

Now Foothills Christian must wait until it officially receives the No. 1 seeding position in the San Diego CIF Division V playoffs. Notice of that will come Saturday (Feb. 20). The Knights are the three-time defending section champions.

“It will be interesting to see if we get a first-round game,” McHugh said. “Right now I don't think anyone is counting on it because there's rarely 16 teams that turn in their paperwork."

“It's do or die from here on out. For the three seniors, there's no way they can look back on their careers and see disappointment, regardless of how we finish. I know there's only one outcome that won't disappoint them (a state championship).”

East County scoring leader TROY LEAF of Foothills Christian was limited to 19 points – more than 10 below his season average.

“El Cap did a good job of guarding Troy tonight,” McHugh said. “There was a lot of contact, and Troy 's shot was just not on tonight. You just give the defense credit on a night like that. Unfortunately for them, El Cap got to see that we're not a one-weapon team.”

Six-foot-6 freshman JAMAL AYTES had perhaps his finest game in a Foothills Christian uniform, ringing up a career-best 23 points and hauling down 14 rebounds.

“Jamal had a dominant 2nd half,” McHugh said. “He must have grabbed at least 50 percent of the offensive rebounds in the second half. If the officials hadn't allowed Jamal's jersey to be grabbed the whole night, he probably would have nabbed 25 rebounds.”

For the second game in a row DALTON MOSSER drilled in a trio of 3-pointers for the Knights.

It was not the best of nights for the Knights senior big man – 6-foot-7 JVONTE BROOKS, who finished with 9 points and 11 rebounds.

On the flip side, El Capitan senior MIKE OVERSON had a big night, tossing in a game-high 32 points. He was 12-for-16 shooting.

“Overson is a lot of fun to watch because he is always in the game,” McHugh said. “He plays with class. You can always respect a kid who plays like that if he scores 40 points or 2.”

Foothills Christian: Kalob Hatcher 26 (5 reb, 11 ast, 7 stl, 3 blk), Jamal Aytes 23 (14 reb, 4 blk), Troy Leaf 19 (4 ast, 3 reb, 2 stl), Dalton Mosser 9 (3 ast, 2 reb, 1 stl, 1 blk), Jvonte Brooks 9 (11 reb, 2 stl, 2 blk), Sal Romeri 3 (1 ast, 2 reb, 1 stl, 2 blk), Henry Luschei (1 reb, 2 stl).

El Capitan: Mike Overson 32 (12 reb, 2 stl, 1 blk), Brian Celeste 8 (6 reb, 4 ast), Armon Worrell 6 (6 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Robert Craighead 4 (2 reb, 2 ast), Andrew Cable 4 (2 reb), Ed Waite 2 (1 reb, 1 blk), Cody Kygar 2 (1 reb, 1 ast), Tyson Kygar 2 (1 reb, 7 ast, 1 stl), Eric Nunez (2 reb, 2 ast), Kevin Kapka (1 ast, 1 stl).

POINT LOMA 66, EL CAJON VALLEY 51 – Winless El Cajon Valley suffered its 26th consecutive loss of the season in a non-league duel with visiting Point Loma Wednesday (Feb. 17).

“I thought we came out real well in the start,” said Braves coach MARTY ELLIS. “It was senior night and we recognized KENDALL CONLEY for his hard work and dedication.”

“As the game progressed I think we began to get tired. I thought our energy was very low but I think that it was used the night before vs. El Capitan. It’s tough to play back to back games when you don’t have experienced players. Give all the credit to Point Loma – they played well.”

El Cajon Valley: Kendall Conley 22 (13 reb, 3 stl, 3 blk), Dominique Miller 20 (10 reb, 2 stl, 1 ast), Jacquelle Morris 5 (6 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk), DeShea Wade 4 (4 reb, 2 stl).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-17-10) — The last time Grossmont High junior guard DESEAN WATERS faced the Granite Hills Eagles, he was 0-for-18 shooting from the field.

In Tuesday’s (Feb. 16) rematch, Waters scored a team-high 21 points helping Grossmont ground the visiting Eagles 84-65, assuring the Foothillers of no less than a share of the Grossmont Hills League championship.

Grossmont (17-9, 8-1 GHL) can claim the circuit crown outright by defeating West Hills in Friday’s (Feb. 19) regular season finale.

“This is a big win for us because we don’t want to share the league title,” said Waters, who canned 7 of 14 shots from the floor and 5 of 8 free throws.

Grossmont captured league laurels for the second consecutive season, having won the now defunct Grossmont North League title last year.

“Winning league this year is far more satisfying because we did it against tougher competition,” added Waters, who was limited to five free throws in Grossmont’s first meeting at Granite Hills.

Waters was deadly from all angles on this night. He took defenders off the dribble, penetrating with relative ease. He was equally as successful at pulling up and hitting a jumper.

“I was a lot better than last time,” Waters said with a chuckle which seemed to be more out of relief than anything else.

What really put a crimp in the Granite Hills plans was an injury to senior point guard ANDRE LEWIS, who suffered a broken nose with 2:55 left in the 2nd quarter and the Eagles leading 32-31.

He missed the remainder of the opening half. But – after gaining clearance to play following a quick health check by EMTs called to the scene – Lewis returned to start the second half. He was clearly tentative over the final 16 minutes, contributing just 4 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds.

Lewis, who came in averaging 27.9 points per game, totaled 11 points for the night. Part of the reason for that was due to the defensive work turned in by Grossmont sophomore ROBBY NESOVIC. While Nesovic did contribute 20 points – buoyed by 9-of-10 free throw shooting – it was his defensive prowess that pleased Foggiano most.

Granite Hills led 52-50 late in the 3rd quarter after Lewis snapped a tie by netting two free throws. Grossmont then embarked on a 9-4 scoring run to close the quarter.

The 4th quarter was all Grossmont. The Foothillers opened the period by scoring 11 consecutive points for a 70-56 lead.

“Once we went up by 12 points or so, I think they panicked,” said Grossmont head coach FRANK FOGGIANO. “When you rely on the three as much as they do and you’re not hitting, you know you are in trouble.”

And so they were.

“After halftime I thought we had a lot of quality possessions,” Foggiano added. “We hit some threes (7) and so did they (9). The difference was we have an inside game.”

Grossmont senior JAKE HAAR was a force inside with a double-double of 19 points and 14 rebounds. Seven of Haar’s rebounds came off the offensive glass and he converted five into baskets or free throws. Hillers’ leaper ANTHONY BOWDEN corralled a game-high 16 rebounds.

“When it came down to it, I think our rebounding was the difference,” Haar said. “Granite Hills isn’t as strong as us inside.”

Grossmont outscored the Eagles 25-9 in the final quarter. Waters led a balanced attack over the stretch run with 7 points.

The Foothillers shot 46 percent from the field (28-for-61) and held a 21-8 scoring advantage from the free throw line.

This was Grossmont’s highest scoring output of the season.

“Everybody who stepped on the floor gave us something tonight,” Grossmont assistant coach JASON FOGGIANO said.

By falling to Grossmont for the second time, Granite Hills (19-7, 6-3 GHL) missed a chance to create a three-way tie for first place. Now the Eagles need a victory over Helix in Friday’s finale to tie the Highlanders for second place in the GHL.

GARRETT LARCH-MILLER rang up a season-high 33 points for the Eagles. He hit 12 of 26 shots from the field – six of them from 3-point distance.

Sophomore JASON GAINES of Granite Hills got off to a fast start hitting all four of his shots from the floor for 10 points in the opening quarter. He was 1-for-13 over the final three quarters and led the Eagles with 12 rebounds.

“We didn’t play any defense and didn’t knock down any shots in the second half,” Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON lamented. “You can’t do that in a big game like this and expect to get out of here with a win.”

Grossmont: Desean Waters 21 (8 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl), Robby Nesovic 20 (3 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Jake Haar 19 (14 reb, 2 ast), Anthony Bowden 8 (16 reb, 2 ast), Michael Wnek 8 (2 reb, 1 stl), Jason Lakis 8 (1 reb).

Granite Hills: Garrett Larch-Miller 33 (5 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jason Gaines 14 (12 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk), Andre Lewis 11 (6 reb, 5 ast, 1 stl), Dalton Otineru 4 (3 reb, 1 stl), Kyle Snyder 3 (5 reb, 2 ast), James Sadik (4 reb), Scott Atkinson (1 reb, 1 ast), Nate Bennett (1 reb).

HELIX 48, STEELE CANYON 43 – To Helix’s way of thinking, Tuesday’s (Feb. 16) Grossmont Hills League contest might be classified as a sandwich game. That is it followed an emotional win over Grossmont Hills League champion Grossmont on Friday and ends with a key game at Granite Hills on Friday (Feb. 19).

Veteran Helix coach JOHN SINGER did not dispute that.

“Steele outplayed us and we outscored them,” he said. “We were just going through the motions with no concentration. That’s my fault.”

Bottom line is the Highlanders (17-8, 7-2 GHL), who have won six straight and 11 of 13, finished strong as they snuffed Steele Canyon’s upset bid from the free throw line.

“We did enough things at the end to win the game,” Singer said. “We made 6 of 7 free throws in the last two minutes.”

Helix’s JAYLEN LINSON was 3-for-3 from the stripe and scored 6 of his game-high 20 points in the final period.

“Jaylen came up strong for us,” Singer said. “And TOMMIE YOUNG made two clutch free throws in the final minutes.”

The host Highlanders barged in front 17-8 in the 1st quarter, but the upstart Cougars (5-19, 2-7 GHL) kept clawing back.

At the 2-minute mark Steele Canyon led by one point and the score changed back and forth down the stretch. But Helix scored the last five points of the game to go home winners.

“The 1st quarter hurt us,” Steele Canyon coach DEREK STEPHENS said. “I told the guys to let Helix shoot from the perimeter and not let them drive. In the 1st quarter we still let them drive.”

ANDREW KING paced Steele Canyon with 15 points.

“After the 1st quarter we played really good defense,” Stephens said. “I thought we outplayed them in the last three quarters. We were tired. We haven’t worked on many of the last minute scenarios of a close game. We’ve spent most of the time working on the fundamentals. I was so proud of my guys – they played hard.

“But Helix is playing as well as anybody.”

Helix: Jaylen Linson 20, Kenny Keys 10, Tommie Young 6, Titus Young 4, Darien Peterson 4, John Henry Singer 2, Sam Meredith 2. No other stats were reported.

Steele Canyon: Andrew King 15, Cody Wells 10, Michael Jordan 8, Ryan Gilbert 6, Justin Norwood 4. No other stats were reported.

MONTE VISTA 58, SANTANA 56 – Not only did the visiting Monarchs enhance their San Diego CIF Division III playoff chances, they spoiled Santana’s bid for winning the Grossmont Valley League championship.

The results of this game gave idle Mount Miguel (21-6, 6-1 GVL) its first league title since the 1986-87 season.

With the score knotted 56-all, Monte Vista’s TONY JACKSON, who registered a career-best of 31 points, nailed one of two free shots, giving the Monarchs a precarious advantage with 22 seconds unplayed.

Santana (17-9, 5-2 GVL) was in position to take a final shot with 9.7 seconds left that would have given the Sultans the lead.

“I didn’t want to go for a last shot at that point,” said Santana coach TIM BARRY. “So we ran an inbounds that we’ve run only one time in Las Vegas: Nobody has seen us run it. (Monte Vista coach JAMES CARROLL) told me he was holding his breath and thought we had him.”

It worked to perfection except senior JESSE VARGAS missed. A five-foot follow by JASON CORBISEZ failed to connect and subsequently KYLIE LUSTER was fouled with 1.3 seconds remaining.

Luster was physically unable to shoot his free throws so Tony Jackson took his place. Jackson made one of the two charity shots for the Monarchs (11-16, 4-4 GVL) and the Sultans kissed their dreams of a league championship good bye.

“I know Jesse feels bad,” Barry said. “But if that situation comes up again I want the ball in his hands. Nine out of 10 times he makes that shot.”

The Sultans’ TREY BASS threw a desperation shot from three-quarter the length of the court but it did not connect, and Monte Vista left Santee with a satisfying victory.

“I thought we were going to get (a share of) a league championship,” Barry sighed. “I’m still proud of my guys, but feel bad for our seniors.”

Monte Vista: Tony Jackson 31 (11 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), KJ Houston 8 (6 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Ruben Nwando 8 (2 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Kylie Luster 4 (9 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), James Jackson 3 (9 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk), Jason Guinto 2 (1 ast, 1 blk), Brandon Tillet 2 (1 stl), Brian Sterling (1 blk), Moses Walker (1 reb).

Santana: Jason Corbisez 17 (4 reb, 3 stl), Matt Lucius 12 (9 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl, 1 blk), Landon Lozoya 11 (1 reb, 7 ast, 4 stl), Jesse Vargas 9 (3 reb, 2 stl, 2 ast, 1 blk), Matt Gomez 3 (2 reb), Trey Bass 2 (4 reb, 6 ast, 3 blk, 3 stl), Sean Ross 2 (2 reb).

MADISON 58, CHRISTIAN 55 – Even though the outcome of Tuesday’s (Feb. 16) Central League encounter at Madison had no bearing on the circuit championship, the visiting Patriots had to gulp as they saw their San Diego CIF-best 21-game winning streak come to an end.

“(Madison) came out pumped up to play,” said Christian assistant coach BRAD SANDUSKY said. “We were flat and we did not rebound at all. They hit their 3s and we did not. Madison was the better team today and they deserved to win.”

With three minutes to go before intermission, Christian’s ICARO PARISOTTO, who hit 20 of his game-high 26 points in the 1st half, left the game after aggravating an existing knee injury. Parisotto started the 3rd quarter and hit a 3 in the first minute followed by 3 free throws in the first two minutes. He then left the game, not to return.

Parisotto knocked down five 3-pointers as did Madison ’s Corey Oswalt, who totaled 17 points in the game.

The Warhawks (13-12, 8-3 CTL) outscored the No. 6 ranked Patriots (23-3, 10-1) by a 27-18 count in the second half despite 17 points by ZSOLT LAKOSA.

Sandusky noted that Parisotto will sit out Friday’s (Feb. 19) game with Crawford. However, teammate LUIZ BIDART, who has missed most of the second half of the season with an injury to his foot (stress fracture), is expected to return.

Christian: Icaro Parisotto 26 (1 stl), Zsolt Lakosa 17 (5 reb, 4 ast), Shane Dillon 6 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 blk, 2 stl), Cody Poteet 3 (1 ast, 1 stl), Tyrone Sauls 3 (1 reb), Erick Allen (6 reb, 2 ast), Steven Pitts (4 reb, 1 ast), Jake Larsen (1 reb).

VALHALLA 50, WEST HILLS 41 – In its quest to finish above the .500 mark, host Valhalla balanced its overall mark at 13-13 by knocking off the visiting Wolf Pack in Tuesday’s (Feb. 16) Grossmont Hills League action.

STEVEN KLEIST paced the Norsemen with 14 points, while 6-foot-7 JOSH AUSTEL added a dozen points and blocked 6 shots.

“We went on a 7-0 run to start the game but were only up 9 points at the half,” noted Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. “I told the guys our defense kind of saved us. We didn’t shoot well from the floor or the free throw line in the 2nd half, but we played well on defense.”

Valhalla was hot at the free throw line in the 1st half, hitting 10 of 15. The Norsemen cooled off in the 2nd half, connecting on just 5 of 14. In the 3rd quarter they missed 7 free throws in one stretch.

“We opened it up to 16 points in the 3rd quarter but let them get back to within 5 points,” said Valhalla assistant coach DON ROLLINS.

KEVIN STRAUB led West Hills (5-20, 0-9 GHL) with 10 points.

Valhalla: Steven Kleist 14 (1 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl), Josh Austel 12 (3 reb, 6 blk, 4 stl), David Zetts 10 (3 reb, 1 blk), Jordan Cunningham 6 (5 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk, 4 stl), David Wilschetz 5 (8 reb, 2 blk, 1 stl), Kyle Kriebel 2 (5 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Matt Butcher 1 (2 reb, 1 ast), Kevin Mills (1 reb, 1 stl).

West Hills: Kevin Straub 10, Jonny Preston 8, Adrian Maraziti 7, Jaderion Blakemore 4, Jeron Satterfield 4, Alex Parsons 2, John Magoon 2, Ralph Bedoe 2, Russell Todd 2. No other stats were reported.

EL CAPITAN 65, EL CAJON VALLEY 61 – Coach MARTY ELLIS had to be excited when his winless El Cajon Valley Braves (0-25, 0-7 GVL) had visiting El Capitan on the ropes in Tuesday’s (Feb. 16) Grossmont Valley League contest.

“I thought my guys came out fired up tonight,” Ellis said. “We played well together the entire game. But we didn’t have good clock management late in the game.”

El Capitan (8-16, 3-4 GVL) did not begin the game at full strength as coach JASON CAVAZOS benched two starters for missing team functions.

Furthermore, ANDREW CABLE was hobbled by an ankle malady.

Fortunately for the Vaqueros their bench came to life as KEVIN KAPKA tallied 9 points, including 2 clutch free throws in the final two minutes.

KONNOR TERNUS, who has missed most of the season with an injury, netted 8 points and 12 rebounds for El Capitan: All of his points came from the free throw line where he missed only one time in 9 attempts.

Junior reserve BRIAN CELESTE scored a season best 8 points, while ED WAITE, who was promoted from the Vaqueros junior varsity, contributed 4 points, 3 rebounds and 1 block in the final quarter.

All in all 10 Vaqueros scored, with reliable MIKE OVERSON setting the pace with 20 points and 18 rebounds. Overson helped the Vaqueros avoid the upset with a key layup and 2 free throws in the final seconds.

After falling behind 16-4 in the 1st quarter, El Cajon Valley came charging back to take a one point lead in the 4th quarter with 2 minutes remaining.

DOMINIQUE MILLER keyed the comeback with 24 points. He also gobbled up 10 rebounds and was 16 of 18 from the free throw line.

KENDALL CONLEY also registered a double-double for El Cajon Valley with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

DeSHEA WADE pitched in 10 points and 7 rebounds for the Braves.

El Capitan: Mike Overson 20 (18 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl, 1 blk), Kevin Kapka 9 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Konnor Ternus 8 (12 reb, 1 ast), Brian Celeste 8 (1 reb, 2 ast), Armon Worrell 5 (3 ast, 1 stl, 2 blk), Andrew Cable 5 (3 reb), Ed Waite 4 (3 reb, 1 blk), Cody Kygar 2 (1 reb, 1 stl), Robert Craighead 2 (7 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Anthony Agunat 2 (4 reb, 1 ast), Tyson Kygar (1 reb, 1 stl).

El Cajon Valley: Dominique Miller 24 (10 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl), Kendall Conley 17 (12 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), DeShea Wade 10 (7 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Jacquelle Morris 5 (6 reb, 1 stl), Alin Alyadako 3, Dontae Baily 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-14-10) — Senior guard TROY LEAF poured home a game-high 29 points Saturday (Feb. 13), guiding Foothills Christian to a 78-54 non-league victory over Horizon at Granite Hills High.

The Knights (26-4) sputtered a bit in the first half, hitting only one of nine 3-point attempts. Yet, they managed a 30-23 lead at the intermission.

It was Senior Night for Foothills Christian. Leaf, KALOB HATCHER and JVONTE BROOKS were so recognized before the game. Hatcher contributed 13 assists and Brooks hauled down 15 rebounds. JAMAL AYTES crashed the boards for 12 rebounds.

“Sure it was emotional,” said Leaf, who nailed a pair of threes, grabbed 8 rebounds and dished 6 assists. “But we plan to have a few home games in the playoffs.”

Foothills Christian: Troy Leaf 29 (8 reb, 6 ast, 2 stl, 3 blk), Jvonte Brooks 18 (15 reb, 2 ast, 3 blk), Kalob Hatcher 13 (13 ast, 4 stl), Jamal Aytes 9 (12 reb, 1 ast, 3 blk), Dalton Mosser 9.

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (2-13-10) — Barring any upsets in the final week, the Santana Sultans will be co-champions of the Grossmont Valley League with Mount Miguel.

Should that happen the Grossmont Conference presently has a coin flip as the tie-breaker to determine which team will be the league champion. That of course is only to distinguish which team is the No. 1 representative to the playoffs.

However, Santana coach TIM BARRY wants no part of a coin flip, noting that the Mount Miguel has won two of three decisions over his Sultans, including the championship of the San Diego Division III Challenge in December.

In the third meeting between these Grossmont Valley League teams on Friday (Feb. 12) at Mount Miguel, the Matadors prevailed 72-63 thanks to claiming a 23-7 scoring advantage from the foul line.

That had to hurt Santana (17-8, 5-1 GVL), which rang up 10 three-pointers compared to just 3 treys for Mount Miguel (21-6, 6-1 GVL). It was also the first time Santana has lost when the Sultans have scored at least 60 points.

Mount Miguel’s AJ STANFORD nailed 9 of 18 shots from the field en route to a game high 25 points. He scored 20 of his points in the second half as the Matadors turned a 33-31 lead into a 15-point advantage.

“We’ve played them three times so they know your plays,” said Stanford. “So it comes down to execution. In the 2nd half we did a better job of attacking the basket instead of settling for jumpers.”

HARRY BRAZELTON added 22 points for Mount Miguel in spite of early 1st quarter foul problems that caused him to miss half of the opening period. He hit two 3s and was deadly from the free throw line where he converted 10 of 11 chances.

The unsung hero for the Matadors though was BRYANT MITCHELL. He scored only 2 points, but his major contribution came on the boards where he collected 17 caroms.

“I want to have the most rebounds every night,” said Mitchell. “At halftime I told my guys this was a big occasion and we had to come out here and do it. I think the turning point is we came out and executed and played great defense.”

LANDON LOZOYA led a balanced Santana attack with 15 points, the majority of which came on a trio of 3-pointers.

“Our whole game plan is to push people up and down the court,” said Barry. “We were successful doing that against Mount Miguel but once we got into foul trouble we had to back off on the pressure. That was probably the biggest part of the game for us.”

“People think Mount Miguel wants to run and gun, but they don’t want to do that against us. They actually wanted to be deliberate on offense.”

Mount Miguel definitely dictated the tempo of the game, thanks to point guard JJ NORTON, who contributed 14 points and missed only 2 shots of his combined 12 attempts from the floor and free throw line.

Both coaches believe that they will meet for a fourth time in the San Diego CIF Division III playoffs.

Mount Miguel: AJ Stanford 25 (6 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Harry Brazelton 22 (7 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), JJ Norton 14 (4 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Marcus Booker 7 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Bryant Mitchell 2 (17 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl), Yuel Hagos 2 (1 reb), James Brazelton (1 reb).

Santana: Landon Lozoya 15 (6 reb, 6 ast, 1 blk, 3 stl), Jesse Vargas 14 (4 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Jason Corbisez 14 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Matt Lucius 8 (10 reb, 1 stl), David Thrall 7 (2 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Sean Ross 5 (5 reb, 1 blk), Jason Dale (1 reb).

“This was a huge win for us, but we need to win out next week to finish above .500,” said Jackson, whose Norsemen are 12-13 (3-5 in the Grossmont Hills League). “I’ve never seen our kids play with that much emotion.”

The victory over Granite Hills did not come easily for the host Norsemen.

At the 2:19 mark in the final quarter, the fire alarm went off with Valhalla leading 67-62. It reportedly took 15 minutes to restore order.

“I guess it got so hot in the gym because the place was full that the alarm went off,” said Valhalla senior KYLE KRIEBEL. “I don’t know what made it stop, but I know they opened the doors and the place got a little bit cooler.”

The 6-foot-6 Kriebel made the play of the game, which will not show up in the box score.

With one second left and the Eagles (19-6, 6-2 GHL) trailing by two Granite Hills tried an inbound lob pass under its own basket, intended for JASON GAINES. Gaines got a hand on the ball but was unable to release a shot as Kriebel slapped it away.

“I figured that the pass was gonna come to the middle so I was ready,” said Kriebel, who finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists. “This was our Senior Night against our archrivals and we weren’t about to give it up. We’ve lost a lot of close games this year but this was one we really wanted.”

“When we play with this kind of energy, we’re a lot better basketball team,” Kriebel added. “It was our biggest win of the season so far. But we want to win out to take a 3-game winning streak into the playoffs.”

No question this was a narrow escape for Valhalla.

“I thought when the fire alarm went off it hurt our momentum,” Jackson said.

So did missing four free throws in the final minutes.

Leading 68-62, Valhalla had to cringe when Gaines made 2 free throws and ANDRE LEWIS added a third to make it a one-possession game.

Valhalla’s DAVID WILSCHETZ (13 points, 12 rebounds) sank 2 free throws to extend the Norsemen’s lead to 5.

Lewis countered with a 3-pointer, leaving the Eagles down by only 2. Lewis, who scored a game-high 35 points, had a chance to send the game into overtime but missed a 12-foot floater with 5 seconds left.

In the scramble for the rebound the ball went off a Valhalla player, giving the Eagles one last chance. But Granite Hills never got that last shot, thanks to Kriebel.

“It was a crazy night,” Kriebel said. “As a senior it’s the way you want to end your home season.”

“The last 36 seconds took about 15 minutes, there were so many fouls called,” said Valhalla assistant coach DON ROLLINS. “This is the first time we have had four players in double figures.”

Gaines added 24 points and 5 blocked shots for the Eagles.

“We have got to do a better job rebounding,” said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON. “ Valhalla scored 19 second-chance points on 16 offensive rebounds. We can’t allow that. I know that most of the teams are bigger than we are and want to slow the game down. It’s my job to figure out a way around that.”

The Grossmont Hills League puzzle remains unsolved. If the Eagles beat the Foothillers on Tuesday (Feb. 16) at Grossmont, the league race could end in a 3-way tie involving Helix, Granite Hills and Grossmont.

“We still have life in terms of the league race – a chance to create a tie,” Anderson said. “We have destiny in our hands but we need to win both games next week (which includes Friday’s (Feb. 19) season finale against Helix.

Valhalla: David Zetts 15 (3 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), David Wilschetz 13 (12 reb, 3 blk, 1 stl), Steven Kleist 13 (5 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Kyle Kriebel 12 (10 reb, 6 ast, 2 blk, 2 stl), Josh Austel 9 (4 reb, 4 blk), Jordan Cunningham 8 (5 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl),

Granite Hills: Andre Lewis 35 (2 reb, 10 ast, 5 stl), Jason Gaines 24 (5 reb, 2 ast, 5 blk, 4 stl), Garrett Larch-Miller 7 (6 reb, 2 stl), James Sadik 2 (1 reb, 2 stl), Dalton Otineru (3 reb, 2 stl), Kyle Snyder (2 reb, 1 ast), Scott Atkinson (2 reb).

Christian Patriots at Coronado Islanders (Slideshow by Tori Mills)

Patriots clinch Central © East County Sports.com CORONADO (2-13-10) — Sporting an impression faux mohawk, a haircut style popular in the hip-hop community which isn't as severe as the traditional mohawk, Christian High forward SHANE DILLON still demonstrated Samson-like displays of strength on defense despite the trimming of his hair. The sophomore recorded 15 rebounds and rejected 6 shots Friday (Feb. 12), as Christian allowed a mere 37 points – their second-best effort of the season – to slide past host Coronado, 53-37, in Central League action at Blumenthal Athletics Complex. The triumph, the Patriots' 21st straight, officially clinched the school's first league championship since claiming consecutive Harbor League crowns in 2000-01 and 2001-02. apl.de ap, Black Eyed Peas vs. Christian's Shane Dillon Dillon, sporting a blonde version of the 'hawk recently styled by musician apl.de ap of Black Eyed Peas, went back to the 'do he wore at this time a year ago. "Some of my friends at school asked me to go back to this look," said Dillon. "I try to have fun with it." Dillon made his presence known in the first half, when Christian allowed just seven baskets (on 30 shots) to mount a 30-18 lead. The Islanders failed to help themselves, too, missing 10 of their first 11 foul shots, including two on one-and-one situations. "We got after it for two solid hours during practice this week," noted Dillon. "Since school was out, we got into the gym early and coach (KELVIN) STARR worked us hard on defense – that's all we did." "I took it personally – coach had us prepared." Coronado found some room underneath the basket for three quick baskets to open the second half, closing to within 30-24, but the Patriots defense battled back, as the Islanders shot just 6-for-19 from the floor over the final 13 minutes. "We played our hardest game of the year – it was a good effort on defense," added Christian guard ZSOLT LAKOSA, who posted a game-high 19 points. "It's good to win the league, but we still want to go undefeated in league." Lakosa and ICARO PARISOTTO keyed an 11-2 run to open the second quarter and push the lead into double figures. Lakosa was fouled on a putback basket for a 3-point play, then added another free throw on the ensuing possession. Parisotto followed by accepting a CODY POTEET pass for a 3-point basket, then grabbed a rebound and dribbled the length of the court for a layin. And when Poteet threw a 50-foot pass to Lakosa for a breakaway slam dunk, Christian raced to a 10-point advantage, closing the half on a Poteet trey after JAKE LARSEN grabbed an offensive rebound and kicked the ball out for the wide-open shot. "Coronado gave us a different look on defense which gave us a little trouble," noted Dillon, who also recorded 3 steals. "I'm not sure if it was a triangle-and-two or a 1-3-1, but it was something we've never seen before." ERICK ALLEN helped solve the Islanders' defensive game plan, registering all of his 8 points and 7 rebounds in the second half. Christian also received good news when starting point guard LUIZ BIDART arrived without the aid of crutches or a walking boot. Bidart remains on target to return to action for the opening round of the SDCIF playoffs. For Coronado, guard Justin Hebner led with 9 points (but on 4-for-21 shooting), while center Billy Schmitt had 8 points and 9 rebounds. Christian scoring: Zsolt Lakosa 19 (9 reb, 2 blk), Icaro Parisotto 16 (4 reb, 3 ast), Erick Allen 8 (7 reb), Cody Poteet 6 (4 reb, 3 ast), Shane Dillon 4 (15 reb, 6 blk, 3 stl), Tyrone Sauls 0 (4 reb).

“It was a playoff-like atmosphere,” Helix coach JOHN SINGER said. “Playing at Grossmont is a tough environment with all those guys in sombreros making all that noise. The place was packed.”

The “Som Squad” is a group of Grossmont students who don sombreros and serapes and bunch together in the stands and provide nonstop support to the Foothillers.

Grossmont (16-9, 7-1 GHL) led most of the way, but faltered in the 4th period when the Highlanders (16-8, 6-2 GHL) made a dash to snap the Foothillers’ 8-game winning streak.

Trailing 32-30 after three periods, the Highlanders did the bulk of their 4th quarter damage from the free throw line. They nailed 8 of 12 charity shots with TOMMIE YOUNG going 4-for-4. Young, virtually invisible until then, also scored a basket giving him 6 points in the stretch run.

“We held (Grossmont) to two free throws over the last five minutes,” Singer said. “That’s a credit to (SAM) MEREDITH and (JOHN HENRY) SINGER. They did a good job of denying the ball to the post. In Sam’s case, we want him to be more aggressive and he was tonight.”

JAKE HAAR shot the only free throws for the Foothillers in the 4th quarter, hitting 2 for 4 in the final period.

“We’ve had 40 free throw attempts in the last two games,” Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO said. “We have been averaging 20 free throw attempts per game. Tonight we didn’t do a very good job getting to the line. At the end Helix had eight more free throw chances than we did. We’ve got to do a better job of going to the basket so we can draw more fouls.”

KENNY KEYS had a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Highlanders. Haar paced the Foothillers with 16 points, but only 6 boards.

The Foothillers knocked down five three-pointers – 2 by ROBBY NESOVIC – compared to none for Helix.

“We don’t shoot it well from the perimeter,” said coach Singer said. “We try to attack the basket on a dribble-drive and post people up.”

Helix did a little bit of both against Grossmont.

“We play very similar styles of basketball,” Foggiano said. “Both teams want to pound the ball inside. They did a little better job getting it inside tonight.”

Helix: Kenny Keys 16 (10 reb, 4 stl), Jaylen Linson 12 (6 reb, 1 ast), Tommie Young 8 (2 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), Darien Peterson 7 (4 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl), John Henry Singer 3 (3 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk), Titus Young 2 (5 reb, 2 ast), Sam Meredith (6 reb, 2 blk).

Grossmont: Jake Haar 16 (6 reb), Robby Nesovic 10 (4 reb, 1 stl), Desean Waters 5 (1 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Michael Wnek 5 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jason Lakis 3 (1 reb, 1 ast), Anthony Bowden 2 (2 reb).

EL CAPITAN 62, MONTE VISTA 38 – Three Vaqueros rolled off double-doubles and a total of four El Capitan starters finished in double scoring digits as the Lakesiders claimed the Grossmont Valley League victory on Friday (Feb. 12).

Six-foot-3, 220-pound ROBERT CRAIGHEAD led El Capitan (7-16, 2-4 GVL) with 12 points and 10 rebounds. MIKE OVERSON did not have his usual big scoring night yet came out of the fray with 11 points, 11 rebounds and 6 steals.

Steady ARMON WORRELL pitched in with 11 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 steals. ANDREW CABLE contributed 10 points.

Host El Capitan took command from the outset, marching to an 18-11 lead in the opening period. The Vaqueros continued their momentum as they registered more points than the Monarchs (10-16, 3-4 GVL) in the other three quarters.

Guard KJ HOUSTON popped in 13 points for the Monarchs, who did not receive their usual production from senior TONY JACKSON. A 6-foor-4 senior, Jackson was limited to 6 points as he fouled out in the 3rd quarter. JAMES JACKSON, who suffered an apparent broken nose in the 2nd quarter, contributed only 4 points and played only briefly for Monte Vista.

“The biggest problem right now is our youth,” said Monte Vista assistant coach KEITH HOUSTON. “That encompasses our focus and desire. Last game we ran the offense just about perfect. This game we didn’t move without the basketball. When we do what we’re expected to do it works almost every time.”

Things were out of synch for Monte Vista on this night, while El Capitan had things running smoothly.

Vaqueros coach JASON CAVAZOS could not be reached for comment.

El Capitan: Robert Craighead 12 (10 reb, 4 ast, 1 stl), Mike Overson 11 (11 reb, 3 ast, 6 stl), Armon Worrell 11 (11 reb, 4 ast, 6 stl), Andrew Cable 10 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Anthony Agunat 4 (6 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Zach Lawrence 3, Cody Kygar 2 (5 reb, 3 ast), Eric Nunez 2 (1 reb, 1 at, 1 stl), Kevin Kapka (5 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl),Tyson Kygar (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Brian Celeste (3 reb, 3 stl).

Monte Vista: KJ Houston 13 (4 reb, 4 stl), Tony Jackson 6 (3 reb, 1 at, 1 blk), James Jackson 4 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Ruben Nwando 4 (7 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Jason Guinto 4 (2 reb, 2 ast), Brian Sterling 4 (1 reb, 1 stl), Terrance Peterson 2 (1 reb), Dave Thomas 1 (2 reb), Moses Walker (1 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Kylie Luster (2 reb, 1 blk), Brandon Tillet (2 reb).

STEELE CANYON 51, WEST HILLS 39 – Junior post MICHAEL CEDEROTH canned a career-high 26 points and corralled 13 rebounds to send Steele Canyon to Friday’s (Feb. 12) Grossmont Hills League victory over visiting West Hills.

Cederoth scored all 12 of Steele Canyon’s points in the fourth quarter to protect the Cougars 5th win in 23 decisions. The victory helped the Cougars (2-6 GHL) avoid a last place finish.

“Our guards did a good job of setting him up,” Steele Canyon coach DEREK STEPHENS said. “We had a lot of assists.”

A 28-13 scoring edge in the middle two quarters gave Steele Canyon its second win over the Wolf Pack (5-19, 0-8 GHL). West Hills has suffered 9 consecutive losses.

“We tried to self destruct in the fourth quarter,” Stephens said, noting that the Wolf Pack nailed 10 of 12 free throws. “We let them back into it by fouling.”

Overall Stephens was pleased by his team’s performance.

“Defensively, we played alright,” he said. “But offensively, we turned the ball over too much. When it comes to poise we seem to have more when play a Grossmont, Helix or Granite Hills.”

Steele Canyon: Michael Cederoth 26 (13 reb), Andrew King 7, Wes Judish 5, Casey Balikian 5, Cody Wells 4, Chanceller James 2, Michael Jordan 2.

West Hills: Adrian Maraziti 10, Shedrick Collier 6, Jadarion Blakemore 6, Jonny Preston 5, Jeron Satterfield 4, Alex Parsons 3, Nick Findley 3, Ralph Bedoe 2.

Foothills Christian (25-4, 10-0) entertains Horizon (4-18) in a non-league clash Saturday (Feb. 13) at Granite Hills. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-10-10) — The Grossmont Foothillers have cleared three major hurdles in their quest for a second straight Grossmont League championship. That is, they’ve posted road victories over their major challengers for the circuit crown – Granite Hills, Helix and Valhalla.

The Hillers completed that on-the-road trifecta Tuesday (Feb. 9) at Valhalla, where they edged the Norsemen, 48-42.

“Winning like we have on the road was big, but now we have to defend our home court,” said Grossmont sophomore ROBBY NESOVIC. The Foothillers close the regular season with home games against Helix (Friday) and Valhalla (Tuesday, Feb. 16) before finishing up at West Hills (Feb. 19).

Although the Foothillers (16-8, 7-0 Grossmont Hills League) once led 43-30 early in the 4th quarter, they never could relax. The Norsemen (11-13, 2-5 GHL) just kept coming.

“For whatever reason we just couldn’t pull away,” Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO said. “But it was one of those games where we did what we had to do to win.”

Still it got a bit dicey at the end. A bucket by JOSH AUSTEL with 1:49 left lifted Valhalla to within 44-41.

But a pair of free throws by Nesovic and a putback by JAKE HAAR provided the Foothillers with the winning cushion.

“It came down to rebounding and free throws,” said Nesovic, who knocked out a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds.

Nesovic, a 6-foot-2 sophomore forward, was 5 for 7 from the free throw line with 3 rebounds in the final quarter.

“It was a physical battle on the boards,” he said.

Among the reasons why the Norsemen were able to stage a comeback was Grossmont drastically reduced its offense, running down the shot clock before attacking the basket. At the time, the Hillers were leading by double digits.

“We did a good job of moving the ball around before we started looking for a good shot,” Nesovic said.

Foggiano thought the Foothillers might have gotten too conservative.

“It’s almost like we started running the clock too soon because we got stagnant on offense,” Foggiano said. “That was my fault.”

None the less, the Foothillers have won eight straight.

KYLE KRIEBEL led Valhalla with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

“For a guy with a bum finger, Kriebel had a great game,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. Kriebel included a pair of 3-pointers and 3 steals in his totals.

Valhalla shot 29 percent from the floor (15 for 52) and only 50 percent from the free throw stripe (8 for 16).

“We had too many empty possessions,” Jackson said. “Turnovers kill us.”

That and the Norsemen missed too many shots in the paint.

“What’s frustrating is we are not a tiny team down there trying to shoot balls around the bucket,” Jackson said. “Our guys are big and they should know how to finish. We’re just not getting that.”

Clearly out of the league race, Valhalla is now playing for a position in the San Diego CIF Division II playoffs.

“We talk about turning the corner, but keep making it hard on ourselves when we miss so many easy baskets,” Jackson said.

Valhalla senior STEVEN KLEIST took his 32nd charge of the season, which ties him for 9th nationally.

Grossmont: Robby Nesovic 17 (13 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 3 stl), Jake Haar 11 (7 reb, 1 ast), Michael Wnek 9 (2 reb, 1 stl), Anthony Bowden 7 (8 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Jason Lakis 3 (1 ast), Desean Waters 1 (5 ast).

Valhalla: Kyle Kriebel 15 (11 reb, 2 ast, 3 stl), David Wilschetz 8 (8 reb, 1 stl), Steven Kleist 8 (1 reb, 1 ast, 2 blk, 1 stl), Josh Austel 7 (5 reb, 1 blk), Jordan Cunningham 4 (8 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Matt Butcher (1 ast, 1 stl), David Zetts (2 reb, 1 ast).

GRANITE HILLS 69, STEELE CANYON 54 – GARRETT LARCH-MILLER scored a career high 32 points to carry the Eagles past visiting Steele Canyon in Tuesday’s (Feb. 9) Grossmont Hills League action.

A 6-foot-2 junior, Larch-Miller nailed 10 of 14 shots from the field and 10 of 11 free throws, while garnering a dozen rebounds. He was 5-for-6 from the floor and 4-4 from the free throw line in the 2nd quarter as Granite Hills (19-5, 6-1 GHL) opened up a 37-21 halftime lead.

“We were sharp in the beginning, but seemed to lose interest in the 2nd quarter when we went up 37-17,” Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON said.

Steele Canyon (4-18, 1-6 GHL) eventually sliced the Granite Hills lead to 7 points in the final quarter.

Once again it was Larch-Miller to the rescue. He drilled in his only two 3-pointers and finished with 8 points in the 4th quarter. ANDRE LEWIS was 6-for-6 in free throws during the stretch run.

Lewis finished with 22 points, including a perfect 12-for-12 from the charity stripe. Despite coming up short of his season average Lewis spun a triple-double that included 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

Further proof of how good this Lewis is came in postgame statements by Steele Canyon coach DEREK STEPHENS.

“I think we did a good job of defending against him,” Stephens said. “The only flaw is we put him at the free throw by fouling him away from the ball.”

Steele Canyon started slow, registering only 5 points in the opening quarter.

“We must have gone 7 minutes without scoring,” he said. “We were just passing the ball without looking for a shot. It was like we were in cruise control and we are not good enough to play in that mode.”

Eventually, the Cougars got their offense in gear on the strength of CODY WELLS (19 points) and MICHAEL CEDEROTH (18 points).

“We are turning the ball over fewer times than we did at the beginning of the season,” Stephens said. “And we showed some life in the 2nd half when the game was basically out of reach.

“Bottom line, though, is these kids are not playing passionately for themselves. They need to do that to be successful.”

Granite Hills: Garrett Larch-Miller 32 (12 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Andre Lewis 22 (10 reb, 10 ast), Jason Gaines 7 (11 reb, 4 blk), Kyle Snyder 3 (1 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Dalton Otineru 2 (2 reb, 1 ast, 6 stl), Scott Atkinson (1 reb, 1 ast).

Steele Canyon: Cody Wells 19, Michael Cederoth 18, Wes Judish 12, Casey Balikian 2, Andrew King 2, Chanceller James 1,

MOUNT MIGUEL 85, EL CAPITAN 76 – In a free-wheeling affair the visiting Matadors won a Grossmont Valley League scoring derby at El Capitan.

Mount Miguel (20-6, 5-1 GVL) will see if it is of championship caliber on Friday (Feb. 12) when the Matadors host Santana (17-7, 5-0 GVL) in a duel for the league championship in Spring Valley.

“We were probably looking ahead to Friday,” admitted Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. “We played El Capitan last week and got them pretty good (76-46). I knew they were going to put up a way better fight this time, which they did. El Cap made it interesting in the 4th quarter but we made some shots when we needed to.”

Rowlett didn’t say it, but the Matadors like to play run-and-shoot.

Steady HARRY BRAZELTON paced the Matadors with 27 points. THOMAS BUTLER (16 points) and MARCUS BOOKER (11 points) reached season scoring highs.

Although he wasn’t directly involved in the scoring spree Mount Miguel guard JJ NORTON dished 10 assists.

For El Capitan, MICHAEL OVERSON produced another solid scoring game with 27 markers to go along with 13 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals.

ANDREW CABLE contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Vaqueros, who have lost 9 of their last 11.

Mount Miguel: Harry Brazelton 27 (8 reb, 2 ast), Thomas Butler 16 (5 reb), Marcus Booker 11 (4 reb, 4 ast), AJ Stanford 10 (4 reb, 3 stl), Jaymes Brazelton 10 (5 reb, 2 stl), Yuel Hagos 8 (2 stl), JJ Norton 2 (10 ast, 3 stl), Bryant Mitchell 1 (7 reb).

El Capitan: Mike Overson 27 (13 reb, 7 ast, 4 stl), Andrew Cable 14 (10 reb, 3 ast, 4 stl), Robert Craighead 12 (3 reb, 1 ast), Kevin Kapka 9 (1 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Armon Worrell 5 (10 reb, 3 ast, 4 stl), Tyson Kygar 4 (2 reb, 3 ast), Cody Kygar 3 (1 ast), Eric Nunez 2 (1 reb, 1 ast), Brian Celeste (1 reb, 2 ast), Anthony Agunat (1 reb).

MONTE VISTA 73, EL CAJON VALLEY 39 – The third time wasn’t very charming for the El Cajon Valley Braves, who succumbed to the host Monarchs in a Grossmont Valley League game Tuesday (Feb. 9). It marked the third time Monte Vista (10-15, 3-3 GVL) has beaten the Braves (0-24, 0-6 GVL).

Senior TONY JACKSON carried the torch for Monte Vista with 17 points and 14 rebounds. He collected five offensive boards and punched in 6 of 9 shots from the field.

“We played real well tonight,” Monte Vista coach JAMES CARROLL said. “This was our last home game and it was Senior Night so we started all our seniors. It was great to play in front of the home crowd – they were raucous.”

A 24-4 scoring spree by the Monarchs in the 4th period turned the game into a rout.

BRIAN STERLING added 11 points for the Monarchs.

“He gave us a big boost off the bench,” Carroll added.

BRANDON TILLET collected 6 rebounds (5 offensive) off the bench for Monte Vista.

“We handled the ball well and cut down on our turnovers (10 for the game),” Carroll said.

El Cajon Valley turned the ball over 27 times and missed 24 layups according to coach MARTY ELLIS.

“No question we helped beat ourselves,” Ellis said. “We had plenty of opportunities to get back in the game late in the 3rd quarter and early in the 4th, however we fouled and were called for a technical foul on the same play, so we went from being down by 9 to being down by 15 in less than a minute. That’s when the energy dropped.”

KENDALL CONLEY led El Cajon Valley with a double-double of 23 points, 12 rebounds, a block and two steals.

“I still continue to believe in the kids,” Ellis said. “They are picking it up little by little. It’s been a tough season with multiple changes. Most of these kids had never played on school team. I still remind the kids that to compete with the other teams you have to work hard at your game and play LOTS of basketball in the off season.”

Monte Vista: Tony Jackson 17 (14 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Brian Sterling 11 (1 reb, 2 ast), KJ Houston 9 (2 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Terrance Peterson 8 (2 reb, 1 ast), James Jackson 7 (6 reb, 2 ast, 4 blk, 1 stl), Jason Guinto 6 (2 reb, 1 stl), Ruben Nwando 6 (2 stl), Brandon Tillet 5 (6 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl), Kevin Starling 2 (2 reb, 1 ast), Dave Thomas 2 (1 ast), Moses Walker (3 reb, 1 at, 1 blk), Kylie Luster (4 reb).

El Cajon Valley: Kendall Conley 23 (12 reb, 1 blk, 2 stl), Dominique Miller 9 (7 reb, 2 blk), Jacquelle Morris 2 (4 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl), Sangar Hassan 2, Dontae Baily 2 (5 reb, 1 stl), DeShea Wade 1.

HELIX 85, WEST HILLS 48 – After a tight first quarter in which visiting Helix led only 12-11, the Highlanders broke loose to smoke the Wolf Pack in a Grossmont Hills League game Tuesday (Feb. 9) in Santee.

KENNY KEYS, a 6-foot-3 junior, led the Highlanders’ season high scoring spree with a career best 23 points. He was 10 for 16 from the floor and 3 for 4 from the charity stripe.

“Once the game opened up we got some easy buckets off transition,” Helix coach JOHN SINGER said. “I played all 15 of my kids and that’s always a good thing.”

ADRIAN MARAZITI paced West Hills (5-18, 0-7 GHL) with 20 points – two shy of his season high.

Helix: Kenny Keys 23 (7 reb, 1 blk), Jaylen Linson 16 (8 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk), Sam Meredith 10 (5 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 1 blk), Darien Peterson 9 (3 reb, 11 ast, 3 stl, 3 blk), Kevin Williams 5 (2 ast, 3 stl), Tommie Young 4 (2 reb, 1 ast, 3 stl), Titus Young 4 (5 reb, 3 ast), John Henry Singer 4 (1 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Cameron Lee 2 (1 stl), Brian Valadez 4 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Ray Contreras 2, Donarld Woodard (1 stl), Corey Barnes 1 (1 blk), Yohanes Solomon 1 (1 at, 1stl), Earl Schexnayder (1 reb, 1 st, 1 stl).

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 2, CV-CALVARY CHRISTIAN 0 (Forfeit) – The Knights increased their overall record to 24-4 and Citrus South mark to 9-0 without needing to step onto the court Tuesday (Feb. 9).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-7-10) — Foothills Christian proved once again that it is playoff ready.

When it comes to “big games” the Knights seem to take it up a notch. They did Saturday night (Feb. 6) as they edged defending Division V state champion Los Angeles Windward 87-86 at Granite Hills.

Senior guard KALOB HATCHER, a four-year starter for the Knights (23-4), was involved in probably the most memorable 18 seconds of his career.

A better than 74 percent free throw shooter on the season, Hatcher missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with the Knights clinging to an 85-84 lead. Windward got the rebound and worked the ball downcourt before calling timeout with 10 seconds remaining. In fact, the Wildcats (17-7) called back-to-back timeouts.

Foothills Christian was unable to protect that one point lead for the moment as Jordan Wilson, who came off the Windward bench to knock down four 3-pointers, looked as if he were going to be the hero of the night as he broke free and drove down the lane. He put the ball up but it never reached the basket as Foothills post JVONTE BROOKS slapped it away.

Brooks was called for goal-tending and Windward led 86-85 with 4.8 seconds remaining.

Turns out it was actually a good play by Brooks. Neither team had any timeouts left but the goal-tending call stopped the clock, allowing the referee to explain the play to the scoring table. That allowed Foothills time to get a designed play instead of a desperation shot.

“I don’t know what (Windward) was thinking,” said senior TROY LEAF. “They left Kalob wide open to catch that inbound pass. He’s the fastest guy probably in all of San Diego.”

Hatcher streaked toward the basket but was knocked to the floor with four-tenths of a second left. He calmly stepped to the line and put the Knights in the winner’s circle by dropping in both free throws.

“It's not all that often that you get chances for redemption like Kalob got tonight and he didn't let destiny pass him by,” said Knights assistant coach JAMES McHUGH.

“I think Windward got a little confused when Kalob flew up the court as quick as he did on that last play. A few of their guys kind of looked like they wanted to let him go, thinking perhaps there was not enough time to score, and then he got hacked. I'll give it to their kid (who committed a foul). He almost caused a jump ball, but he had lots of body and lots of wrist. It was the right call.”

Hatcher finished with 18 points and 11 assists.

“I was glad to get a second chance,” Hatcher admitted. “I made two mistakes there at the end. I knew I had to make up for it. Big players have to make big plays, so being one of the top players on the team I knew I had to make those free throws.”

No one was any “bigger” than the 6-foot-3 Leaf, who landed 15 of 25 field goal attempts and all 5 free throws to finish with a game high 36 points to go along with 11 assists.

“Troy came up huge for us,” said McHugh. “Anyone who ever doubts Troy's stats needs to come watch him play in a big game like this. Troy is at his best in the most crucial and important games.”

MaxPreps.com has Foothills Christian ranked No. 1 in Division V. Windward came into this game ranked No. 2. Earlier in the season the Knights defeated No. 3 ranked La Verne Lutheran 83-80.

“The best part about tonight is that we paved our way. We basically said that the state playoffs go through us. A few teams in the San Diego section are certainly going to have something to say about that, so we really control our own destiny. But if we can manage another CIF title, filling out that State playoff paperwork is going to be really nice and easy.”

“We get to say we beat No. 2 and we beat No. 3, and they were both ranked No. 2 when we played them so there's no way they can refuse us the No. 1 seed,” McHugh added.

Foothills Christian enjoyed leads of 21-10 and 48-36 but could not shake the Wildcats, who always seemed to come clawing back. However, Windward led only twice – 28-27 in the 2nd quarter and 86-85 in the final seconds.

“Our team has a lot of heart,” added Hatcher. “I think people tend to underestimate us. We have too much heart to just lay down and let people take over.”

Brooks had a solid 18 points and nabbed 12 rebounds. Perhaps even bigger he nailed 6 of 9 free throws and was 6 of 11 from the floor. He was jostling in a physical battle in the paint all night.

“Jvonte very quietly played a huge part in tonight's game,” said McHugh. “I don't think people saw how important Jvonte was for us tonight because there was a lot of flash and fast-paced action going on. But with freshman JAMAL AYTES in foul trouble (and eventually fouling out), Jvonte provided us with an outstanding effort on the glass against a much taller team.”

Hatcher hit the 259th trey of his career in the 4th quarter, which tied the section record set by Chula Vista’s Jerome Green (1990-93).

“Not bad considering he hit just 39 his freshman year,” said McHugh. “Since then he has hit 73, 74, and this season 73. This kid has had an overly impressive career that a lot of people have failed to take notice of.”

Hatcher stands just 34 assists shy of the state record for assists.

“Kalob’s career steals rank 2nd in the nation's history only to the state leader Jason Kidd (a 17-year NBA veteran currently with the Dallas Mavericks), and now he will break the section record for 3's before the season is done,” McHugh said. “That's pretty impressive.”

Leaf, who has 253 threes for his career, is the most prolific scorer in San Diego Section history and ranks 5th in the state all-time.

“We really got lucky to win this game tonight,” Leaf said of the Windward victory. “Now we have to work hard in practice and really prepare for a state playoff run.”

Foothills Christian has reached the semifinals of the Division V Southern California playoffs the past two seasons.

“We’d like to take it all the way this time,” Leaf said.”

Foothills Christian: Troy Leaf 36 (7 reb, 11 ast, 3 stl), Kalob Hatcher 18 (11 ast, 3 stl), Jvonte Brooks 18 (12 reb, 1 stl), Jamal Aytes 10 (6 reb, 1 stl), Dalton Mosser 3, Sal Romeri 2 (1 reb, 1 ast), Stevie McElroy (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-6-10) — For three periods, the visiting Point Loma Pointers did everything needed to secure an upset of the Central League leading Christian Patriots Friday (Feb. 5) at the Ryan Athletic Center.

Point Loma took advantage of some inside matchups and crashed the boards, while the usually sharp-shooting Patriots failed to connect on a 3-point attempt until midway through the 3rd period.

“That’s what happens when you come out flat,” said Christian head coach KELVIN STARR, whose Patriots pulled out a 65-61 victory. “And when you’re in first place and ranked sixth in the county, you get the other team’s best game – and Point Loma played great tonight.”

In fact, the Pointers carried a 44-42 lead into the final period. But when the Patriots found their shooting shoes by hitting 7-of-11 shots during a 5-minute stretch of the 4th quarter, Christian (21-2, 8-0 CTL) extended its winning streak to 19 games.

Following a string of five lead changes over a 3-minute span, the pinpoint passing of Christian guard ZSOLT LAKOSA proved to be the difference. Included was a sharp, one-touch pass to ICARO PARISOTTO for a layin and a 49-46 lead with 6:20 remaining for the team’s largest lead until the game’s final minutes.

Point Loma’s strong inside play kept the Pointers barking at the Patriots heels over the majority of the contest.

“They’re a good offensive rebounding team while we didn’t screen out until the end of the game,” said Lakosa, who collected three of his five assists down the stretch. “And we couldn’t hit any threes.”

The first Christian trey came with 4:49 left in the third when Parisotto connected for the first of his four 3-pointers. CODY POTEET’s 3-pointer gave Christian a 38-37 edge. Both sides then exchanged several baskets for the lead before the Patriots’ backcourt came alive.

Parisotto hit a pair of treys among his 12 points in the 4th period to finish with a game-high 26 points. SHANE DILLON also hit twice from beyond the arc to collect 6 of his 18 points.

“Point Loma hits the gaps – they are hard to screen out – so they got a lot of baskets from offensive rebounds,” noted Dillon, who blocked 5 shots. “Their big guys got a bunch of boards, but we were able to finally make some shots.”

On one possession, Pointers center Nate George was twice stuffed from behind on Dillon blocks. However, the persistent George recovered the ball each time to finally score. He finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds, including six boards over the final six minutes before fouling out in the waning seconds.

Pointers guard Davis Callejon added 15 points, but missed three foul shots in the final minutes to thwart another late comeback. Meanwhile, forward Christian Hayward added 10 points, as Point Loma frontline players outscored the Patriots in the paint.

Christian: Icaro Parisotto 26 (7 reb), Shane Dillon 18 (5 blk, 5 reb), Zsolt Lakosa 17 (5 ast), Cody Poteet 3 (6 reb), Tyrone Sauls 1, Steven Pitts (5 reb), Erick Allen (5 reb).

GROSSMONT 47, STEELE CANYON 36 – It was obvious that the visiting Grossmont Foothillers were suffering from an emotional letdown in Friday’s (Feb. 5) Grossmont Hills League outing at Steele Canyon.

“We were just worn out,” said Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO. “Playing three games the week following finals like we have is tough on everybody.”

Grossmont (15-8, 6-0 GHL) smothered Steele Canyon 26-9 in the middle two quarters.

“Our defense was solid like it usually is,” Foggiano said. “Our kids did what they had to do to win.”

Sophomore ROBBY NESOVIC cranked out a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds to pace Grossmont, which posted its 7th straight win.

JAKE HAAR added 11 points and 8 rebounds for the Foothillers who also received 14 rebounds from 6-foot-2 senior ANTHONY BOWDEN.

“Anthony can really leap,” Foggiano said. “He made a nice follow dunk on one play and I swear he had his elbows above the rim on another rebound. Still, like I told him, he needs to play under control. He missed probably three point-blank layups. But I don’t want to be over critical because he is a nice kid who is coming on and will help us in the stretch run.”

Nobody reached double scoring digits for Steele Canyon (4-17, 1-5 GHL). Yet Cougars coach DEREK STEPHENS wasn’t displeased by his team’s second round effort against the league leaders.

“We played a lot better than we did the first time (losing to the Hillers 61-29),” he said. “But Grossmont had 18 free throws (converting 10) and we had only one in the first half (yet trailed only 25-19).

The third quarter – which Grossmont dominated 12-2 – was the difference.

“We are a work in progress,” Stephens said. “We have everybody back next season.”

Grossmont: Jake Haar 11 (8 reb), Robby Nesovic 10 (11 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Anthony Bowden 9 (14 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Desean Waters 9 (4 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl), Michael Wnek 5 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jason Lakis 3 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Derrick Rustich (2 reb).

Steele Canyon: Wes Judish 8, Michael Jordan 7, Casey Balikian 6, Michael Cederoth 6, Cody Wells 5, Justin Norwood 2, Andrew King 2.

HELIX 51, VALHALLA 40 – The visiting Norsemen provided a major challenge to the Highlanders in Friday’s (Feb. 5) Grossmont Hills League contest.

With 3 minutes to play, Valhalla (11-12, 2-4 GHL) was down by 2.

“We were down 40-38 and turned the ball over in crucial times,” admitted Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

“Valhalla is a hard team to blow out,” Helix coach JOHN SINGER said. “We tried to speed up the tempo, and we did for a while in the beginning. But Valhalla plays a methodical, deliberate patient game that makes them a hard team for us to matchup against.

“But we were able to beat them at their own game – twice.”

Both teams had players nursing minor injuries on the court. Helix’s TOMMIE YOUNG, who tallied 8 points for the Highlanders, jammed a thumb in pregame warm-ups. It was a malady that Singer was not aware of until the end of the game.

Injured with a sprained finger, Valhalla’s 6-foot-6 senior KYLE KRIEBEL played sparingly and couldn’t use his left hand.

Senior guard DAVID ZETTS scored a career high 21 points – including a trio of triples – in an attempt to pick up the slack.

“David Zetts had a really good game. When we needed somebody to score he stepped up for us,” said Jackson.

Singer acknowledged that Zetts was a factor that he had not counted on.

“We got lost covering Zetts, so he killed us,” Singer said. “Fortunately we held everybody else down.”

Only four Valhalla players scored and outside of Zetts, nobody scored more than 8.

“Our post players – KENNY KEYS, JAYLEN LINSON and SAM MEREDITH – did a great defensive job on their inside people,” Singer said.

Helix: Jaylen Linson 12 (9 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Kenny Keys 11 (10 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Titus Young 8 (8 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Darien Peterson 6 (4 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl, 2 blk), Tommie Young 6 (2 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Sam Meredith 6 (4 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Yohanes Solomon 2 (2 reb), John Henry Singer (1 ast, 1 stl).

Valhalla: David Zetts 21 (1 reb, 1 stl), David Wilschetz 8 (8 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Steven Kleist 7 (4 reb, 3 ast, 5 stl), Jordan Cunningham 4 (5 reb, 3 ast, 5 blk, 1 stl), Kyle Kriebel (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Thomas McDonald (1 blk, 1 stl).

SANTANA 86, EL CAJON VALLEY 56 – TIM BARRY made it clear to his Santana Sultans before the start of Friday’s (Feb. 5) Grossmont Valley League game that there were only 128 minutes left in the regular season.

His Sultans must have been listening as they racehorsed to a 31-2 first quarter lead then continued on to equal their season high. Ironically both times the Sultans reached the 86-point marker at the expense of El Cajon Valley.

LANDON LOZOYA led the way for Santana (17-7, 6-0 GVL), equaling his season best with 21 points.

“We picked up where we left off against Christian (a 66-65 loss on Jan. 30),” said Barry.

MATT LUCIUS rolled a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds while recording 7 steals.

DOMINIQUE MILLER (22 points, 10 rebounds) and KENDALL CONLEY (15 points, 15 rebounds) countered with double-doubles for El Cajon Valley (0-23, 0-5 GVL).

“We could not run our offense – we lacked intensity and competitive desire,” said Braves coach MARTY ELLIS. “You could tell right out the gate. We’re our own worst enemy right now. I thought there were some positives things that came out in the 4th quarter.

“The M.C. (Miller and Conley) Crew continues to fight until the last horn,” Ellis continued. “I still continue to believe that my guys will get it sooner or later. It may come next week or at the end. I still believe in them.... I love coaching these players because they just don’t know how to give up.”

Santana: Landon Lozoya 21 (3 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl), Jesse Vargas 17 (2 reb, 4 ast, 6 stl), Matt Lucius 13 (13 reb, 1 ast, 7 stl), Jason Corbisez 12 (7 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), David Thrall 6 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jason Dale 6 (1 reb, 2 stl), Trey Bass 4 (8 reb, 4 ast), Mike Rosolino 4, Sean Ross 2 (1 reb), Kyle Dunlap 1 (3 reb, 1 stl).

El Cajon Valley: Dominique Miller 22 (10 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Kendall Conley 15 (15 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl), DeShea Wade 5 (6 reb, 2 stl), Jeremy Brown 4 (3 reb, 1 stl), Jacquelle Morris 4 (4 reb, 2 stl).

GRANITE HILLS 76, WEST HILLS 60 – Four Eagles reached double scoring digits as Granite Hills rebounded from a tough loss to Grossmont to muzzle the Wolf Pack in Friday’s (Feb. 5) Grossmont Hills League action.

The Eagles (18-5, 5-1 GHL) jumped out to a 14-1 lead and never looked back. It was the 14th win in 15 starts for Granite Hills. It was the 7th straight loss for West Hills (5-17, 0-6 GHL).

GARRETT LARCH-MILLER carried the torch for the Eagles with 19 points and 14 rebounds. He nailed 7 of 12 shots from the floor and all 4 free throw attempts.

KYLE SNYDER enjoyed one of his best games of the season with 18 points, including 3 treys.

JASON GAINES was solid in the middle as usual with 14 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks.

Larch-Miller scored 10 points in the pivotal 3rd quarter when the Eagles outscored the Wolf Pack 22-9.

Granite Hills kingpin ANDRE LEWIS scored 10 points and pitched in with 9 assists but sat out much of the game with a sore knee.

ADRIAN MARAZITI paced West Hills with 13 points.

“Our goal this game was to concentrate on rebounding and defense,” Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON said. “We did a good job on the boards but our defense still needs a lot of work.”

Granite Hills: Garrett Larch-Miller 19 (14 reb, 2 ast, 2 blk, 1 stl), Kyle Snyder 18 (1 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Jason Gaines 14 (12 reb, 5 ast, 5 blk, 2 stl), Andre Lewis 10 (6 reb, 9 ast), Kyle Pierson 6 (6 reb), Dalton Otineru 4 (5 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Lewis Baker 3, Scott Atkinson 2 (4 reb, 1 blk), Zach Hanken (2 reb).

West Hills: Adrian Maraziti 13, Jonny Preston 12, Jeron Satterfield 10, Shedrick Collier 8, Alex Parsons 5, Russell Todd 4, Kevin Straub 3, John Magoon 2, Ralph Bedoe 2, Nick Findley 1.

MOUNT MIGUEL 76, MONTE VISTA 65 – Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT has noticed the steady improvement of AJ STANFORD. When the senior point guard began the basketball season he wasn’t very productive.

“He was still beat up from football,” Rowlett said of the Matadors’ quarterback. “He was sore and couldn’t do a lot of things that we needed him to do. But he’s been with me for four years and I didn’t push him. I knew he’d be there when we had to have him.”

Stanford was at his best against Spring Valley rival Monte Vista in Friday’s (Feb. 5) Grossmont Valley League action. He scored a career best 28 points, sinking 10 of 19 shots from the field (2 of them treys) and 6 free throws. The 6-foot Stanford also gathered 10 rebounds to complete a double-double.

“I can’t ask any more from AJ than he’s giving us right now,” Rowlett said. “He’s the leader I know he can be.”

HARRY BRAZELTON added 22 points for the Matadors, including hitting 9 of 11 free throws.

Mount Miguel’s BRYANT MITCHELL was once again the king of the boards, collecting 11 caroms.

Rowlett also praised the work of THOMAS BUTLER, who contributed 8 points and 6 rebounds.

TONY JACKSON was Monte Vista’s pillar with 24 points and 9 rebounds. The 6-foot-4 senior connected on 9 of 14 shots from the field, including 3 treys. He also netted 6 of 9 free throws.

RUBEN NWANDO pitched in with 15 points and 8 rebounds.

KYLIE LUSTER led the Monarchs on the boards with 10.

“We had 19 offensive rebounds,” noted Monte Vista assistant coach KEITH HOUSTON. “But they hurt us with their press at the tail end of the 3rd quarter and into the 4th. We turned the ball over and they got a lot of fast breaks, transition points.”

Mount Miguel: AJ Stanford 28 (10 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Harry Brazelton 22 (4 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl), Thomas Butler 8 (6 reb), JJ Norton 7 (4 ast, 4 stl), Bryant Mitchell 4 (11 reb, 1 stl), Marcus Booker 4 (4 reb), Yuel Hagos 3 (2 stl), Jaymes Brazelton (2 ast, 2 stl).

Monte Vista: Tony Jackson 24 (9 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Ruben Nwando 15 (8 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Kevin Starling 9 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), James Jackson 7 (3 reb, 1 ast, 2 blk), Kylie Luster 6 (10 reb), KJ Houston 2 (2 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Jason Guinto 2 (1 reb, 3 ast), Moses Walker (1 ast).

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 94, MIDWAY BAPTIST 34 – TROY LEAF added 25 points to his San Diego Section record career scoring total (3,096) Friday (Feb. 5) as the Knights mauled Midway Baptist in a Citrus South League game.

Foothills Christian scored as many points in the 1st quarter as Midway Baptist did in the game, taking a 34-2 lead.

“The boys came out ready tonight,” said Knights assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. “We played with a lot of intensity and power early on tonight. The boys were ready to go, that's for sure. I haven't seen many games over the years where our guys came out as motivated as they looked tonight.”

KALOB HATCHER added 21 points, 16 assists and 6 steals, while JVONTE BROOKS contributed 16 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists.

Not to be overlooked was freshman JAMAL AYTES, who coined a double-double of 13 points, 12 rebounds and blocked 3 shots.

Considering the final two games in the Citrus South League schedule will be forfeited to allow the Knights a 10-0 league finish, Foothills Christian will now focus its attention on three non-league games to wrap us its regular season.

None of those games will be any bigger than Saturday’s (Feb. 6) duel against Division V defending state champion, Los Angeles Windward at Granite Hills High. Tipoff is 6 o’clock.

“The guys are ready to go against Windward, said McHugh. “I can't think of the last time a San Diego section team had an opportunity like we will on Saturday. We're ranked No. 1 in the state in Division V, we've beaten the No. 3 team (La Verne Lutheran) and now we get to play the No. 2 team head to head.”

“This is the biggest game these kids will have faced in their career. It's unusual to truly get to control your destiny when it comes to state playoffs. If we can take care of Windward, and take care of CIF then we've done everything we can to assure ourselves the No. 1 spot.”

“Saturday night will be our first big game since Hoover,” McHugh continued. “Hopefully we come out energetic like we did Friday. Since our last two league games will be declared forfeits, we've finally come to the end of games like this one.

“We may run into one in the playoffs, but for the most part competition will grow from here on out. Troy and Kalob can leave knowing they never lost a league game in their high school career, and if we can take care of business in the playoffs, they may be able to say that they never lost to a Division opponent in the San Diego Section.”

The Knights are seeking their 4th straight Division V crown and hope to advance beyond the Southern Cal Semifinals, which they have never done in the past.

Foothills Christian: Troy Leaf 25 (8 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Kalob Hatcher 21 (3 reb, 16 ast, 1 blk, 6 stl), Jvonte Brooks 16 (8 reb, 6 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl), Jamal Aytes 13 (12 reb, 1 ast, 3 blk, 2 stl), Stevie McElroy 10 (2 reb, 3 ast, 4 stl), Sal Romeri 4 (2 reb), Dalton Mosser 3 (6 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Henry Luschei 2 (3 reb, 1 blk),

Daniel LaBahn (1 reb, 1 ast), Ian Mathisen (2 reb),Spencer George (1 reb).

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (2-4-10) — It was 50-50 after three quarters in Wednesday’s (Feb. 3) Grossmont Hills League skirmish at Granite Hills involving the Grossmont Foothillers.

Eagles’ coach RANDY ANDERSON could accept that. What raised his ire was the differential in fouls – Granite Hills 28, Grossmont 12.

While this was clearly a physical fracas, there were bodies from both sides kissing the floor. The final count in personal fouls angered Anderson,

The Foothillers (14-8, 5-0 GHL) converted 25 of 34 free throws, including claiming a 12-0 advantage in the fourth quarter that helped them defeat Granite Hills, 70-62.

The Eagles (17-5, 4-1 GHL), who saw their 13-game winning streak end, were a paltry 3 of 9 from the foul line. That gave Grossmont a 22-point advantage in free throws.

“The referees certainly didn’t help us,” Anderson said. “We had five guys with four fouls and three of them fouled out. But we can’t blame the officials for what happened, considering we gave Grossmont 22 offensive rebounds.”

ANTHONY BOWDEN collected 16 caroms as Grossmont crushed Granite Hills 52-33 in rebounds overall. Seven of JAKE HAAR’s 9 rebounds were offensive boards that led to Grossmont points, as he finished with 19 markers

The star of Grossmont’s show was sophomore ROBBY NESOVIC, who nailed down a career best 28 points, including 8 in the pivotal 4th quarter.

“I think the difference in this game was we were working as hard as we did on the boards,” Nesovic said.

Grossmont earned a 52-33 rebounding advantage. That helped wipe out Granite Hills’ 10-for-28 three-point shooting.

Nesovic admitted hearing Granite Hills’ cries to the referees.

“You can’t do anything about the referees,” he said. “You just have to keep on playing,”

After Granite Hills forged in front 54-50 on back-to-back layups by KYLE SNYDER and ANDRE LEWIS in the opening minute of the 4th quarter, the Foothillers fought back via the free throw line. A pair of Nesovic free throws gave Grossmont a 60-59 edge with less than three minutes to play.

At that point, it appeared that Grossmont was going to run away with it as Haar and DESEAN WATERS added a free throw apiece to expand the advantage to 62-59. Anthony Bowden, who missed a bunch of shots from the perimeter, added a layup to give the Hillers a 64-59 advantage.

JASON GAINES brought the Eagles back into contention with a 3-pointer from the corner with 26.5 seconds remaining.

Waters, who was 0-for-18 from the floor, sank four free throws and Nesovic added a pair of charity shots in the final 25 seconds to keep victory and first place in Grossmont’s hands.

“I blocked out thinking about my field goal shooting,” Waters said. “I knew the game was on the line when I went to the free throw line. Making those free throws is all I was thinking about.”

Lewis rang up a game high 33 points for Granite Hills. He included 7 three-point shots in his totals.

“This was nice to win here,” said Foothillers coach FRANK FOGGIANO, who’s Foothillers finished the first round of league play undefeated. “It was a physical game and I thought our kids held up pretty well. I thought my kids played really hard in intense situations.”

Foggiano said Grossmont played stronger on the offensive boards in the 2nd half.

And so they did – garnering 13 second chances. The bottom line was Grossmont did not fold under the pressure of a game played in a playoff-type atmosphere.

Grossmont: Robby Nesovic 28 (6 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Jake Haar 19 (9 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Anthony Bowden 13 (16 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Desean Waters 5 (10 reb, 5 ast, 5 stl), Jason Lakis 3 (4 reb, 3 ast), Clayton Rainey 2 (2 reb), Michael Wnek (2 reb).

Granite Hills: Andre Lewis 33 (6 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl), Garrett Larch-Miller 12 (9 reb, 2 ast, stl), Jason Gaines 9 (9 reb, 6 ast, 4 blk, 2 stl), Kyle Snyder 6 (3 reb, 1 ast), Scott Atkinson (3 reb, 1 blk).

EL CAPITAN 72, EL CAJON VALLEY 52 – MIKE OVERSON scored 20 points and ARMON WORRELL and ANDREW CABLE added 13 apiece as the visiting Vaqueros snapped a 7-game losing streak in a Grossmont Valley League game against winless El Cajon Valley on Wednesday (Feb. 3).

Instead of discounting their first victory since December 30 against an inferior foe, El Capitan coach JASON CAVAZOS said he was thankful just to finish on the winning side.

“Take nothing away from El Cajon Valley because they played us tough,” he said. “But this was a must-win for us, in fact every game from now on is a must-win if we are to have any chance of making the playoffs.”

Cavazos noted that the Vaqueros have not won a close encounter all season.

“I was just hoping that this game would not go down to the wire,” he said.

It did not. El Capitan led 39-19 at halftime and maintained control thereafter.

Cable completed his first double-double of the season with 10 rebounds.

“This was a step in the right direction,” Cavazos said. “We have to learn how to put people away and this time we finally did it.”

El Cajon Valley coach MARTY ELLIS watched his team lose for the 22nd straight time. That had to hurt, as his two standouts, DOMINIQUE MILLER and KENDALL CONLEY, continue to rank with the best players in the league.

Miller knocked down 22 points, including a pair of treys for the Braves, while Conley tallied 17 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and matched Miller with 3 steals. The two combined for 3 blocks.

“We came out with little energy and were not able to rebound successfully,” said Ellis. “I don’t think my guys were ready to play tonight. However, being down by a lot we still made a nice run in the 4th quarter. No matter what, I still continue to believe in my guys and we will get one sooner or later.”

“I can definitely say that this El Cap team resembles how their coach played back in the day. They played hard, smart and played together. If you take care of those then you should not lose.”

And they didn’t.

El Capitan: Mike Overson 20 (6 reb, 3 stl), Armon Worrell 13 (3 reb, 4 ast, 5 stl), Andrew Cable 13 (10 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl), Tyson Kygar 9 (3 reb, 3 stl), Robert Craighead 6 (7 reb, 1 ast), Anthony Agunat 5 (4 reb), Eric Nunez 4 (5 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl), Zach Lawrence 2, Kevin Kapka (4 reb, 2 stl), Cody Kygar (2 reb, 1 stl).

El Cajon Valley: Dominique Miller 22 (9 reb, 2 blk, 3 stl), Kendall Conley 17 (8 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 3 stl), Sangar Hassan 6 (2 reb, 2 stl), Dontae Baily 4, DeShea Wade 3, Jacquelle Morris (3 reb).

SANTANA 63, MONTE VISTA 39 – Visiting Santana dominated this Grossmont Valley League contest Wednesday (Feb. 3) despite stubbing its collective toe in the 2nd quarter.

The Sultans were clinging to a 29-15 halftime lead before breaking the game open in the 2nd half.

“We kinda let them linger around in the 1st quarter, but we played a very good 2nd half,” said Santana coach TIM BARRY.

Santana (16-7, 4-0 GVL) logged 20 steals as a team. Barry believed they forced 25-30 turnovers in the game, many of them coming in the 3rd quarter.

“In the 3rd quarter we were just flat from start to finish,” said Monte Vista assistant coach KEITH HOUSTON. “The game was relatively close and we had some opportunities if the kids would have picked up some defensive intensity and executed on offense. At any given time we are starting four sophomores.”

In the 3rd period the Sultans broke the game open with a 16-5 run.

“We had 11 guys suited out and 10 scored. It was really balanced tonight,” Barry noted. “It’s the first game that we’ve had in awhile that we’ve gotten to relax in the middle part of the 2nd half.”

TONY JACKSON was the main menace for Monte Vista (9-14, 2-2 GVL) with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

“Monte Vista really crashed the boards hard,” Barry said. “They did a great job on their offensive rebounds. We’re going to have to make a better effort to keep some of these bigger, stronger teams off the glass. A lot of their shots were on 2nd and 3rd chance opportunities.”

LANDON LOZOYA paced Santana with 13 points, while MATT LUCIUS contributed 10 markers.

Santana: Landon Lozoya 13 (7 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl), Matt Lucius 10 (8 reb, 1 ast, 6 stl), Jesse Vargas 9 (1 reb, 3 ast, 5 stl), Sean Ross 8 (5 reb), Jason Corbisez 7 (2 reb, 1 ast), Mike Rosolino 4 (1 ast), David Thrall 3 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Trey Bass 6 (6 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Jason Dale 3 (3 reb), Kyle Dunlap (1 stl).

Monte Vista: Tony Jackson 15 (12 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Brian Sterling 5 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Kevin Starling 4 (2 reb, 2 stl), Kylie Luster 3 (9 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), James Jackson 3 (3 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Moses Walker 2 (1 stl), Tyshaun Forbes 2 (1 ast), KJ Houston 1 (5 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Jason Guinto (4 reb, 3 stl), Ruben Nwando (3 reb, 1 stl), Terrance Peterson (2 reb), Dave Thomas (1 reb).

VALHALLA 59, WEST HILLS 39 – KYLE KRIEBEL scored 18 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and blocked 3 shots to lead the Norsemen past West Hills in Wednesday’s (Feb. 3) Grossmont Hills League contest in Santee.

Kriebel was 7 for 12 from the floor.

“I know if I get off to a good shooting start I’m gonna have a great game,” Kriebel said.

The victory was the second for the Norsemen as the first round of GHL play concluded.

“We know that we have to sweep the second round to stand any chance of winning the league,” Kriebel said. “That’s our goal.”

Valhalla (11-11) had to overcome a 13-4 first quarter deficit to avoid an upset bid by the Wolf Pack (5-16, 0-5 GHL).

West Hills, which lives by the 3-point basket, scored 15 of its 19 first half points from 3-point range. ADRIAN MARAZITI made 3 of the triples – all in the 1st quarter for the Pack.

DAVID ZETTS added 13 points for Valhalla, half of them coming on a pair of treys.

“David Zetts played strong defense and did a good job creating his shot tonight,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

Kriebel, known as much for his defense as for his offense, scored 14 points in the opening half as the Norsemen led 29-19 by intermission.

“I thought we played pretty well after falling behind,” said Jackson. “Kriebel did a great job finding open guys for buckets.”

STEVEN KLEIST took two more charges, giving him 31 for the year.

“JORDAN (CUNNINGHAM) and Steven (Kleist) played great defense and Steve had two more charges to get his total up.”

“The kids did a good job not getting flustered when we fell behind and did a good job to fight back.”

Valhalla took over in the 2nd quarter behind some full court pressure and outscored the Pack 17-6.

The 3rd quarter was more of the same as the Valhalla limited the Pack to 7 points to extend its advantage to 39-26.

Valhalla cleared its bench and won going away.

Valhalla: Kyle Kriebel 18 (8 reb, 5 ast, 3 blk, 2 stl), David Zetts 13 (5 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Luke Baxter 9 (10 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Steven Kleist 7 (3 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl), Matt Butcher 5 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl), Jordan Cunningham 5 (2 reb, 3 ast, 3 blk, 4 stl), Andrew Lewellen 2 (1 stl).

West Hills: Adrian Maraziti 13, Jeron Satterfield 6, Kebin Straub 6, Alex Parsons 6, Russell Todd 5, Shedrick Collier 3.

HELIX 69, STEELE CANYON 38 – The Highlanders scored a season high as they dispatched Steele Canyon in a Grossmont Hills League encounter Wednesday (Feb. 3) night.

JAYLEN LINSON and KENNY KEYS combined for 13 and 12 points respectively as the Highlanders (13-8, 3-2 GHL) slugged Steele Canyon in Rancho San Diego.

“We were active on defense and got a lot of breakouts,” said Helix coach JOHN SINGER.

The game was over by halftime as the Highlanders led 40-16.

“We looked really intimidated,” said Cougars coach DEREK STEPHENS. “When someone comes out and plays physical defense we don’t know how to respond.”

“Helix is barely older than we are. I told the guys if we wanted to compete with them we need to do something different. I want them to take things more personal – they play hard but they don’t play like it matters to them. They play like it matters to me.”

Helix: Kenny Keys 12 (3 reb, 2 stl, 2 blk), Jaylen Linson 13 (1 reb, 2 stl), Tommie Young 9 (5 reb, 3 ast, 3 ast), Titus Young 8 (1 reb, 2 ast, 4 stl), Darien Peterson 6 (4 reb, 5 ast, 6 stl), Sam Meredith 5 (5 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl, 1 blk), Brian Valadez 4 (1 stl, 1 blk), Cameron Lee 3, Kevin Williams 2 (3 stl), John Henry Singer 2 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Yohanes Solomon 2 (3 reb, 1 ast), Ray Contreras 2 (1 reb), Corey Barnes 1 (1 reb), Earl Schexnayder (1 ast, 1 stl), Donald Woodard (1 reb, 1 blk).

Steele Canyon: Cody Wells 15, Michael Cederoth 10, Andrew King 3, Wes Judish 5, Aundre Belcher 2, Casey Balikian 1, Justin Norwood 1, Michael Jordan 1.

© East County Sports.com
CHULA VISTA (2-3-10) — For those who believe Foothills Christian will fall from the graces of the county rankings next season, look what the underclassmen – a pair of sophomore guards – did to Lutheran in a rare opportunity to shine under the spotlight.

Without East County scoring leader TROY LEAF or East County rebounding leader JVONTÉ BROOKS ever taking the court in Tuesday’s (Feb. 2) Citrus South League meeting, the 2nd-ranked Knights (21-4, 7-0 CSL) produced a 98-16 victory over host Lutheran at Parkway Gymnasium.

DALTON MOSSER paced all scorers with a personal-record 24 points, while STEVIE McELROY poured home a career-high 22 points.

Throw in the 23 points, 12 assists and 8 steals by senior guard KALOB HATCHER, and the Knights remained undefeated in league play since the school changed its name from Venture Christian High prior to the start of the 2006-07 season.

The only rewarding aspect to such a game was the classy decision made prior to tip-off by the star players from the Purple and Platinum to remain off the court.

"There is simply no motivation to play our league games," said assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. "Coach (BRAD) LEAF gave the guys the option to take the day off. And even with an outside shot at the state scoring record, Troy still chose not to play."

"There's simply no reward in scoring against these teams."

McElroy and Mosser received a healthy dose of layins off steals throughout the contest. "Mac" tallied 14 points in the first period alone, while Hatcher fell just two steals short of a triple-double, hitting 9-of-13 shots from the field (5-for-7 from beyond the arc).

The 82-point margin of victory topped the 103-24 win over Lutheran on Jan. 11. The school record for margin was 86 points in a 101-15 win over Chula Vista-Calvary Christian on Jan. 10, 2007, which is believed to be the East County record.

The San Diego Section record occurred in December 2005, when Crawford downed a visiting team from Canada by 109 points, 138-29.

Foothills Christian: Dalton Mosser 24 (3 ast, 2 stl), Kalob Hatcher 23 (12 ast, 8 stl, 1 blk), Stevie McElroy 22 (7 ast, 7 stl), Jamal Aytes 15 (6 reb, 2 blk, 5 stl, 2 ast), Sal Romeri 7 (8 reb, 2 stl, 1 ast), Spencer George 5 (1 stl), Henry Luschei 2 (1 reb, 2 stl, 2 ast), Ian Mathisen (1 reb, 1 stl, 1 ast).

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (2-2-10) — Steele Canyon narrowly missed springing the East County upset of the season in Monday’s (Feb. 1) Grossmont Hills League action.

The visiting Eagles (17-4, 4-0 GHL) were probably looking ahead to Wednesday’s (Feb. 1) showdown of league leaders against Grossmont (13-8, 4-0 GHL) when they realized they were tied 30-30 at halftime of the Steele Canyon game.

Oh boy, would this have foiled the Eagles’ drive to the championship if the Cougars (4-15, 1-3) had knocked them out of the penthouse nest.

Perhaps the key statistic in this unpredicted scramble came from the 3-point line where Steele Canyon claimed a 6-3 edge in bull’s-eyes.

Granite Hills, East County’s top 3-point shooting unit, was 3 for 16 on three-point shots.

“It was too close for comfort, that’s for sure,” admitted Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON. “We didn’t hit the perimeter shots the way we usually do so it didn’t open up the game. We weren’t able to get a real good tempo going.”

Steady senior point guard ANDRE LEWIS failed to land any 3-pointers, but still finished with a game-high 24 points to lead the Eagles. He was 8-for-17 from the field overall and missed only two of 10 free throws.

GARRETT LARCH-MILLER led Granite Hills’ supporting cast with 16 points and 10 rebounds. KYLE SNYDER dropped in four 3-pointers for a dozen points, while sophomore JASON GAINES collected 10 rebounds and blocked a career high 11 shots.

MICHAEL CEDEROTH (17 points) and ANDREW KING (15 points) carried the torch for Steele Canyon.

“This was the best game we have played all season,” said Cougars coach DEREK STEPHENS. “Our kids played hard and played well. It was the first game in a long time that it was fun for me to watch and the kids were having fun too. We made a lot of good decisions. We had a talk before the game about how we can’t just say we’re young anymore. We can’t use that as an excuse anymore.”

“MICHAEL CEDEROTH and ANDREW KING played well. We finally got some leadership from our captains,” Stephens added.

Stephens was pleased that the Cougars held Lewis below his season scoring average.

“MICHAEL JORDAN and CHANCELLER JAMES took turns guarding Lewis,” Stephens said. “He got a lot of points in transition in the first half, but they did a really good job defensively. They made him earn his points.”

There was one play that was the epitome of Steele Canyon ’s season. It involved a 3-point basket that was somehow lost in the shuffle.

“It was a well officiated game, but there was one play where nobody saw the ball go into the hoop,” said Stephens. “It was a weird play, a bad pass really. CASEY BALIKIAN sent an over-the-top entry into the post from behind the 3-point line, intended for Cederoth. But instead, the ball went into the hoop and bounced twice, out of bounds. No basket was awarded because nobody saw the ball go through the hoop; the other team got the ball.”

“I have it on video that the ball went into the hoop. Those 3 points would have helped us.”

Granite Hills: Andre Lewis 24 (5 reb, 6 ast, 6 stl), Garrett Larch-Miller 16 (10 reb, 4 ast, 2 blk), Kyle Snyder 12, Jason Gaines 5 (10 reb, 11 blk), Dalton Otineru 2, Scott Atkinson (6 reb).

Steele Canyon: Michael Cederoth 17, Andrew King 15, Danny Bwinka 8, Wes Judish 6, Michael Jordan 5, Justin Norwood 4.

GROSSMONT 44, VALHALLA 40 – Three reasons why this Monday’s (Feb. 1) Grossmont Hills League game was so close.

First and foremost was the defensive work of the Norsemen’s KYLE KRIEBEL on Grossmont’s scoring kingpin JAKE HAAR.

Secondly was the fact that Grossmont defeated Valhalla, 57-44, in a holiday tournament game earlier in the season.

Thirdly, is Grossmont (13-8, 4-0 GHL) no doubt was peeking ahead to Wednesday’s (Feb. 3) showdown of league leaders at Granite Hills.

Kriebel, a 6-foot-6, 205-pound senior, limited Haar to one field goal and 4 rebounds. The two points is the lowest count for Haar all season.

In addition, Kriebel cranked out 11 points and corralled 10 rebounds as well as blocking 4 shots and creating 5 steals.

Grossmont scored the last 4 points to snap a 40-40 deadlock.

DEASEAN WATERS hit a floating layup in the middle of the key to give Grossmont the lead with 27 seconds remaining.

With 19.8 seconds left, Valhalla shot and missed. Grossmont’s ROBBY NESOVIC claimed the rebound and was fouled with 4 seconds remaining. He made both free throws to seal the 5th straight victory for the Foothillers.

“We had a chance to win the game but we missed the bucket,” said Valhalla assistant coach DON ROLLINS. “We had a wide open look at the shot but it hit the front end of the rim.”

Valhalla inside force DAVID WILSCHETZ did not play because he suffered an ankle injury in the Norsemen’s previous game. His doctor is holding him out for a week. He is expected back on Friday (when Valhalla meets Helix).

“We were playing a man down tonight, without Wilschetz,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. “As a team the guys really battled. It was a pretty hard-nosed game. DAVID ZETTS, JORDAN CUNNINGHAM, Kyle Kriebel and STEVEN KLEIST really battled. Just a couple of possessions here and there could have made a big difference in the game.”

Grossmont: Robby Nesovic 17 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Desean Waters 13 (3 reb, 3 ast, 5 stl), Jason Lakis 7 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Anthony Bowden 3 (7 reb), Jake Haar 2 (4 reb), Clayton Rainey 2 (1 reb).

Valhalla: Steven Kleist 13 (3 reb, 2 stl), Kyle Kriebel 11 (10 reb, 1 ast, 4 blk, 5 stl), David Zetts 6 (1 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Jordan Cunningham 6 (6 reb, 1 ast, 4 blk), Thomas McDonald 2 (1 ast, 1 blk), Luke Baxter 2.

HELIX 68, WEST HILLS 48 – Sounds simple – junior KENNY KEYS could be the key to the Helix Highlanders’ Grossmont Hills League season.

The 6-foot-3 Keys broke loose for 22 points and 13 rebounds in Monday’s (Feb. 1) victory over visiting West Hills (5-15, 0-4 GHL).

“He’s going to be a good one,” Helix coach JOHN SINGER said. “I think he will be one of the best players in our league next year.”

Keys is not too bad right now.

“The thing about Kenny is he wants to be good,” Singer said. “He has great intent and has all the intangibles to become a solid player. He has improved a ton since last year.”

Helix has won six of its last eight.

West Hills freshman JERON SATTERFIELD, playing in his second varsity game after breaking his hand, led the Wolf Pack in scoring, going 5 for 8 from the floor for 10 points. He also gathered 6 rebounds and pitched 3 assists.

“We played pretty good ball for three quarters,” said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. “Helix manhandled us in the second quarter, outscoring us 20-7. They were too physical for us.

“We gave up far too many second chance points tonight. We need to work on boxing out better.”

Helix: Kenny Keys 22 (13 reb, 3 stl, 1 blk), Jaylen Linson 9 (8 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Tommie Young 6 (2 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), Yohanes Solomon 6 (2 reb, 1 ast), Darien Peterson 5 (3 reb, 3 ast, 3 stl, 1 blk), Titus Young 4 (1 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl), John Henry singer 4 (6 reb, 1 stl, 3 blk), Cameron Lee 4 (6 reb, 1 ast), Sam Meredith 4 (4 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Kevin Williams 2 (4 ast, 4 stl), Corey Barnes 2 (1 reb), Earl Schexnayder (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk), Brian Valadez (3 reb, 1 stl), Donald Woodard (1 reb).

West Hills: Jeron Satterfield 10 (6 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 2 blk), Jonny Preston 8 (4 reb, 4 ast, 3 stl), Nick Findley 8 (1 reb, 1 ast), Adrian Maraziti 7 (5 reb, 3 ast), Kevin Straub 4 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Ralph Bedoe 3 (1 reb, 2 stl), Russell Todd 2 (3 reb, 1 stl), Shedrick Collier 2 (3 reb, 5 ast, 2 stl), Alex Parsons 2 (5 reb, 2 ast), Garrett Guinn 2 (3 reb), John Magoon (2 reb, 1 ast).

MONTE VISTA 61, EL CAJON VALLEY 55 – In a battle of two of East County’s hungriest Grossmont Valley League teams Monday (Feb. 1), the visiting Monarchs proved they are still alive as they recorded their fourth win in six starts.

None the less, the Monarchs (9-13, 2-1 GVL), who used a 26-9 scoring burst in the second quarter to take command of the game, had to stave off a fourth-quarter surge by the Braves (0-21, 0-3 GVL).

“Fatigue really got to us in that second quarter,” said El Cajon Valley coach MARTY ELLIS. “I told my guys at halftime regardless of the score, just make it close at the end of the game, We’ve got to let other folks know we are going to keep fighting and not back down from anybody.”

DOMINIQUE MILLER paced the Braves with a double-double of 22 points and 10 rebounds. KENDALL CONLEY chipped in with 22 points, 9 boards and 5 steals. Both are seniors.

“Kendall and Dominique played great basketball tonight,” Ellis said. “I wish we had them for another year.”

TONY JACKSON was the guiding light for Monte Vista, pouring in 22 points and snaring 15 rebounds.

Of Monte Vista’s 48 rebounds, 26 came on the offensive glass.

“KYLIE LUSTER and Tony Jackson were beasts on the boards,” confirmed Monte Vista assistant coach KEITH HOUSTON said. “Tony had 7 offensive rebounds and Kylie had 5.”

Luster collected 14 caroms overall.

“Our pressure defense got to them in the first half,” Houston said. “We created quite a few turnovers. They made a good run on us in the second half. We have yet to learn how to handle late pressure in a close game. This team has yet to learn how to play the clock in a close game. It helped ( El Cajon Valley ) get back in the game.”

Monte Vista: Tony Jackson 22 (15 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl), Kylie Luster 9 (14 reb), KJ Houston 8 (3 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk, 4 stl), Kevin Starling 7 (4 reb, 1 ast), James Jackson 5 (7 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Ruben Nwando 4 (3 reb, 2 ast), Jason Guinto 4 (1 reb, 1 ast), Moses Walker 2 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl).

El Cajon Valley: Kendall Conley 22 (9 reb, 1 ast, 5 stl), Dominique Miller 22 (10 reb, 2 blk, 2 stl), DeShea Wade 8 (3 reb, 3 stl), Jeremy Brown 2, Jacquelle Morris 1 (5 reb), Dontae Baily (9 reb, 1 blk, 2 stl).

MOUNT MIGUEL 76, EL CAPITAN 46 – Mount Miguel senior BRYANT MITCHELL didn’t take a single shot in the Matadors surprisingly easy romp over the visiting Vaqueros in Monday’s (Feb. 1) Grossmont Valley League action.

Yet, Mitchell was a major contributor as he yanked down a career high 20 rebounds. One of East County ’s premier rebounders, Mitchell more than doubled his season average against the slumping Vaqueros (5-15, 0-3 GVL) who suffered their seventh straight setback.

Senior guard AJ STANFORD equaled his season scoring high of 24 points, including four 3-pointers.

HARRY BRAZELTON rolled a double-double of 18 points and 10 assists. Half of Brazelton’s points came in the first quarter. Stanford chipped in with 8 points in the opening period, propelling Mount Miguel (18-6, 3-1 GVL) to a 25-10 advantage.

“This was the most assists (26) in a game we’ve had in awhile,” noted Matadors coach JAY ROWLETT. “There was no one-on-one ball going on out there at all.”

Mount Miguel: AJ Stanford 24 (8 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl), Harry Brazelton 18 (8 reb, 10 ast), Thomas Butler 12 (4 reb), Marcus Booker 10 (4 reb, 1 ast), JJ Norton 9 (7 ast, 5 stl), Yuel Hagos 3 (1 reb, 1 stl), Bryant Mitchell (20 reb), Jaymes Brazelton (4 reb, 4 ast, 4 stl).

El Capitan: Mike Overson 10 (6 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl), Eric Nunez 9 (3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Kevin Kapka 5 (1 reb, 1 stl), Armon Worrell 5 (4 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl), Brian Celeste 5 (1 reb, 1 stl), Andrew Cable 4 (7 reb, 2 ast), Cody Kygar 3 (1 reb, 1 stl), Robert Craighead 3 (1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl), Tyson Kygar 2 (2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl).