East County teams prep for Friday showdowns

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (2-1-07) — The second half of the Grossmont South and Grossmont North League seasons begins Friday (Feb. 2). Both league championships should be decided that same night.

In the Grossmont South, No. 1 ranked Helix (20-1, 5-0 GSL) visits redhot Monte Vista (14-8, 4-1 GSL) in Spring Valley at 7 p.m. The Highlanders handled the Monarchs 74-51 in the first round meeting, but the rematch could be a lot tighter.

Helix is in the market for its first league title in four years. Monte Vista last captured a circuit crown in 1996.

On the Grossmont North side, the Grossmont Foothillers (13-9, 3-1 GNL) are attempting to grab a share of the league laurels when they host West Hills (13-10, 4-0 GNL) at 7 p.m. The Foothillers have not won a league championship in more than a decade, while the Wolf Pack is seeking its 4th loop banner in five years.

West Hills won the first-round meeting between these two teams, 58-55, in Santee.

WEST HILLS 61, STEELE CANYON 57 – Johnson and Johnson, fief and drum corps, Red Cross – all of these entities helped paint the picture for West Hills’ status entering Wednesday’s (Jan. 31) Grossmont Conference crossover game against Steele Canyon .

“All the credit goes to West Hills,” said Cougars coach BERNIE BALIKIAN. “JEFF (ARMSTRONG, Wolf Pack coach) did a masterful job. His team was depleted with injuries and he still found a way to win. That’s great coaching.”

Senior guard BLAINE HOFFARD, one of West Hills’ captains, missed this game with an ankle injury. TROY NOWLIN attempted to play and did log a few minutes in the first quarter but left after aggravating a previous knee injury. West Hills also played without CHRIS LIFGREN.

The game was tied 45-45 after three quarters.

The Wolf Pack looked to sure-handed senior PETER GILSON to pull it out. Gilson responded with a game-high 27 points, knocking down 9 of 14 shots from the floor and 9 of 9 free throws. He was also the king of the backboards, picking off 12 ricochets – 5 of them coming at the offensive end.

“Peter works so hard down on the low post, he’s relentless and so crafty around the basket,” said Armstrong of Gilson. “He never gives up on the ball. Steele Canyon had a hard time matching up with him. Our guys did a good job of getting the ball quickly.”

In addition to his scoring and rebounding, Gilson still found time to dish 5 assists and did not commit a single turnover.

“Peter picked up volleyball in the spring and I think it has really helped his vertical leap,” Armstrong said. “He can really get off the ground.”

Another standout for West Hills was TAYLOR ROBBINS, who hit 6 of 10 shots from the floor for 12 points. But it was his defensive work that impressed Armstrong the most.

A 6-foot-2 senior, Robbins put the clamps on Steele Canyon scoring leader TONY MINNIFIELD. The 6-foot-3 Cougar made only 2 of 11 shots from the floor and finished with 5 points, but did manage to get a team-best 10 rebounds.

“Just a solid game by Taylor ,” said Armstrong. “He did an excellent job against a physical player.”

Stealthy point guard TONY LYNN, a 5-foot-8 fly in the ointment, poked holes in the Steele Canyon defense with 7 points and 8 assists. Lynn missed only 2 of his 5 shots.

TIM NOWLIN added 9 points, 8 rebounds and 5 blocks for the Wolf Pack.

Steele Canyon (9-12) received 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals from JEBARI ROBINSON.

RILEY BALIKIAN also scored 15 points – most coming on 4 triples, 4 rebounds and 3 steals.

One dramatic statistic for Steele Canyon came in the shooting department. The Cougars made only 6 of 36 shots from 2-point range, and 9 of 28 from 3-point distance.

“We missed 23 shots from within two feet,” coach Balikian said.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 27, Taylor Robbins 12, Tim Nowlin 9, Tony Lynn 7, Garret Cabral 4, Troy Nowlin 2.

Steele Canyon: Riley Balikian 15, Jebari Robinson 15, Arlin Taylor 9 (5 reb., 4 ast.), Andrew Timm 9, Tony Minnifield 5 (10 reb.), Elijah Carter 3, Nick Stathas 1.

GROSSMONT 62, VALHALLA 48 – In its preparation for Friday’s (Feb. 2) showdown with West Hills, the Foothillers unleashed a balanced attack against the visiting Norsemen during Wednesday’s (Jan. 31) Grossmont Conference crossover action.

Valhalla (9-14) can take solace in the fact that it held Grossmont scoring leader IAN COCHRAN to 11 points (8 rebounds). But the remaining members of the Foothillers’ cast picked up the slack and sent Valhalla home with its sixth straight loss.

Ever-improving junior forward RICHARD OGUNSALU banged in a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Foothillers.

“I thought Ogunsalu played well and ALEX CHIAPPONE came off the bench and played very good defense,” said Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO.

Grossmont also received some excellent outside scoring punch from guard KHALID WATERS with 16 points – more than half coming on a trio of 3-pointers.

Leading by four points after the first quarter, the Foothillers used a 17-6 scoring sprint to secure a 35-20 halftime lead.

It was more frustration with Valhalla , which opened the game with an 11-3 lead only to fade thereafter.

“We came out and played fearless there for the first few minutes,” said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. “Then, for some reason, we pulled it back and lost momentum. It’s been that way all year for us.”

TRAVIS FOELSCH paced Valhalla with 15 points and 5 rebounds.

“Grossmont did a great job of keeping us off the offensive glass,” Jackson said. “Our top two seasons on the season did not get a single offensive board. We got one offensive board in each half and both were by our guards.”

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 18, Khalid Waters 16 (3 ast., 4 stl.), Ian Cochran 11, Justin Rutherford 9 (4 reb.), Michael Graham 3 (3 ast., 3 stl.), Alex Chiappone 3 (6 reb.), Alex Leon 2.

Valhalla scoring: Travis Foelsch 15, Aahron Mims 8 (5 reb.), Austin Suhay 8, Jorge Serna 5, Ruffy Bacong 5, Daniel Butcher 4 (4 ast.), Mike Espinoza 2, Kevin Kriebel 1.

MOUNT MIGUEL 56, EL CAPITAN 42 – The Matadors continued their pursuit of a berth in the San Diego CIF Division III playoffs as they whipped visiting El Capitan in Wednesday’s (Jan. 31) Grossmont Conference crossover contest for their third straight win.

Mount Miguel (14-9) landed a trio of triples – two by A.J. STANFORD – in the first quarter to take a 19-11 lead. The Matadors extended their advantage to 31-13 before settling on a 35-19 lead at the break.

El Capitan (2-20) never threatened the Matadors in the second half.

TRAVON CAPLES paced a balanced Mount Miguel attack with 17 points and 8 rebounds.

Freshman guard Stanford, who hit 5 of 7 shots from the floor, added 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.

“Stanford has really come on these last four games,” said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT, noting that Stanford has scored in double figures in each of his last four appearances. “That just shows the kind of growth we are getting from our younger players. But we still have a long ways to go.”

Rowlett believes his Matadors have a shot at being seeded among the top four playoff teams in Division III.

“I like my team – the makeup we have,” Rowlett said. “I know people say we have potential, but I really don’t like the “P” word because that means in the future. I think we have some good things going for us now, and that’s what we’re working on.”

Mount Miguel’s COURTNEY WRATHER – one of two seniors on the team – did not have his usual high-scoring game from the perimeter as he settled for 12 points.

For El Capitan – a team clearly in the rebuilding mode – BARRETT BRAUN banged in 17 points and bagged 8 rebounds.

JON MOLZEN added 14 points and 5 rebounds for El Capitan .

Hard-working junior guard ROBERT VICALDO did a solid job holding up against the quicker Matadors, finishing with 6 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds.

Mount Miguel scoring: Travon Caples 17 (5 stl.), A.J. Stanford 13, Courtney Wrather 12 (3 reb., 3 ast., 2 stl.), OC Basey 9 (4 reb., 4 stl.), Matt Miles 3, Laron Rush 2 (4 reb., 2 stl.), Devyn Moore (6 reb.).

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 17, Jon Molzen 14 (3 stl., 2 blk., 2 ast.), Robert Vicaldo 6, Jeramie Carr 2, Brooks Noble 2 (3 reb., 2 ast.), Michael Overson 1.

MONTE VISTA 61, EL CAJON VALLEY 42 – JAMAR RANSOME knocked down 20 points, snared 12 rebounds and blocked 3 shots as the Monarchs breezed by the Braves in a Grossmont Conference crossover game Wednesday night (Jan. 31) for their 6th straight win, and 10th in 11 starts.

Monte Vista (14-8) outscored the Braves 22-4 in the pivotal second quarter to grab the win.

“In the second quarter we had a nice run,” said Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY. “We played even the rest of the way.”

ROSHUN WYNNE was strong again, with 18 points, 8 rebounds, 7 steals and 4 assists for the Monarchs.

MIKE WATKINS added 10 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals for Monte Vista.

But all was not good for the Monarchs. They shot just under 33 percent from the field, including 0 for 9 from above the arc. Monte Vista ’s accuracy from the free throw line was less than 50 percent, as the Monarchs made just 13 of 28.

“We shot atrociously – missed a ton of free throws. We’ll be working on that in practice tomorrow.”

LUCAS STAFFORD topped El Cajon Valley (5-18) with 15 points, 10 of them coming in the fourth quarter.

Monte Vista scoring: Jamar Ransome 20, Roshun Wynne 18, Mike Watkins 10, Geoff Hartman 5, Trent Watkins 4, Alex Robinson 2, Brian Williams 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Lucas Stafford 15, Laroy McGee 10, Dejon Joy 7, A.J. Ussery 4, Shivan Sulyman 2, Tommie Kendricks 2, Dewayne Alexander 2.

SANTANA 67, MOUNTAIN EMPIRE 24 – TYLER BLACKLEDGE scored 19 points and gathered 17 rebounds to steer Santana to an easy non-league victory over Mountain Empire Wednesday night (Jan. 31) in Pine Valley .

BRETT ROMERO chalked up 13 points, including one 3-pointer and 6 of 6 free throw shooting. Romero, a junior guard, also had 6 rebounds and 3 steals.

“Having a young team, we needed this game,” said Santana coach TIM BARRY. “It was a real confidence builder. We got a chance to practice a lot of things we need to work on. Everyone played and got a lot of minutes and everyone scored.”

Santana scoring: Tyler Blackledge 19 (2 stl.), Brett Romero 13, Ryan Garlin 6 (5 stl.), Chris Sodergren 6, Jarrel Patacsil 5, John Vasquez 5, Jesse Vargas 3, Blake Harper 2, Stephen Gaines 2, Kevin Engelke 2, Anthony DeBarrows 2, Ryan Grotewiel 1, Kyle Salzman 1.

© East County Sports.com
CHULA VISTA (1-31-07) -- Rolling up the sixth-highest point total in a quarter in CIF-San Diego Section history, Foothills Christian reached the 100-point plateau for the first time in its 47-game history by whipping host Midway Baptist, 100-32, in Tuesday's (Jan. 30) Citrus South League contest.

The Knights (17-5) scored 40 points in the opening period, building a 34-point cushion on the Patriots. The only other small school in the section to top that total was the 43 points scored by La Jolla Country Day in a 1992 quarter against Mountain Empire. The listed CIDSDS all-division mark is 48 by Sweetwater in a 1984 ballgame with Coronado.

The shooting of ZACH KAUL will not be soon forgotten by Midway. After collecting a career-high 38 points in the teams' first meeting, the sophomore guard added a game-high 25 points, making a remarkable 16-of-19 shots from 3-point range in the series.

"I'm sure Midway will be fine not seeing Zack ever again," said Knights assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. "I would say the level of defensive intensity in this game was one of our best all season -- the boys are steam-rolling towards the playoffs."

In building a 66-17 halftime lead, Foothills made 15 treys, leap-frogging three more teams to move into a tie for 8th place on the all-time section list.

TROY LEAF posted 22 points in 13 minutes of play, while BRANDON HALE added 21 points. Leaf was pulled for precautionary reasons after getting undercut on a layin attempt.

KALOB HATCHER registered 14 assists and seven steals in 19 minutes.

Foothills Christian scoring: Zach Kaul 25, Troy Leaf 22, Brandon Hale 21, David Carter 8, Aaron Hale 6, Kalob Hatcher 5, Nick Duenez 4, Ryan Smith 4, Andrew Atia 3, Justin Esselstrom 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-30-07) -- Failing to come out of the gate and trailing 22-8, there was only one way for West Hills to describe the slow start.

"It was a horrible first quarter, but we finally brought it," said Wolf Pack forward PETER GILSON.

After the Granite Hills blew the initial advantage and trailed by eight points moments into the fourth period, Eagles forward DERICK EDWARDS echoed Gilson's sentiments.

"It was horrible," explained Edwards, who did not score but played solid defense throughout. "Then we came out and started to play defense."

In a game which failed to receive much in style points, Granite Hills flipped the "On" switch and suddenly registered 16 consecutive fourth-quarter points, enough to secure Monday's (Jan. 29) Grossmont Conference crossover contest by a 60-50 count.

And it was Edwards and IAN BIRMINGHAM who saved the Eagles after BRIAN HUMPHRIES and ANDREW JOSLYN were saddled with foul trouble.

"They were our unsung heroes," head coach RANDY ANDERSON said. "They both simply made a ton of defensive plays for us."

The Wolf Pack was rolling along like the first quarter never existed, moving the ball to the low post for a series of baskets. And when TONY LYNN opened the fourth period with a short jumper, the 14-point deficit transformed into a 46-38 lead.

Then Edwards and Birmingham flipped the switch.

""We started playing good defense and running with them," noted Birmingham . "We forced turnovers by helping each other on defense."

Suddenly, every Wolf Pack entry pass to the post got deflected away, or if the pass connected, there were at least two Eagles to contest every shot. And none fell for more than six minutes.

Meanwhile, Miller and Joslyn returned to hit 3-point shots, Miller added another jumper to tie the ballgame at 46-all, then WAYNE MARTIN hit a baseline triple for the lead.

"This was Joslyn's high game," Anderson said. "For one of the few times, he avoided fouls enough to be available to us at the end of the game."

Granite Hills closed the contest by going 11-for-14 at the foul line while blanking West Hills over a 6:09 span -- after Lynn 's jumper, the Pack didn't score again until 1:20 was remaining.

"We were able to run our offense," added Edwards. "Then West Hills went to a zone for one or two plays, but we were able to exploit it and force them back into man (defense)."

Gilson paced both teams with 18 points. He also added seven rebounds and three assists for the Wolf Pack (12-10). TIM NOWLIN tallied all of his nine points in the first half, and CHRIS LIFGREN and sophomore GARRET CABRAL had seven each.

It was more than simply a non-league loss for West Hills, which lost senior guard and team captain BLAINE HOFFARD indefinitely to an ankle injury sustained in the first quarter.

The dominos-factor continued its downward trend for the Wolf Pack as Troy Nowlin aggravated an existing knee injury, which severely limited his play.

"We were up 47-40 with something like six minutes to play," West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG said. "Then we became too deliberate on offense, we weren't looking to score. When we did get an opening we missed a lot of lay-ups in the fourth quarter.

"Bottom line is we gave one away tonight," Armstrong concluded. "That No. 40 guy (Joslyn) just killed us."

Granite Hills (14-7) received balanced scoring, as Joslyn led the team with 16, while Miller and Martin added 15 each. Miller scored all but 4 of his points during the final eight minutes.

A glaring difference came at the free throw line where Granite Hills converted 21 of 30 opportunities, compared with just 8 of 11 for West Hills.

Granite Hills scoring: Andrew Joslyn 16, Wayne Martin 15, Dean Miller 15, Brian Humphries 11, Ian Birmingham 3.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 18, Tim Nowlin 9, Garret Cabral 7, Chris Lifgren 7, Taylor Robbins 5, Tony Lynn 2, Troy Nowlin 2 (8 reb.).

MONTE VISTA 60, GROSSMONT 57 -- A TRENT WATKINS lay-up, followed by a ROSHUN WYNNE free throw, enabled host Monte Vista to break a 57-57 tie in the final 25 seconds Monday night (Jan. 29) as the Monarchs posted their 9th win in 10 starts.

Ironically, the game winner was Watkins' only basket of the game, although he did make 3 of 4 free throw attempts -- all of his points coming in the fourth quarter.

Monte Vista's game-winning thrust came after the Monarchs had blown a 15-point lead.

With the game on the line Wynne -- who scored a season-high 29 points, dished 9 assists, grabbed 8 rebounds and made 4 steals -- was dribbling upcourt when he broke for the basket. Instead of unleashing the shot himself, the Monarchs' senior leader kicked it out to Watkins, who drove to the hoop for the tie-breaker.

A few seconds later Wynne made 1 of 2 free throws to secure the victory.

"Down the stretch Roshun refused to let us lose," Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY said.

Wynne made 10 of 16 shots from the field -- one of them a triple -- and 8 of 10 free throws.

MIKE WATKINS had a keen shooting eye for Monte Vista as well, nailing 5 of 8 attempts for 12 points. Half of his points came from above the arc.

It was not the best of games for JAMAR RANSOME, who totaled only 10 points, eight of them coming in the first half as Monte Vista claimed a 30-22 lead by intermission.

Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO praised the defensive work of 6-foot-7 senior forward JUSTIN RUTHERFORD, who limited the usually high-scoring Ransome to 2 points in the second half.

IAN COCHRAN scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half for the Foothillers (12-9). A 6-foot-6 junior, Cochran also corralled 12 rebounds and made 3 steals.

Monte Vista scoring: Roshun Wynne 29, Mike Watkins 12 (6 reb.), Jamar Ransome 10 (4 reb.), Trent Watkins 5, Alex Robinson 2, Cameron Mason 2.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 26, Michael Graham 10, Justin Rutherford 8, Richard Ogunsalu 7 (8 reb.), Khalid Waters 5, Alex Chiappone 1.

CHRISTIAN 65, CLAIREMONT 58 -- One thing the Christian High Patriots can count on is ANDRIUS MIKUTIS will not have a bad game. The 6-foot-4 senior guard did not disappoint in Monday's (Jan. 29) Central League victory over the visiting Cheiftains (9-13, 1-4).

Mikutis connected on 12 of 19 shots from the field and bagged 10 rebounds to point the Patriots (9-10, 3-2) to a key league victory.

The big shot came with about a minute to go when Mikutis hit a 3-pointer to give the Patriots a 61-58 lead.

"Andrius had a great game but everyone else was just off," said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP.

"Clairemont is a tough team, well coached, and (6-6 senior Moala) Tatuaa had a monster game," said Copp. "He was very impressive."

Tatuaa finished with 31 points.

DANIEL HAZLETT turned in a game worth noting, finishing with 18 points. His totals included a pair of threes and 8 for 8 shooting from the free throw line.

"We went up and down all night," said Copp. "We were up 8 points in the first quarter before giving up the lead just before the half. We then dug a hole and got down 8 but made a run in the fourth to reclaim the lead."

Christian used an 18-11 third quarter rush to take a lead it wouldn't lose.

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 26, Daniel Hazlett 18, Viktor Asaciovas 8, Danny Mitchell 6, Jordan Graves 4, Brad Johnston 2, Brad Sandusky 1.

STEELE CANYON 81, EL CAJON VALLEY 57 -- Football linebacker TONY MINNIFIELD turned in a powerful double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds Monday night (Jan. 29) as the Cougars battered the Braves in a Grossmont Conference crossover game in Rancho San Diego.

Guard JEBARI ROBINSON added 12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals for the Cougars (9-11), who had 12 players contribute to Steele Canyon's season scoring high.

It didn't start out like it was going to be a great night for the Cougars, as the visiting Braves (5-17) led 19-18 after one quarter.

"El Cajon came out of the chutes real hard and had some easy transition baskets," said Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN. "We came out a little flat and they came out hard and got some easy baskets until we made some adjustments."

Steele Canyon dominated the second quarter 22-7 to take a 40-26 halftime lead and the game, for all intents and purposes, was over after that.

ELIJAH CARTER came across with a smooth performance for the Cougars of 10 points, 7 assists and 6 steals.

"Carter played one of his better total games this year, he played a complete game offensively and defensively," said Balikian. "He's our point guard-quarterback."

JAKE RANSOM also reached double figures for Steele Canyon with 10 points.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tony Minnifield 15, Jebari Robinson 12, Jake Ransom 10, Elijah Carter 10, Riley Balikian 8, Andrew Timm 6, Casey Gayton 5, Tim Orange 5, Nick Stathas 4, Arlin Taylor 3, Cameron Moss 2, Tyler Atwell 1.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Dejon Joy 13, Chris Franco 11, Laroy McGee 10, Lucas Stafford 9, Dewayne Alexander 7, Shivan Sulyman 5, Benton 2.

HELIX 83, EL CAPITAN 44 -- DAVID JEFFERSON scored 20 points, snagged 9 rebounds, notched 5 steals, dished 3 assists and made 2 blocks to help Helix bury visiting El Capitan in Monday's (Jan. 29) non-league encounter in La Mesa.

DONNIE McGOWAN added 15 points and 7 rebounds, while LAWRENCE HURDLE tallied 15 points, dished 4 assists and made 4 steals for the top-ranked Highlanders (20-1).

Not to be overlooked was the play of Helix junior guard KAREEM ABUKAR, who punched in 12 points and handed out 8 assists.

"It's tough to get up for games like this," said Helix assistant coach ANDY MERIDETH. "Any time you play on Monday it's tough, but you can't fool the kids. They know the records. Give El Cap credit though, they did play hard and crash the boards."

BARRETT BRAUN led El Capitan (2-19) with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

"We're not out here trying to embarrass anybody, but we did what we had to do," said Helix head coach JOHN SINGER. "We have a tough game coming up on Friday at Monte Vista, and that's what our focus is right now."

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 20, Lawrence Hurdle 15, Donnie McGowan 15, Kareem Abukar 12, Brandon Fountain 8 (9 reb., 4 ast., 3 stl.), Andray Jackson 4, Tyonte Hosley 2, Eric Forney 2 (4 reb.), Dorian Staton 2 (3 reb., 2 ast.), Darrell Chandler 2, Red Narcisse 1.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 16, Jeramie Carr 8, Jon Molzen 6 (4 ast.), Michael Overson 4, Robert Vicaldo 4, Jake Zawlacki 4.

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (1-28-07) -- With four minutes remaining, it appeared that Mount Miguel was on its way to second victory in as many nights Saturday evening (Jan. 27).

The Matadors (13-9) were leading by 14 points, but narrowly hung on to edge visiting Montgomery, 58-56, in a non-league battle.

"We almost gave it away," said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "I thought we sleep-walked halfway through the game. But we made some plays when we needed to make them down the stretch."

COURTNEY WRATHER knocked down a game-high 24 points -- half of them coming on 4 triples -- to pace the Matadors.

TRAVON CAPLES was a force inside for Mount Miguel , pouring in 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

A.J. STANFORD pitched in 11 points, making this the third game this week that he reached double scoring figures.

OC BASEY led Mount Miguel with 5 assists, while DEVYN MOORE topped the club with 6 steals.

"Freshmen A.J. and OC stepped up big for us today," Rowlett added. "Basey made some great decisions in not forcing up shots -- he made 5 crucial assists."

Mount Miguel scoring: Courtney Wrather 24, Travon Caples 18, A.J. Stanford 11, Devyn Moore 4, Laron Rush 1.

SCRIPPS RANCH 62, FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 53 -- It wasn't a victory in terms of the win column, but the youthful Foothills Christian Knights had to believe they earned a little more respect for their second year basketball program after giving the more athletic Falcons a run for the money in Saturday's (Jan. 27) Eastlake Challenge.

Facing a Scripps Ranch (15-6) team ranked No. 17 in the state, the out-manned Knights actually held a handful of leads in a game that wasn't decided until late in the third quarter.

The Knights (16-5) took their final lead 32-31 on a TROY LEAF 3-pointer with six minutes left in the third quarter. Scripps went on a 7-0 scoring run and gradually pulled away from there.

The Falcons twice held 11 point leads in the second half, but could never let up as the feisty Knights refused to quit.

Leaf, a freshman, led Foothills with 27 points, hitting 8 of 16 shots from the field and 9 of 12 free throws. He also accounted for two of the Knights 10 three-pointers in the contest.

East County triples leader freshman ZACH KAUL, although the smallest player on the floor at 5-8, used his quickness to pierce the Falcons' defense for five 3-balls, finishing with 15 points.

The smaller Knights held Kenton Walker to 14 points, 11 coming in the first quarter before the 6-9 senior encountered foul troubles. Gerald McLemore led Scripps Ranch scoring with 25 points.

Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 27 (5 reb., 2 blk.), Zach Kaul 15, Aaron Hale 8 (5 blk., 4 reb.), Brandon Hale 3, Kalob Hatcher (4 ast., 3 stl).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-27-07) -- Both sides faced match-up problems. Granite Hills held the height advantage and could work inside on visiting Monte Vista, but the Monarchs' speed could beat the Eagles down the court to counterattack.

David Jefferson of Helix with the slam dunk on Steele Canyon. The top-ranked Highlanders breezed to a 74-35 South League triumph. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

It wasn't until the final minutes that one person -- Monte Vista's JAMAR RANSOME -- would make the defensive stand to finally turn Friday's (Jan. 26) Grossmont South League ballgame in the Monarchs' favor.

Better known as one of the Grossmont Conference's top scorers, Ransome demonstrated he could play on both ends of the court by collecting a steal and taking a charge to force important turnovers in the fourth quarter, pacing Monte Vista to a 56-52 decision over Granite Hills. The victory left the Monarchs as the GSL's top team behind only No.1 ranked Helix.

"I had to get to the spot in the hole," said Ransome on forcing the key offensive foul. "I had to play off my man and help out, and I was able to stay in there (to draw the foul)."

The defensive stand was sandwiched around a pair of 3-point plays to break open an intense contest. Prior to the charge, ROSHUN WYNNE accepted a nice bounce pass from MIKE WATKINS for a layin while being fouled. Wynne then fed Watkins for a 3-point shot for a 47-36 lead with 5:58 remaining.

Wynne finished with a game-high 20 points to go along with 7 rebounds, 7 steals and 4 assists. Ransome added a double-double with 14 points and 14 boards, including a key putback with 1:41 remaining after the Eagles fought back to cut the deficit to 49-44.

"This is a tough place to play and we knew Granite Hills could shoot," said Monarchs coach KEVIN MAHADY. "But we're a pretty good defensive team and made some plays, including Jamar's, down the stretch."

The Eagles hurt themselves by opening the fourth period by connecting on just one of their first 12 shots. DEAN MILLER snapped the drought with a trey, part of his 14 points, but Ransome quickly made sure to squelch any momentum swing with a putback basket, then accepting a half-court pass from Wynne for another layin for a 53-44 advantage with 50 seconds left.

"We kept our heads because this is a tough environment to play in," added Ransome. "But we didn't let it affect us, and we played with a lot of heart."

WAYNE MARTIN added 12 points for Granite Hills, while BRIAN HUMPHRIES was held to nine.

Monte Vista scoring: Roshun Wynne 20, Jamar Ransome 14, Mike Watkins 12, Geoff Hartman 6, Trent Watkins 2, Ryan Houser 2.

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 20, Wayne Martin 12, Brian Humphries 9, Kyle Snyder 5, Kyle San Nicolas 4, Andrew Joslyn 2, Derick Edwards 2.

MOUNT MIGUEL 54, VALHALLA 50 (OT) -- It was a battle of two free falling teams hoping to find firm footing in the Grossmont South League race Friday night (Jan. 26) at Valhalla.

The visiting Matadors (12-9, 1-4 GSL) snapped a four-game losing streak by claiming a 10-6 scoring advantage in overtime.

COURTNEY WRATHER scored the first bucket in the 4-minute extra session to give the Matadors a lead they would not lose.

"This was a very important win for us," said Matadors coach JAY ROWLETT. "We needed to break our fall and get ready for the second round of league play."

LARON RUSH scored all 8 of Mount Miguel's points in the fourth quarter and finished with 14 points and 8 rebounds.

Despite Rush's fourth quarter rush, the Norsemen managed to force overtime when AUSTIN SUHAY scored on a lay-up that tied it 44-all with 8 seconds left in regulation.

"We played well in the first half," said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON, whose Norsemen lead 29-19 at intermission. "They closed the gap on us in the third quarter."

Indeed the Matadors did, using a 17-7 scoring spree to tie the game 36-36 after three periods.

"We were in foul trouble the whole first half, gave them a lot of free throws," Rowlett said. "But once we stopped fouling and started playing ball, we took over."

A.J. STANFORD, who has become a scoring threat for the Matadors in recent weeks, finished with 13 points. Wrather added 11 tallies, while TRAVON CAPLES led Mount Miguel with 11 rebounds and pitched in 9 points.

AAHRON MIMS coined a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds for Valhalla (9-13, 05 GSL), which suffered its fifth straight loss.

During the recent skid the Norsemen were in contention for a win in four of those losses.

TRAVIS FOELSCH added 10 points and 9 boards for Valhalla .

"They jumped on us in overtime," Jackson said. "They got up four and we didn't play too well. We had to foul and they took advantage of it."

Mount Miguel scoring: Laron Rush 14, A.J. Stanford 13, Courtney Wrather 11, Travon Caples 9, Devyn Moore 3, Matt Miles 3, OC Basey 1.

Valhalla scoring: Aahron Mims 13, Travis Foelsch 10, Daniel Butcher 9, Austin Suhay 6, Ruffy Bacong 6, Jorge Serna 4, Kevin Kriebel 2.

HELIX 74, STEELE CANYON 35 -- There are those who believe that the No. 1 ranked Highlanders will lose their playoff edge by playing in the Grossmont South League.

No question, Helix (19-1, 5-0 GSL) is head and shoulders above their five circuit rivals. The Highlanders were hardly challenged in the first round of league play, crushing their opponents by an average margin of more than 27 points.

"Bottom line is our kids come to play defense every night, no matter who we play," said Helix coach JOHN SINGER.

DAVID JEFFERSON paced the Highlanders with 22 points, including 2 dramatic dunks. The 6-5 senior also collected 12 rebounds and 6 steals in his three quarters of play.

DORIAN STATON, not known for his scoring, chipped in 13 points, including a pair of triples. The Highlanders' football quarterback also pilfered 4 Cougar passes.

LAWRENCE HURDLE tossed in 12 points, and also contributed 7 of Helix's 24 assists in the game.

KAREEM ABUKAR pitched in with 11 points and 4 assists, while DEMOND "RED" NARCISSE had 4 assists and DONALD McGOWAN had 3.

These Highlanders appear to be a little more offensive than some of their recent predecessors at Helix -- hitting 30 of 52 shots from the floor (58 percent). Still Singer refuses to give up his defensive mantra.

"These guys know if they don't play hard on defense, they won't play," he said.

Granite Hills and Steele Canyon have attempted to control the tempo and the 30 second shot clock against Helix. That strategy doesn't work against the Highlanders.

"We make you run clock," said Singer. "Whether they are doing it by choice or not, they can't get a shot off. Our guys D-up so well, nobody has a look."

Helix opened the second quarter by scoring the first 14 points to lead 30-9. The Highlanders' advantage ballooned to 63-19 after three quarters.

"They are by far a cut above everybody in this league," Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN said. "You can't play halfcourt defense better than they do. We threw the ball all over the place against their pressure. They just swarmed us."

Balikian was impressed by Jefferson's all-around game.

"He runs the floor so well," said Balikian. "You see him getting a rebound on the defensive end and then pass the ball. One of his teammates takes a shot and misses, and there's Jefferson , getting the offensive rebound. You wonder how that guy got there so fast."

In spite of dominating their Grossmont Conference foes day in and day out, the Highlanders maintain their intensity with uncommon consistency.

"We know we're the No. 1 team and we have to come out and play like that every game," said Jefferson . "We feel like we can beat any team in San Diego but we have to stay humble. It's a matter of staying on top of our game every time out."

ELIJAH CARTER led Steele Canyon (8-11, 3-2 GSL) with 10 points. He scored all but two of those points in the fourth quarter after the game had long been decided.

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 22, Dorian Staton 13, Lawrence Hurdle 12, Kareem Abukar 12, Donnie McGowan 5, Eric Forney 4, Brandon Fountain 2, Red Narcisse 2, Andray Jackson 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Elijah Carter 10, Tony Minnifield 7 (5 reb.), Jebari Robinson 5, Tim Orange 4, Nick Stathas 4, Andrew Timm 3, Jake Ransom 2.

WEST HILLS 69, EL CAPITAN 41 -- To beat West Hills, one must control the Wolf Pack's PETER GILSON. The visiting Vaqueros were unable to do that in Friday night's (Jan. 26) Grossmont North League in Santee .

Gilson clicked on 8 of 13 shots from the floor and 8 of 10 free throws for 24 points. The hard-driving senior crashed the boards for 12 rebounds -- 8 of them offensive -- as West Hills (12-9) completed the first round of the Grossmont North race 4-0.

While Gilson was pounding in the points, he must tip his cap to senior point guard TONY LYNN, who pitched in 14 assists -- many of them going to the Pack's scoring machine.

"Gilson had a very good night," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. "Tony Lynn was outstanding, passed the ball very well and made some beautiful passes."

Accurate passing has become a West Hills staple. Of the Wolf Pack's 32 buckets against the Vaqueros (2-18, 1-3 GNL), 25 were tagged with assists.

Precision passing usually means fewer turnovers. That was the case for West Hills, which gave the ball away only 8 times against the Vaqueros.

"We took very good care of the basketball tonight," Armstrong added.

West Hills, which has won five of its last six starts, jumped out to a 21-11 first quarter lead and extended its advantage 36-22 by intermission.

TIM NOWLIN was 4 for 4 from the floor for 8 points, one less than TAYLOR ROBBINS scored. Lynn also tallied 8 points, the majority coming from a pair of triples. LUCAS ARMSTRONG also hit a pair of 3-balls.

The Wolf Pack had a good night shooting above the arc, hitting 7 of 15 three-point shots.

BARRETT BRAUN led El Capitan with 17 points and 4 assists. Braun had a nice shooting touch as he connected on 7 of 14 attempts, including 3 of 7 from above the arc.

JERAMIE CARR added 8 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals for the Vaqueros.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 24, Taylor Robbins 9, Tony Lynn 8 (5 reb.), Tim Nowlin 8 (5 reb.), Garret Cabral 7, Lucas Armstrong 6, Chris Lifgren 5, Troy Nowlin 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 17, Jeramie Carr 8, Jon Molzen 6 (4 reb.), Michael Overson 4 (4 reb.), Brooks Noble 2, Jake Zawlacki 2, Robert Vicaldo 2 (5 reb., 5 ast.).

CHRISTIAN 60, MADISON 36 -- ANDRIUS MIKUTIS scored 23 points and secured 7 rebounds to guide Christian past visiting Madison in Friday’s (Jan. 26) Central League action at the Ryan Athletic Center .

It was the Patriots first victory in four starts on the home hardwood.

Mikutis had his shooting shoes on as he netted 8 of 12 shots from the floor and 6 of 7 free throws.

“Andrius was unstoppable but did not get too many touches,” said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP.

Junior guard DANIEL HAZLETT snapped out of a recent scoring slump with 19 points. His totals included one 3 and 6 of 7 free throws.

“Hazlett started off slow, going 2-8 in the first half and then turned it around in the second half,” Copp said.

Six-foot-6 senior VIKTOR ASACIOVAS was steady in the trenches for the Patriots, punching out a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds. He also blocked 3 shots and recorded a team-best 3 steals.

“Viktor was solid again without many touches,” noted Cobb of Asaciovas, who made 5 of his 7 shots from the field.

Christian outscored the Warhawks (2-16, 0-4 CNT) in every quarter, leading 20-13 after one period, and 29-21 at halftime.

“We came out good from the very beginning and put together an entire ball game,” Copp added. “ Madison is an athletic team that gave us some problems at times with their zone, but our size was too much for them to overcome. Overall, a solid all-around performance.”

Christian (8-10, 2-2 CNT) shot better than 51 percent from the floor while converting 15 of 20 free throw attempts.

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 23, Viktor Asaciovas 12, Daniel Hazlett 19, Brad Johnston 3, Danny Mitchell 3

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 78, LUTHERAN 36 -- East County basketball pundits recently brain-stormed on what would happen should Foothills Christian meet Helix, the top-ranked team in the CIF-San Diego Section. Could the Knights hang with the Highlanders? Not likely.

Although a game with the No. 1 Scotties isn't scheduled, the Knights will instead get their most demanding test of the season Saturday (Jan. 27) when they meet No. 2 Scripps Ranch in a 5:30 p.m. contest at Eastlake .

"The boys have been excited about the Scripps game all week," said assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. "We have everything to gain and nothing to lose. All the pressure is on them and we have no doubt they will show up prepared."

Foothills, the top Div. V team in the section, understandably was looking ahead after mounting an early lead in Friday's (Jan. 26) Citrus South League victory over Lutheran. The Knights built a big first-half lead to top their toughest CSL competitor, then got sloppy in an obvious look-ahead situation.

"We played one excellent quarter in the second, then one awful quarter in the third," added McHugh. "Then the entire bench went in with three minutes left in the third."

TROY LEAF poured home 32 points for Foothills, his highest total since establishing an East County season best with 45 against Santa Fe Christian on Dec. 6. Foothills went on to score 36 points in the second period, pushing the lead to 55-18 at the half.

Meanwhile, AARON HALE broke his own school record with 10 blocked shots. Only 13 other players in section history garnered more rejections in a single game.

Several players also gained some season milestones in the victory.

Leaf now has 495 points this season, eclipsing the school mark of 493 set by BRANDON HALE last season. KALOB HATCHER notched six assists to reach 200 for the year, while the team moved into the section's Top 20 list for 3-point shots (8th at 526) and makes (12th, 188).

GROSSMONT 75, EL CAJON VALLEY 28 -- Too much height, too much scoring punch, too much strength inside and too much defense; all were pluses for the host Grossmont Foothillers, who knocked off the Braves Friday night (Jan. 26) to finish the first round of the Grossmont North League season one game behind front-running West Hills.

IAN COCHRAN, a 6-foot-6 junior, rolled a double-double of 32 points and 11 rebounds, while 6-5 junior RICHARD OGUNSALU added a double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Foothillers (12-8, 3-1 GNL).

Grossmont buried the Braves from the free throw line, hitting 26 of 43 chances compared to El Cajon Valley's 2 of 8. Cochran was 11 of 16 from the charity stripe, while Ogunsalu made 4 of 5 from the foul line.

In spite of all of the Foothillers' offensive fireworks, Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO was more pleased by his team's defensive efforts.

"We played solid defense," said Foggiano. "We held them to four points in the second half. We did a good job running our offense throughout the whole game. We need to improve our man-to-man defense if we're going to challenge in the second half of league."

Grossmont will have its biggest shot for a league title on Friday (Feb. 2) when the Hillers host West Hills.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 32, Richard Ogunsalu 16 (3 stl.), Michael Graham 8, Alex Leon 7 (5 reb.), Khalid Waters 4 (5 ast.), Justin Rutherford 4, Robert Sullivan 2, Alex Chiappone 2 (10 reb.).

El Cajon Valley scoring: Shivan Sulyman 8, Chris Franco 5, Lucas Stafford 5, A.J. Ussery 4, Laroy McGee 4, Benton 2.

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (1-25-07) -- TONY MINNIFIELD rolled a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds Wednesday night (Jan. 24) to carry Steele Canyon to a 66-39 non-league victory over visiting Orange Glen.

Known more for his football expertise as a Cougar linebacker, Minnifield displayed a soft touch as he connected on 10 of 13 from the floor against the Patriots (0-19).

Nine Cougars contributed to the scoring as Steele Canyon (8-10) registered a rare lop-sided victory.

"I thought we really shared the ball well, played more as a team than we have in most games," said Cougar coach BERNIE BALIKIAN. "We ran our motion offense quite well and got 15 assists, which is a lot for us."

Sophomore guard JEBARI ROBINSON enjoyed an all-around solid game as the Cougars' floor leader, finishing with 11 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

RILEY BALIKIAN added 10 points and 4 steals for the Cougars, while ANDREW TIMM tossed in 9 points from the post position.

"Our post players were a combined 14 of 20 from the floor," said coach Balikian, referring to Minnifield and Timm.

Steele Canyon has won 8 of its last 10 games.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tony Minnifield 21, Jebari Robinson 11, Riley Balikian 10, Andrew Timm 9, Nick Stathas 4, Tim Orange 4, Jake Ransom 3 (5 reb., 3 stl.), Arlin Taylor 2 (3 ast.), Charles Dye 2, Elijah Carter (3 stl).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-24-07) -- A slow start left Steele Canyon wanting when the Cougars fell to Monte Vista last week. They made sure it wouldn't happen again.

Forcing more turnovers than shots allowed in the first period Tuesday (Jan. 23), Steele Canyon swiftly raced to a 16-5 advantage, then kept Valhalla at arm's length over the final three periods for an easy 72-59 decision over the host Norsemen. The triumph moved the Cougars back into a second-place tie with Monte Vista in the Grossmont South League.

Arlin Taylor of Steele Canyon (5) drives the length of the court to beat the Valhalla trap. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

"No, we didn't look at the tape (of the Monte Vista game), we already knew what we had to do," said sophomore guard JEBARI ROBINSON, who paced the Cougars with a career-high 23 points and seven assists. "We always play well in the second half or the fourth quarter, but we had to do something about our slow starts."

Robinson led the assault early, passing for two quick baskets to open the game. He fed ANDREW TIMM for a layin to start the contest, then stole the ball and fired a half-court pass to Timm for a 4-0 start.

And by the time Valhalla could solve its offense, the Cougars closed the period on an 11-0 run. They would lead by double digits the rest of the night.

Even when the Norsemen would make a run, someone on Steele Canyon would end the threat quickly.

After Valhalla trimmed a 42-21 deficit down to 11 points with six minutes remaining, the streak ended on a nice steal by ELIJAH CARTER. The junior guard raked the post for the steal, then quickly dribbled the ball upcourt on the transition, feeding Robinson for the layin and a foul for a 3-point play.

And when Robinson drained a 3-ball on the following possession -- his fifth trey (in 10 attempts) of the contest -- the Cougars sealed the victory.

While Robinson and Carter patrolled the backcourt, Timm and TONY MINNIFIELD controlled the inside over the smaller Norsemen. Timm completed a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Minnifield added 12 points and six boards.

"Timm did a nice job -- he was strong inside," said Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN.

Minnifield also posted three steals, one more than the entire Norsemen roster, which was unable to slow the Cougars. Valhalla, following a dismal 2-for-7 shooting effort in the first period, actually finished above.500 by making 21-of-39 shots, but Steele Canyon took 20 more shots.

"We played a really good first half," coach Balikian said. "The second half was kind of disjointed because there were so many fouls."

TRAVIS FOELSCH scored 13 of his team-high 17 points in the second half, including nine in the third period to give Valhalla a chance to make a late run. AAHRON MIMS added 13 points and blocked four shots, while KEVIN KRIEBEL posted nine boards.

Steele Canyon, which has won 7 of its last 9, stands second place in the Grossmont South, posting a 3-1 league record on the road. The Cougars open their home season against top-ranked Helix on Friday night (Jan. 26).

Before taking on the Highlanders, Steele Canyon will host Orange Glen (0-18) Wednesday (Jan. 24) at 7 p.m.

Steele Canyon scoring: Jebari Robinson 23, Andrew Timm 17, Tony Minnifield 12, Riley Balikian 8, Arlin Taylor 6, Jake Ransom 4, Elijah Carter 2.

Valhalla scoring: Travis Foelsch 17, Aahron Mims 13, Daniel Butcher 11, Ruffy Bacong 5, Jorge Serna 5, Kevin Kriebel 4, Austin Sahay 4.

CRAWFORD 90, CHRISTIAN 75 -- Any team able to limit state scoring leader Tyrone Shelley to 9 points, surely should come out a winner. In the case of the Christian High Patriots, it was yes, and no in Tuesday night's (Jan. 23) Central League contest at Crawford.

A senior wing, Shelley was limited to 9 shots from the field -- 3 of them triples -- for a season-low 9 points. Shelley, who spent his freshman season at Christian, has scored as many as 51 points in a game this season, but not less than 24.

In fairness to Shelley -- averaging 37.1 points per game -- he did not enter the game until the second quarter for missing a practice.

"Our goal was to not let Shelley touch the ball," Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP said. "We put ANDRIUS MIKUTIS on Shelley and he held him to 9 points."

Mikutis, a physical 6-foot-4, 220-pound senior, was like glaze on a donut against the 6-7, 230-pound Shelley.

In spite of the Patriots' success against the Colts' (12-5, 3-0 CNT) scoring sensation, Christian, which held a 70-69 lead with three minutes to play, couldn't hold on.

Asked what happened down the stretch, replied ruefully, "We're still trying to figure it out."

"At that point we turned the ball over four straight possessions then we had to start fouling to try to get the ball back," Copp said. "It was a really long three minutes."

Crawford senior guard Aaron Simpson, who picked up the Colts' scoring slack with 29 points, stole the ball three times in a row in the stretch run.

"They got layups all three times," said Copp.

The Colts unveiled another surprise in the form of 6-6 junior A.C. Warren, who scored 21 points and grabbed 7 rebounds.

"Their No. 12 ( Warren ) hit five threes (in as many attempts)," Copp said. "We scouted them three times this year and didn't ever see him hit a three."

Mikutis equaled his season high of 33 points, muscling in 13 of 23 shots from the floor and 6 of 7 free throws.

DANIEL HAZLETT, a 6-foot junior guard, hit 6 of 11 shots from the field -- two of them 3s -- and was 2 for 2 from the foul line for 16 points.

VIKTOR ASACIOVAS, a 6-foot-6 senior, knocked down 7 of 11 shots from the floor on his way to a 16-point night. He also corralled a game-high 11 rebounds.

Stealthy DANNY MITCHELL, an unheralded senior on Christian's court, missed only one shot as he finished with 8 points and a game-high 6 assists.

"We played 29 minutes of good basketball, then we shut down," said Copp.

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 33, Viktor Asaciovas 16, Daniel Hazlett 16, Danny Mitchell 8, Jordan Graves 2.

HELIX 56, GRANITE HILLS 35 -- Coach JOHN SINGER is growing tired of being quizzed on why his No. 1 ranked Helix Highlanders aren't blowing out every team they play.

"Everybody is shooting arrows at us. We didn't say we were the No. 1 team, but it's nice to be recognized. But at this point in the season it doesn't mean a hill of beans," said Singer. "It comes down to where you're ranked in March."

Given that Helix is an overwhelming favorite to win its first Grossmont South League championship since 2003, Singer must find creative ways to motivate his troops.

Going into Tuesday's (Jan. 23) game against defending-league champion Granite Hills, Singer pounded home the fact that the Eagles swept last year's two-game series from the Highlanders.

Although the Helix led 13-2 after one quarter and 31-10 at intermission, Singer was not overly pleased by the Highlanders' performance.

"We couldn't get into any rhythm because they were determined to take so much time off the (shot) clock," slow the tempo down," said Singer. "I know we were up by 21 points at the half, but I never really felt comfortable because the tempo wasn't right for us."

Some might label Singer a perfectionist, a charge of which he has no comment.

"We didn't shoot the ball well at all," he said, pointing to the Highlanders' 32 percent (22 of 68) shooting against Granite Hills (13-6, 2-2 GSL). "But we still play tough defense and rebounded the ball well (holding a 52-30 advantage)."

The point man on the Helix defense was senior BRANDON FOUNTAIN, who put the clamps on Granite Hills scoring standout BRIAN HUMPHRIES, who scored a season-low 3 points -- more than 14 points below his season average.

" Brandon always gets our opponent's top offensive player," Singer said. "He denies and will chase you all around. It's almost impossible to take him off the dribble."

Humphries, who was only 1 for 6 from the floor and 1 for 4 from the free throw line, also had to deal with Helix senior ERIC FORNEY, who relieved Fountain when the latter needed a breather.

To his credit, Humphries did lead Granite Hills with 9 rebounds.

"You won't find many guys who can defend better than Fountain," said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON.

Granite Hills shot only 26 percent from the floor (11 of 42), including 3 of 13 from above the arc.

In addition to his defensive prowess, Forney contributed 11 points and 6 rebounds off the bench. Fountain produced 8 points, 9 rebounds and 3 steals.

Senior post DAVID JEFFERSON led the Highlanders with 15 points and 14 rebounds.

"Jefferson is bigger and stronger than he was last year," noted Anderson. "He's a force inside whether he's facing it or has his back to the basket."

WAYNE MARTIN was the only Eagles player to reach double figures, finishing with 12.

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 15, Eric Forney 11, Lawrence Hurdle 9, Brandon Fountain 8, Kareem Abukar 6, Donnie McGowan 3, Tyonte Hosley 2, Andray Jackson 2.

Granite Hills scoring: Wayne Martin 12, Dean Miller 9, Andrew Joslyn 8, Brian Humphries 3, Derick Edwards 2, Kyle San Nicolas 1.

SANTANA 65, EL CAPITAN 57 -- Sparked by the career-high 21 points of freshman guard JESSE VARGAS, the Sultans snapped out of a scoring slump as they matched their top offensive production of the year in downing El Capitan in Tuesday night's (Jan. 23) Grossmont North League game in Lakeside.

The Sultans (7-14, 2-2 GNL), who totaled 65 points in their previous two games combined, shot 40 percent (21 of 53) from the floor, but more importantly, landed

11 three-pointers. Santana also made 12 of 14 free throws.

Setting the tone was Vargas, hitting 5 of 9 from above the arc.

"In practice yesterday we threw out all conventional wisdom and all we did was shoot for an hour and 15 minutes," said Santana coach TIM BARRY. "I think it made a big difference in our shooting percentage and how well we played tonight -- probably more mentally than physically."

"We came into the game and let it fly," he added. "We had 8 points in the first couple of minutes."

KYLE SALZMAN chipped in 13 points and 9 rebounds for Santana, while TYLER BLACKLEDGE added 11 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.

"Salzman came up huge for us," said Barry. Five of Salzman's boards came on the offensive glass, which matched Blackledge's offensive rebound count. "It's pretty exciting when you can get 18 offensive rebounds (as a team)."

Defense hasn't been a problem for Santana all year. Barry's plan for the Vaqueros was to run a box-and-one on El Capitan shooting star BARRETT BRAUN.

"It was the same defensive scheme that we ran against West Hills and Grossmont," Barry noted. "Blackledge was ill but he wanted to play, so we put him on Braun. We committed to a box-and-one on Braun and held him to 6 points in the first half."

Despite keeping Braun in check, Santana led only 29-27 at the half.

The Sultans had to change defensive strategy because Braun -- for one of the few times this season -- received major offensive support.

"We didn't count on all those other guys hitting so many shots," Barry admitted. "So we had to go man." Blackledge covered Braun.

El Capitan's JON MOLZEN scored 13 of his 16 points in the middle two quarters to help keep the Vaqueros (2-17, 1-2 GNL) in contention.

JERAMIE CARR added 15 points for the Vaqueros, and MICHAEL OVERSON tossed in 10, marking the first time all season that El Capitan has had four players in double figures in the same game.

Molzen, who accounted for 3 of El Capitan's 7 triples in the game, also recorded a career-high 9 steals.

Santana's ANTHONY DeBARROWS scored all his 9 points from above the arc.

"We gave up more points than we have recently, but we still forced gobs of turnovers," Barry said.

Santana scoring: Jesse Vargas 21, Kyle Salzman 13, Tyler Blackledge 11, Anthony DeBarrows 9, Kevin Englelke 6, John Vasquez 3, Brett Romero 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 16, Jon Molzen 16, Jeramie Carr 15, Michael Overson 10.

MONTE VISTA 68, MOUNT MIGUEL 43 -- The marching Monarchs continued to mount momentum as they mauled Spring Valley and Grossmont South League rival Mount Miguel Tuesday night (Jan. 23). It was Monte Vista's seventh win in its last eight outings.

Senior guard ROSHUN WYNNE scored 20 points, dished 8 assists, grabbed 7 rebounds and made 4 steals to direct the Monarchs' latest victory in which 10 Monte Vista players contributed to the scoring totals.

It was Wynne's 11 points in the third quarter that sealed the deal for the Monarchs (11-8, 3-1 GSL), who led 49-27 by the end of the quarter.

JAMAR RANSOME was solid at the post, spinning in 16 points, blocking 4 shots and securing 12 rebounds for the Monarchs.

Another key for the Monarchs was the defensive work turned in by junior guard MIKE WATKINS on Mount Miguel senior scoring leader COURTNEY WRATHER. Watkins held Wrather to 8 points, which is well below his 16.5 ppg season average.

"Defensively we used some half-court traps and some man-to-man," said Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY. "Watkins was outstanding against Wrather, limiting him to only 2 free throws in the second half."

Mahady also had praise for sophomore forward GEOFF HARTMAN, who canned 5 of 9 shots from the floor for 10 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and made 3 steals.

"I'd like to say something about RYAN HOUSER," Mahady said. "He always gives us good, solid defense and he's starting to come around offensively. He always plays hard, and that's all you can ask."

Mount Miguel (11-9, 0-4 GSL) fell behind early and gradually fell out of contention.

Freshman A.J. STANFORD led the Matadors with 12 points, one more than junior forward TRAVON CAPLES.

"We are battling ourselves right now," lamented Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "Hopefully we can get together before our next two games on Friday and Saturday."

Monte Vista scoring: Roshun Wynne 20, Jamar Ransome 16, Geoff Hartman 10, Dale Thomas 6, Mike Watkins 5, Ryan Houser 4, Trent Watkins 2, Anthony Bell 2, Brian Williams 2.

Mount Miguel scoring: A.J. Stanford 12, Travon Caples 11, OC Basey 8, Courtney Wrather 8, Laron Rush 4.

WEST HILLS 85, EL CAJON VALLEY 43 -- Coming off one of his lower scoring outputs last Friday against Santana, senior PETER GILSON resumed his scoring rampage in the Wolf Pack's Grossmont North League romp over visiting El Cajon Valley Tuesday (Jan. 23) night in Santee.

Gilson, a 6-foot-2 senior, is averaging 19 points in three Grossmont North League games and 17 points in 20 games overall. He is definitely in the running for GNL Player of the Year.

Against the Braves, Gilson hammered in 10 of 13 field goals and 5 of 6 free throws.

This one wasn't all about Gilson as West Hills (11-9, 3-0 GNL) won its fourth game in five starts.

Junior TIM NOWLIN came up big for the Pack, pitching in 13 points and clearing 10 rebounds.

Guard TONY LYNN chipped in with 11 points -- most coming on 3-for-3 shooting above the arc -- and 7 assists for league-leading West Hills.

Also joining in the Wolf Pack double-digit scoring was TAYLOR ROBBINS ­with 11 points. CHRIS LIFGREN added 9 points and 7 assists.

As a team, West Hills racked up a season-high 29 assists (including 5 by LUCAS ARMSTRONG). The quality passing helped the Wolf Pack shoot just under 54 percent from the floor (29 of 54).

"We shot the ball better and had a lot of layups and steals," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. "A lot of kids contributed tonight. The 29 assists and 15 steals were the difference in the game."

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 25, Tim Nowlin 13, Tony Lynn 11, Taylor Robbins 11, Chris Lifgren 9, Troy Nowlin 6, Garret Cabral 6, Blaine Hoffard 4.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Dewayne Alexander 10, Chris Franco 8, A. J. Ussery 6, Shivan Sulyman 5, Jessie Codear 5, Lucas Stafford 4, Andrew Johnson 3, Chris Chambers 2.

FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN 81, SAN DIEGO ACADEMY 40 -- TROY LEAF poured home 21 points, while KALOB HATCHER added 20, as the Knights avoided the first of two possible look-ahead situations by rolling up 48 first-half points to whip the host Cavaliers in Citrus South League play Tuesday (Jan. 23).

The busy schedule of three games this week shows Foothills meeting its closest CSL rival in Lutheran High on Friday, then a huge non-league encounter with No. 2-ranked Scripps Ranch on Saturday. Foothills opened its league season against Lutheran last month, rolling to a 92-47 victory.

"Coach (BRAD) LEAF challenged the guys this week to get ready for Scripps without overlooking the two games before then," noted assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. "That can be a tough task for a young team sometimes."

The Knights were sloppy despite racing to a 25-14 lead through a quarter, then cleaned up their act by hitting the boards the rest of the way to keep San Diego Academy at bay.

Hatcher also added eight assists as he nears the 200 for the season, on pace to establish a CIFSDS freshmen record. Meanwhile, Leaf wasn't a ball hog either, adding seven assists to go along with his game-high scoring total. Leaf also posted 10 rebounds.

" Troy and Kalob constantly feed off of each other," added McHugh. "They won't pass anyone up. They hit the open man regardless of who it is and they lead to quite a few baskets. That's going to be great for us come playoff time when teams are depending on getting the ball to that one key guy."

Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 21 (10 reb.), Kalob Hatcher 20, Zach Kaul 15, Brandon Hale 10, Aaron Hale 10, Ronnie Richards 4, David Carter 1.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-21-07) -- It wasn't meant to be disrespectful, but playing in a league where there is a lot of disparity in talent level, Foothills Christian needed to find a way to maintain focus to properly prepare for the SDCIF playoffs.

"This week, coach (BRAD) LEAF told us not to pay attention to who we were playing," said assistant coach JAMES McHUGH. "The boys were simply asked to go hard for every minute they were in the game."

The first step in the newly-applied philosophy was a success.

In a contest where the bench played for extended minutes, plus a running clock throughout much of the second half, the Knights still out-scored out-manned Mountain Empire, 50-7, in the second half, whipping the visitors from Buckman Springs, 98-30, in Citrus South League action Saturday (Jan. 20) at Granite Hills High.

"It was challenging for a high school team, but they really stepped up to the task," added McHugh. "We got some great play from the bench and the lineup shuffled around all night long."

How ugly was this one? Freshman guard KALOB HATCHER nearly registered a rare quadruple-double in just three periods of action. Hatcher collected 15 points, 10 steals, 10 assists and 8 rebounds before sitting out the rest of the contest.

The Red Hawks (1-8, 1-2) were shutout in the fourth period -- as the Knights (14-4 overall, 3-0 CSL) won for the fifth straight game and the 9th time in 10 outings.

DAVID CARTER was among the best of the reserves, thanks to some early-season experience.

Forced into the starting lineup when other players had eligibility issues last season and early this year, Carter was asked to lead a team which won its first five games of the season. Now in a reserve role, Foothills Christian loses little when Carter comes onto the floor to operate the offense.

"It's great to see him get in there and lead," noted McHugh. "David was asked to carry the team last year when AARON HALE was out, so he deserves the time."

ZACH KAUL paced the Knights with 29 points, one of five players to score in double figures.

Foothills Christian scoring: Zach Kaul 29, Troy Leaf 16, Kalob Hatcher 15, Brandon Hale 13, David Carter 10, Aaron Hale 7, Andrew Atia 4, Ryan Smith 2, Ronnie Richards 1, Nick Duenez 1.

© East County Sports.com
SPRING VALLEY (1-20-07) -- ROSHUN WYNNE, the Grossmont Conference leader in assists and steals, again demonstrated why he might be the top individual performer in East County this season.

Sultans forward Tyler Blackledge leaps for the rebound against West Hills. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Falling just short of a rare quadruple-double, Wynne took control of Monte Vista's offense and registered an array of big numbers. The senior guard collected totals of 18 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds and six steals allowing the Monarchs to mount a 15-point cushion, as Monte Vista staved a late Steele Canyon rally to earn a 67-63 Grossmont South League victory Friday (Jan. 19).

Often in the first half, Wynne would drive the lane while reading the defense, then making a split-second decision, either scoring, getting fouled, or dishing to a teammate for an easy layin. It didn't seem to matter which Cougars defender tried to stop him, Wynne would blaze into the paint and make the correct choice time after time.

"I've heard about Marquise Carter at Horizon, but Roshun is the best point guard I've seen all year," noted Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN. "He's so very poised and does so many things with the ball. It's just plain hard to stop him. He controlled the game."

You won't find Wynne's name listed anywhere on any preseason watch list, but it doesn't concern him.

"It's not about me making plays, but everybody contributing," said Wynne. "JAMAR (RANSOME) was big on the boards for us, ANTHONY (BELL) hit a big 3 in the third quarter, and everyone played solid defense."

However, the spotlight was on Wynne.

In the first period, Wynne's choice was to shoot. By the time Steele Canyon (6-10, 2-1 GSL) adjusted, he would adapt and pass to an open teammate for wide open shots. Included were three straight assists to begin the period to build a 24-12 lead, as RYAN HOUSER scored twice on layins, then Ransome nailed a short jumper as part of his game-high 19 points.

And when the starters got a rest, even the Monte Vista reserves contributed.

"The bench came through for us when we needed a break," added Wynne, noting a nice bounce pass by back-up center GEOFF HARTMAN to TRENT WATKINS for a driving layin for the team's biggest lead at 28-13 midway through the second stanza.

However, when the Cougars elected to stay back and attempted to converge two or three defenders on the fleet-footed guard in the lane, Wynne would make up the difference on defense with steals to ignite the transition game.

Steele Canyon fought back, moving to within 64-61 with 40 seconds left when JEBARI ROBINSON capped a 13-4 run with a drive to the basket. But the Monarchs made just enough foul shots down the stretch to close out the Cougars, as both sides seemed baffled at the free-throw line -- the Cougars were 14-for-30; Monte Vista went 7-of-20 (3-of-13 in the second half).

"It's a big win -- a chance to get back in the upper echelon of the league," said Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY of the Monarchs (10-8, 2-1 GSL) who have won six of their last seven games. Wynne played another monster game."

The Cougars' comeback -- the second of the contest -- was spurred by forward TONY MINNIFIELD, who came off the bench to gain 18 points and 12 rebounds. And when RILEY BALIKIAN took a charge to force a turnover, then blocked a shot over consecutive defensive stops in the fourth period, Steele Canyon still had a chance to avoid its first GSL setback of the season.

"When we started collapsing down on Wynne, it gave us a chance to get back into the game," noted senior guard ARLIN TAYLOR, who gathered four of his five assists in the second half to move the offense into gear. "We contained him, but we couldn't make enough shots."

The first Steele Canyon rally came midway in the third period, yet almost took them out of the game emotionally. The fine defensive sequence saw ANDREW TIMM and Minnifield block consecutive shots, but the ball bounced right to Ransome, who found Hartman on the weak side for an uncontested layin.

Robinson finished with a career high 16 points, including a pair of 3-balls.

"Jebari continues to get better for us," Balikian said.

Steele Canyon scoring: Tony Minnifield 18, Jebari Robinson 16, Andrew Timm 10, Elige Carter 8, Nick Stathas 6, Riley Balikian 5.

Monte Vista scoring: Jamar Ransome 19, Roshun Wynne 18, Geoff Hartman 8, Ryan Houser 6, Fred Webb 3, Alex Robinson 2, Trent Watkins 2.

HELIX 77, VALHALLA 48 -- Playing in the Grossmont South League for the Helix Highlanders is more challenging than it might appear. The No. 1 ranked Highlanders (17-1, 3-0 GSL) are prohibitive favorites to win all 12 of their circuit encounters.

Cast as the favorite can sometimes be a disadvantage. Helix has not won a league title since 2003, and thus winning the Grossmont South is a short-term goal.

The long-range goal, however, is to capture the San Diego CIF Division I championship.

Thus, the challenge: No matter who the Highlanders face, they must push themselves to play at peak level.

"For me it's a matter of feeding the horses," said Helix coach JOHN SINGER. "The kids who do the bulk of the playing need to get their minutes every game. The objective is to keep all of our players sharp, and if that means pressing in the third quarter, so be it."

Led by the 26 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks of senior DAVID JEFFERSON, the Highlanders posted their 15th straight win Friday night (Jan. 19) against visiting Valhalla (9-11, 0-3 GSL).

Senior guard LAWRENCE HURDLE hit 7 of 11 from the floor on his way to a 17-point night that included 6 assists and 6 steals.

The sleeper on the Helix roster is KAREEM ABUKAR. Rarely does the 6-foot-2 junior guard lead the Highlanders in scoring, but is arguably the team's top outside shooter. Abukar hit 5 of 6 against the Norsemen for 10 points, and also found time to chip in 3 assists and 5 steals. For the season, Abukar is shooting 53 percent above the arc and 51 percent from the field overall.

The Highlanders sent the Norsemen packing with a 31-5 second quarter scoring spree.

"It was close early, but then we broke loose," said Singer. "It was all about defense and transition in the second quarter."

The Highlanders led 66-35 after three quarters.

"Our defensive intensity is what won the game," agreed Helix assistant coach ANDY MERIDETH. "That's been our goal all year -- to keep teams below 50 points. The guys played very unselfish basketball tonight."

Nobody reached double figures for Valhalla.

"In the second quarter we had a lot of turnovers," said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. "And they really picked up the intensity against us. In the third quarter we played better defense and handled their pressure better. My kids never stopped playing hard tonight."

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 26, Lawrence Hurdle 17, Kareem Abukar 10, Brandon Fountain 8 (7 reb., 4 stl.), Donnie McGowan 6, Dorian Staton 5, Darrell Chandler 3, Alex Aguirre 2.

Valhalla scoring: Mike Espinoza 8, Ruffy Bacong 8, Travis Foelsch 8, Austin Suhay 6, Daniel Butcher 6, Kevin Kriebel 4, Aahron Mims 2, Rod Fakhoury 2, Jorge Sterna 2, Sean Curtsinger 2.

GROSSMONT 56, EL CAPITAN 40 -- After being blanked in an abbreviated outing due to a thigh bruise at Santana three days earlier, Grossmont scoring machine IAN COCHRAN shifted back into gear to drop in 24 points as the Foothillers toppled El Capitan in a Grossmont North League game Friday night (Jan. 19) in Lakeside.

Cochran, a 6-foot-6 junior, rolled a double-double of 24 points and 11 rebounds as Grossmont (11-8, 2-1 GNL) remained on the heels of league-leading West Hills.

"Cochran was solid the whole way through," said Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO said.

KHALID WATERS splashed in 3 more triples for Grossmont, giving him 11 treys in his last three games. All of Waters' connections above the arc against the Vaqueros (2-16, 1-1) came in the second quarter as Grossmont opened up a 33-24 halftime lead.

Waters finished with 11 points, 4 assists and 4 steals.

RICHARD OGUNSALU turned in another strong performance for the Foothillers, pitching in 12 points, grabbing 14 rebounds and logging two steals.

"Ogunsalu rebounded very well defensively, controlled the defensive boards," Foggiano said. "And Waters and (MICHAEL) GRAHAM played pretty good guard pressure."

BARRETT BRAUN paced El Capitan with 17 points, eight of them coming in the final quarter. The 6-3 junior also popped in four triples and grabbed 9 rebounds. Teammate JERAMIE CARR also punched in 13 points and cleared 9 rebounds.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 24, Richard Ogunsalu 12, Khalid Waters 11, Justin Rutherford 4, Robert Sullivan 3, Michael Graham 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 17, Jeramie Carr 13, Jon Molzen 8, Michael Overson 2.

By winning, the Eagles (13-5, 2-1 GSL) moved into a three-way tie for second place in the Grossmont South.

"Junior Brian Humphries continued to play solid for us and his leadership has been great," said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON.

Sophomore DEAN MILLER -- still recovering from a sprained ankle -- knocked down 14 points and led Granite Hills with 9 rebounds. All of Miller's points came in the second half as the Eagles overcame a 24-23 halftime deficit.

"Miller gave us a real courageous game. He really toughed it out," said Anderson.

Six-foot-5 senior ANDREW JOSLYN was a force in the middle for Granite Hills, pitching in 13 points, grabbing 7 rebounds, dishing 6 assists and making 3 steals.

"Joslyn was solid for us tonight, and was finally not in foul trouble," added Anderson. "I was really happy with the second half. We did a great job on the boards. We hustled and came up with loose balls."

Although he didn't register any numbers in the scoring department, senior DERICK EDWARDS made major contributions in other areas for Granite Hills.

"Derick Edwards is a quiet leader on the floor and had a good game tonight with 6 rebounds, a couple of assists and solid defense," Anderson said.

Sharp-shooter COURTNEY WRATHER led Mount Miguel with 16 points, including a pair of triples.

TRAVON CAPLES tipped in 14 points for the Matadors.

No other stats were available for Mount Miguel.

"We had a great first quarter," said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "Then in the second half we stopped attacking. We settled for too many jumpers. Everybody played average, nobody played outstanding."

Granite Hills scoring: Brian Humphries 15, Dean Miller 14, Andrew Joslyn 13, Wayne Martin 8, Kyle San Nicolas 2.

Mount Miguel scoring: Courtney Wrather 16, Travon Caples 14, Laron Rush 5, Matt Miles 3, A.J. Stanford 2, O.C. Basey 2.

WEST HILLS 47, SANTANA 32 -- Defense continues to be Santana's strong suit, as Grossmont North League leader West Hills learned in Friday's (Jan. 19) battle for Santee supremacy.

Bottom line: the score was 4-4 through one period -- Advantage Santana.

"There were lids on both baskets," commented West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG.

The problem was the second quarter, as the Sultans (6-14, 1-2 GNL) continue to struggle on offense and the Wolf Pack (10-9, 2-0 GNL) came out snarling, generating 16 points to lead 20-12 at intermission.

Even though West Hills did not have a single player reach double scoring digits, eight players contributed to the Wolf Pack's third win in their last four starts.

Senior CHRIS LIFGREN led West Hills with 9 points, including his 11th three-pointer of the season.

While Santana was proud that its box-and-one defense held Pack senior PETER GILSON to 8 points -- less than half his season average. Armstrong, however, noted the dominating work done by the 6-foot-2 Gilson on the glass.

Gilson gathered in a game-high 12 rebounds -- five on the offensive end.

"We got a lot of mileage out of Gilson, and TAYLOR ROBBINS brought a lot of energy and focus to the game," said Armstrong. "And BLAINE HOFFARD did a good job on the boards."

Robbins contributed 8 points, 3 assists and 2 steals, while Hoffard hauled in 9 rebounds.

"We got a lot of mileage out of our guards. Our scoring was pretty balanced tonight," Armstrong added.

Neither team shot well from the floor. West Hills was 18 of 54 (33 percent) and Santana was 11 of 45 (24.4 percent).

"It's the same old story for us," said Santana coach TIM BARRY. "We're getting great looks but the ball isn't dropping. We were only 3 of 24 in the first half."

Like West Hills, no one from Santana reached double digits. Junior BRETT ROMERO led the Santana scoring parade with 8 points, while TYLER BLACKLEDGE topped the rebounding game with 9 caroms.

"Well, we continue to play great defense," Barry said. "I was especially pleased that we held Gilson to only two field goals (in 5 attempts). Our kids, young as they are, have stopped two pretty good scorers in the last two games (Grossmont's IAN COCHRAN, is the other).

Barry noted that the game was closer than score indicated as West Hills closed out the contest with an 11-2 scoring run over the final five minutes.

West Hills scoring: Chris Lifgren 9, Peter Gilson 8, Taylor Robbins 8, Blaine Hoffard 7, Tony Lynn 7, Tim Nowlin 4, Troy Nowlin 2, Garret Cabral 2.

Santana scoring: Brett Romero 8, Jesse Vargas 7, Tyler Blackledge 6, Anthony DeBarrows 5, Kevin Engelke 2, Chris Sodergren 2, Kyle Salzman 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-19-07) -- The Hoover Cardinals swarmed inside the Ryan Athletic Center like a hive of stinging bees in Thursday's (Jan. 18) Central League contest with Christian High.

While the Patriots were able to dominate around the basket, they were unable to withstand Hoover's man-to-man pressure defense. The Cardinals forced 10 turnovers in the second quarter to turn the game in their favor and continued on to a 65-53 victory.

"Hoover is so talented," said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP. "They have excellent quard quickness and we just can't match it."

Nor could the Patriots (7-9, 1-1 CNT) match Hoover's depth. The Cardinals who came off the bench outscored the Christian reserves 13-4, but it was more than that.

Christian trailed only 19-16 early in the second quarter when 6-foot-6 senior VIKTOR ASACIOVAS was slapped with his third personal foul and had to retreat to the bench.

"Basically, that was the game right there," said Copp.

With Asaciovas sidelined for the remainder of the half, Hoover's press tightened and the Cardinals transition provided several easy baskets and a 35-21 lead at intermission.

The Cardinals (8-11, 1-1 CNT) continued to keep the game under their wings, leading 41-30 with 4:30 remaining in the third quarter.

Then the aggressive Asaciovas started the Patriots on a comeback. Christian scored 13 of the final 18 points in the third stanza. Asaciovas was the igniter, scoring 12 of his 16 points in that period.

"It would have been fun to play without Viktor getting into foul trouble," said Copp.

A basket by ANDRIUS MIKUTIS two minutes into the fourth quarter kept Christian close at 48-45. But the Patriots' lack of depth and Hoover's non-stop pressure began to take its toll again.

The Cardinals extended their advantage to 10 points, forcing Christian to foul in hopes of somehow pulling off an upset. Hoover made 7 of 10 free throws in the final 2:44 to turn back the Patriots.

"It was uplifting to see us fight back to within three and prove to ourselves that we could play with them," Copp said.

The ever-consistent Mikutis rolled a double-double of 20 points and 16 rebounds, playing the full 32 minutes, as usual. He also had 6 blocks, one more than Asaciovas.

"Andrius never wants to come out of the game," said Copp, noting that the 6-foot-4 senior guard averages 31½ minutes per game.

Despite missing seven minutes, Asaciovas scored 16 points, hitting 8 of 11 shots. He also captured 9 rebounds and blocked 5 shots.

Although he didn't score, DANNY MITCHELL chipped in with 6 assists for Christian, which also received 8 points from JORDAN GRAVES.

Four Cardinals finished in double scoring figures, led by Todd Doxey's 14 points.

Hoover was not effective shooting from the perimeter, but the Cardinals were able to force 25 Christian turnovers, which presented them with 75 shots. Hoover made 25 baskets, of which a third came off of steals.

Christian shot 51 percent (23-of-45) from the floor.

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 20, Viktor Asaciovas 16, Jordan Graves 8, Daniel Hazlett 5 (3 stl., 3 ast.), Brad Johnston 2 (3 ast.), Brad Sandusky 2.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-17-07) -- If any team in the Grossmont South League is going to challenge No. 1 ranked Helix, it might be the Steele Canyon Cougars.

Steele Canyon's Tony Minnifield (blue) and Granite Hills' Brian Humphries (white) battle for the rebound. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

The Cougars, who were virtually chopped to pieces by a murderous preseason schedule, are starting to put their game back together, winning six of their last eight starts.

Steele Canyon (6-9, 2-0 GSL) posted its second straight league win on the road as a TONY MINNIFIELD lay-up with 8 seconds left gave the Cougars a 48-47 Grossmont South League win over defending champion Granite Hills on Tuesday (Jan. 16) in the Eagles' lair.

Minnifield finished with a team-leading 17 points and 6 rebounds. But the 6-foot-3, 210-pound senior must share the glory with sophomore guard JEBARI ROBINSON, who delivered the key assist.

"We were down by a point in the final seconds so we wanted to get the ball in Jebari's hands and let him go one-on-one down the court," said Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN. "Jebari drove the key but made the quick decision to dump it off to Minnifield. Obviously he made the right choice."

Robinson, who hit 4 of 8 from the floor and 5 of 6 free throws (all in the final two minutes), totaled 14 points for the evening.

"Jebari is a scoring guard in a point guard's body," Balikian said. "He's not just an assist guy. He has a scoring mentality."

Robinson's totals included 4 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 assists.

Granite Hills (12-5, 1-1 GSL) inched out to a 29-25 halftime lead. The Cougars cut it to 37-35 after three periods.

After the Eagles' BRIAN HUMPHRIES took a charge, Granite Hills had the ball and a 47-46 lead with 17 seconds remaining. Steele Canyon committed a foul to put the pressure on the Granite Hills free thrower, who failed to connect.

Steele Canyon grabbed the defensive rebound and, after a timeout, Robinson and Minnifield hooked up for the game-winning basket.

Granite Hills had one final chance, but a three-point shot missed the mark, dropping the Eagles into a third-place tie.

"The bottom line is we made only 8 of 18 free throws playing at home, and that's the difference in a game like this," said Eagles coach RANDY ANDERSON. "We didn't play our best game of the year, but the kids played hard and well enough to win. We just came up short."

Granite Hills' Humphries scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and blocked 2 shots. DEAN MILLER, who sprained an ankle in the second quarter and missed most of the second half, finished with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

The Eagles, the Grossmont Conference's top 3-point shooting team, connected on only 5 shots from above the arc -- 3 of them by Humphries.

Steele Canyon's shooting wasn't a whole lot better, as the Cougars connected on only 33 of 54 attempts.

"I feel fortunate that we were able to come out on top," Balikian said. "We're playing better but our best basketball is still ahead of us. I think we can make some noise in our league."

Steele Canyon scoring: Tony Minnifield 17, Jebari Robinson 14, Arlin Taylor 5, Jake Ransom 4 (4 reb.), Riley Balikian 3 (4 stl.), Nick Stathas 2, Josiah Smith 2, Andrew Timm 1.

Granite Hills scoring: Brian Humphries 22, Dean Miller 12, Wayne Martin 8, Andrew Joslyn 5.

GROSSMONT 58, SANTANA 33 -- On a night when leading scorer IAN COCHRAN failed to produce a point, the Foothillers found other resources to knock off host Santana in Tuesday's (Jan. 16) Grossmont North League contest in Santee.

Cochran, a 6-foot-6 junior with a 22.6 point scoring average, played less than half the game but RICHARD OGUNSALU came up big with 16 points and 18 rebounds to balance the Foothillers' league record at 1-1. Ogunsalu was a double threat, as he scorched the Sultans inside and outside, hitting a pair of treys along the way.

Grossmont's leader from 3-point range was KHALID WATERS, who canned 4 triples and finished with 14 points. It was the second straight game that Waters had connected for four 3-balls.

Junior guard ROBERT SULLIVAN joined Grossmont's 3-point parade by landing a season-best 3 triples on only 4 attempts.

MICHAEL GRAHAM hit a ninth trey for Grossmont, which led 47-18 after three quarters.

"Cochran was playing with a deep thigh bruise that he got during Monday's practice," said Foothillers coach FRANK FOGGIANO. "He wanted to play and we wanted him in there. But Santana did a nice job playing him in a box-and-one. That's a credit to them, but I finally realized that Ian just couldn't get up and down the court, so I took him out."

Grossmont (10-8, 1-1 GNL) put the game away in the third quarter with a 20-5 scoring spread. It was during that 8 minute stretch that the Hillers landed 5 of their 9 treys. Waters and Ogunsalu hit 2 apiece then.

"Because Santana was so intent on stopping Cochran, it gave Ogunsalu more freedom," said Foggiano. "He was able to take advantage of that."

TYLER BLACKLEDGE paced Santana's anemic offense with 11 points, more than half coming on a pair of triples.

KEVIN ENGELKE added 8 markers, but no one else on Santana's side scored more than 3.

"I don't pull my players out for missing shots because I don't want them playing in fear," said Santana coach TIM BARRY. "But there's a difference, shooting when you're up by 15 points or down by 15 points."

Santana was on the mark on only 11 of 41 shots from the floor.

"We're getting great looks but we're just not getting offensive production," Barry said. "We committed only 14 turnovers and my guys played hard, and our defensive play was good enough to give us a win. I don't know exactly what it is except that our kids are inexperienced. If we continue to play the caliber of defense we're playing now, we'll find the ribbon of shooting that will give us some wins."

We couldn't hit any baskets if we wanted to. I like what we did on defense, I told the players after the game I was proud of their defensive effort."

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 16, Khalid Waters 14 (4 ast.), Michael Graham 9, Justin Rutherford 9 (6 reb.), Robert Sullivan 9, Alex Leon 1.

Santana scoring: Tyler Blackledge 11, Kevin Engelke 8, Kyle Salzman 3, Anthony DeBarrows 3, Chris Sodergren 3, Blake Harper 2, Ryan Garlin 2, Jarrel Patacsil 1.

MONTE VISTA 71, VALHALLA 54 -- Struggling to stay in the Grossmont South League race, host Monte Vista scored 44 points in the second half Tuesday night (Jan. 16) to avoid Valhalla's upset bid.

ROSHUN WYNNE was at the top of his game, scoring a season-high 27 points to lead the Monarchs to the crucial victory. The senior guard hit half of his 16 shots and 9 of 10 free throws. He was also a hawk on defense, recording 8 steals to go along with 6 rebounds and 5 assists.

JAMAR RANSOME was steady in the middle for Monte Vista (9-8, 1-1 GSL) with 19 points and 7 rebounds.

Rapidly improving sophomore GEOFF HARTMAN canned 10 points and bagged 5 boards.

The Monarchs, who led only 27-25 at the break, were without head coach KEVIN MAHADY, who was serving a one-game suspension for being ejected in the Monarchs previous game against Helix last Friday.

Assistant coach JAMES CARROLL, who has been a head coach at various venues in the past, filled in for Mahady.

"We started off a little slow but in the second half Wynne picked up the defensive intensity," said Carroll. "Ransome played really well in the second half. ALEX ROBINSON came off the bench and hit two 3s that really helped us."

Despite trailing by two at intermission, Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON said "The first half was one of the better halves we've played all year."

It might have been better for the Norsemen if senior TRAVIS FOELSCH had not been saddled with foul trouble.

"He got 9 points in the first quarter, but due to fouls, probably played only 18 minutes all night," Jackson said.

Foelsch finished with 13 points and 5 rebounds.

KEVIN KRIEBEL muscled in 11 points and 6 rebounds, while AUSTIN SUHAY tossed in 9 points and handed out 4 scoring passes.

Valhalla, which held its own on the boards against Monte Vista in the first half, couldn't keep up in the final two quarters.

"Give Wynne and Ransome credit -- they make it happen," Jackson said.

Monte Vista scoring: Roshun Wynne 27, Jamar Ransome 19, Geoff Hartman 10, Mike Watkins 7, Alex Robinson 6, Ryan Houser 2.

Valhalla scoring: Travis Foelsch 13, Kevin Kriebel 11, Austin Suhay 9, Aahron Mims 7 (7 reb.), Ruffy Bacong 7 (4 ast.), Daniel Butcher 4 (4 ast.), Jorge Sterna 4.

EL CAPITAN 61, EL CAJON VALLEY 49 -- Victories have been few and far between for the El Capitan Vaqueros this season. In fact, the last time El Capitan won was Dec. 19, 2006 when the Vaqueros beat High Tech High 51-48.

That victory assured the Vaqueros would not go winless. Nine consecutive losses followed, but the Lakesiders snapped the drought by dumping the visiting Braves in Tuesday's (Jan. 16) Grossmont North League game.

Suddenly, the Vaqueros (2-15, 1-0 GNL) are tied with West Hills for first place.

This victory was quite an achievement for the Vaqueros, who put together their highest scoring output despite committing 31 turnovers.

Junior BARRETT BRAUN, El Capitan's leading point-maker, scored 9 of his game-high 27 points in the first quarter, helping the Vaqueros take a 20-6 lead. But Braun's play was abbreviated in the second quarter as he found himself in foul trouble. Still, El Cap led 33-22 at intermission.

Braun played only 20 minutes but was still the difference in the game. He shared the rebounding lead with JERAMIE CARR, as each cleared 14 caroms.

Carr also had his best scoring game of the year with 18 points. The majority of Carr's tallies came from the free throw line, where he hit 10 of 16. A senior guard, Carr also made 6 steals and dished 4 assists.

ROBERT VICALDO gave a strong performance for El Capitan as well with 8 rebounds and 4 assists.

JON MOLZEN anchored El Cap's supporting cast with 8 points and 8 rebounds.

Where El Cajon Valley (5-14, 0-2 GNL) came up short was on the glass, where the Vaqueros claimed a 55-27 advantage.

Junior SHIVAN SULYMAN led the Braves with 13 points, and CHRIS FRANCO added 10.

DEWAYNE ALEXANDER pitched in 9 points, 5 rebounds and 5 steals for El Cajon Valley, which committed 25 fouls and had three players foul out.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 27, Jeramie Carr 18, Jon Molzen 8, Michael Overson 6, Robert Vicaldo 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Shivan Sulyman 13, Chris Franco 10, Dewayne Alexander 9, Lucas Stafford 7 Andrew Johnson 4, Dejon Joy 4, Chris Chambers 2.

HELIX 88, MOUNT MIGUEL 58 -- The top-ranked and once beaten Helix Highlanders are showing no signs of cracking. In Tuesday's (Jan. 16) Grossmont South League game the Highlanders matched their season scoring high as they mauled the Matadors in Spring Valley.

Four Highlanders reached double scoring figures, led by DAVID JEFFERSON's 24 points. The 6-foot-5 senior center hit 8 of 11 free throws, grabbed 11 rebounds and blocked 4 shots.

Senior BRANDON FOUNTAIN, known for his lock-down defensive ability, hit 9 of 11 shots from the floor for a season-high 18 points. He also snagged 7 rebounds.

LAWRENCE HURDLE added 15 points, 5 assists and 4 steals, while KAREEM ABUKAR tossed in 14 points on 6 of 9 shooting.

As a team Helix (16-1, 2-0 GSL) shot 58 percent from the floor (37 of 64).

"We played pretty well," said Helix coach JOHN SINGER. "I thought we played pretty good defensively and we transitioned well."

The Highlanders led 74-44 after three quarters, which allowed Singer to play his reserves extensively.

Other contributors to the Highlanders' victory were DORIAN STATON with 5 assists and 4 steals, ALEX AGUIRRE with 4 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, ERIC FORNEY with 5 points, 3 assists and RED NARCISSE with 5 rebounds.

COURTNEY WRATHER was the hub of Mount Miguel's offense with 26 points. He nailed four triples and 6 of 7 free throws while still finding time to dish 4 assists.

" Mount Miguel has pretty good athletes," said Singer. "Wrather is the real deal. He can take you off the dribble and hit the three."

Wrather has scored 68 points in his last three games.

TRAVON CAPLES added 9 points and 9 rebounds for the Matadors (11-7, 0-2 GSL).

"Helix is where we need to be now," said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "We have got to get to that level -- where we compete each and every time we go out. We have to have the whole squad ready. We have to get more inside points. We are not getting enough easy points."

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 24, Brandon Fountain 18, Lawrence Hurdle 15, Kareem Abukar 14, Eric Forney 5, Alex Aguirre 4, Tyonte Hosley 4, Dorian Staton 2, Donnie McGowan 2

Mount Miguel scoring: Courtney Wrather 26, Travon Caples 9, OC Basey 7, Devyn Moore 5, Matt Miles 5, Laron Rush 4, Arthur Hobbs 2.

© East County Sports.com
CLAIREMONT (1-14-07) -- In the battle between teams without a single senior in their starting lineups, the Foothills Christian High Knights showed they could win without shooting the 3-ball after handing the Panthers (4-13) their fifth straight loss 48-45 in the Martin Luther King Shootout Saturday (Jan. 13) at Horizon Christian.

TOP: The Foothills Christian bench, led by head coach Brad Leaf (center in blue), comes onto the court to celebrate a narrow triumph over Vista. BOTTOM: David Carter of Foothills Christian drives on a Vista defender for two points in the Knights' 48-45 victory at the Horizon-MLK Classic. (Photos by Adolfo Villanueva)

Leaf finished with 18 points on a night when Foothills Christian connected on only three of 19 shots from above the arc. Two of those treys were by AARON HALE.

Foothills averages 10 triples per game and more than 73 points per game.

In the defensive ballgame, the top defender proved to be Hale who stopped Quincy Lawson, Vista 's 6-foot-5 sophomore center. KALOB HATCHER registered six steals and seven assists for the Knights (13-4).

This was Foothills Christian's first triumph over a CIF Division I program.

Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 18, Aaron Hale 12, Kalob Hatcher 11, Zach Kaul 5, David Carter 2.

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (1-13-07) -- The uneasy feeling on the Granite Hills High bench was apparent after archrival Valhalla trimmed a double-digit deficit into a 3-point game in the final minutes of Friday's (Jan. 12) Grossmont South League opener.

However, sophomore DEAN MILLER knew what to do. Taking an aggressive stance, Miller took the ball to the basket on offense, then blocked everything within reach of the 6-foot-3 forward to pace the Eagles to a 67-48 whipping of the host Norsemen.

"Dean did everything you could ask of anybody in those final minutes," said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON. "He just took over."

Valhalla, which once trailed 40-27 late in the first half, moved to within 51-48 with 3:08 remaining after RUFFY BACONG hit a short jumper and added a pair of foul shots over consecutive possessions. Remarkably, the Norsemen would not score again due to Miller's efforts, leading the Eagles on a 16-0 run to secure the victory.

"Coach really got us fired up," noted Miller. "So we just came out and played team ball, getting some easy shots."

Half of the late scoring run was scored by Miller, who opened the streak by taking a NICO SANCHEZ pass and sinking a 3-ball, followed up with a drive into the lane to connect on a 4-footer from the paint and a 56-48 advantage.

The forward then transformed from a scorer into a playmaker by sending a lob inside to senior BRIAN HUMPHRIES, who completed a layin to cap his game-high 24-point performance.

Miller then answered on the other end of the court by blocking one shot, then forcing a late redirection of another Norsemen shot which easily would've been rejected, too. Miller finished with 22 points -- 17 in the second half -- to compliment his nine rebounds and six assists.

The final stake came moments later on a sideline inbounds pass by Humphries, who found DERICK EDWARDS unguarded under the basket for another uncontested layin.

Humphries registered 10 points in the opening quarter, as the Eagles stretched the lead to 31-22 by the intermission.

Valhalla finally answered with balanced scoring and attacking the glass, grabbing six offensive boards in the third period. And when AUSTIN SUHAY registered a steal to send MICHAEL ESPINOZA off on a breakaway to open the fourth period, Sidney took an AAHRON MIMS pass for a 3-ball, and the Norsemen climbed back into the contest.

KEVIN KRIEBEL paced the Norsemen (9-9 overall, 0-1 GSL) with 13 points and Eight rebounds, while Bacong posted 10 points -- all in the second half to support Valhalla's belated rally.

"We came back in the second half and had a nice run to bring it to within three points," said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON. "Then we had some defensive breakdowns late in the game and they hit their free throws. It was the most energized I've seen our guys play in the second half."

Granite Hills scoring: Brian Humphries 24, Dean Miller 22, Andrew Joslyn 8, Nico Sanchez 6, Kyle Snyder 5, Derick Edwards 2.

Valhalla scoring: Kevin Kriebel 13, Ruffy Bacong 10, Daniel Butcher 7, Austin Sidney 6, Michael Espinoza 6, Travis Foelsh 4, Aaron Mims 2.

A ball fake by Grossmont's Ian Cochran (with ball) puts this West Hills defender into the popcorn machine to earn an easy layin in the Pack's victory. (Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

WEST HILLS 58, GROSSMONT 55 -- In what some would call a mild upset, West Hills came from behind to dump preseason favorite Grossmont in the Grossmont North League opener Friday night (Jan. 12) in Santee.

The game was tied 42-all after three periods when the Wolf Pack (9-9, 1-0 GNL) gradually pulled out to a 56-52 lead with 25 seconds remaining. The Pack missed a chance to seal the Hillers' fate when it failed to convert a TIM NOWLIN steal on a breakaway lay-up.

IAN COCHRAN rebounded for Grossmont and fired a pass deep into the left corner to KHALID WATERS, who in turn, launched a high arcing shot that hit the front of the rim and bounced in for a 3-pointer. The West Hills lead was cut to one point with 19 seconds remaining.

Nowlin would have a chance to redeem himself after missing a chance to clinch the victory as he was fouled on the inbound pass and sank two free throws with 18 seconds remaining, stretching the Pack's lead to 58-55.

But it wasn't over, as Grossmont had two legitimate shots at tying the game. Foothillers' scoring ace Cochran missed two 3-point attempts and the scramble for the rebound ended up in a jump ball. Possession: to West Hills.

The Wolf Pack was unable to run out the clock as they were called for traveling in its attempt to inbound the ball. Possession: to Grossmont.

But the Foothillers (9-8, 0-1 GNL) traveled before they could get off a shot at the buzzer. Game over.

West Hills' PETER GILSON led all scorers with 24 points, hitting 10 of 13 from the field and 4 of 5 free throws.

"Peter has been a force for us and tonight he hit a lot of off-balance shots," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG.

Perhaps the unsung hero of the game for the Wolf Pack was senior TAYLOR ROBBINS.

" Taylor has been good at the defensive end all year," Armstrong said. "We've always known he can shoot the ball, but we've been waiting for him to break loose."

Robbins, who had not scored from 3-point distance all season, connected on 3 of 4 triples against the Foothillers.

It's no secret that the key to defeating Grossmont is keeping a collar on Cochran. For the most part West Hills was able to do that, as the Foothillers' 6-6 junior was held to 15 points -- nine below his season average. The majority of Cochran's scoring came on 9 of 11 free throw shooting.

Armstrong credited the NOWLIN brothers -- TROY and Tim -- with keeping Cochran in check.

"Cochran is a tough match-up for us. He's a big guy who likes to jump over smaller guys to shoot," Armstrong said. "The Nowlins measure up to Cochran with Tim standing at 6-5 and Troy at 6-4."

TONY LYNN contributed 8 assists for the Wolf Pack, while Troy Nowlin led the team with 7 rebounds.

"This is a key win for us because we play three of our first four league games at home," said Armstrong.

Another positive number spotted by Armstrong was West Hills turned the ball over only nine times while shooting just under 50 percent from the field.

"The big thing is the kids on our team know their roles and who our scorers are," said Armstrong. "Just as important is we are getting good play from our bench. The one thing they all know is you have to defend."

Armstrong gave credit to Grossmont's Waters, who punctured the West Hills defense with 4 triples and 15 points.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 24, Taylor Robbins 10, Chris Lifgren 7, Tony Lynn 4, Tim Nowlin 5, Blaine Hoffard 4, Troy Nowlin 4.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 15, Khalid Waters 15, Richard Ogunsalu 9, Justin Rutherford 7, Michael Graham 6, Alex Chiappone 2, Colter Rios 1.

CHRISTIAN 65, CORONADO 59 (2-OT) -- DANNY MITCHELL and DANIEL HAZLETT each hit a pair of free throws in the waning seconds of the second overtime as visiting Christian opened the Central League season with a hard-fought victory over the Islanders.

"It was a war out there, but a great win for us," said Christian coach KEN BAILEY.

The Islanders hit four 3-pointers to jump out to a 13-2 lead and was poised for a possible blowout. The first half belonged to the Islanders, who took a 30-19 lead into the locker room at the half.

"We dug ourselves into another hole early just like we did against Foothills Christian (on Wednesday)," Bailey said. "I challenged the kids and they responded. Our defense really stepped up in the third quarter."

Christian outscored Coronado 16-4 to take a one-point lead into the fourth quarter.

"We pressed and forced some turnovers and took the lead midway through the third quarter," said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP.

Just when the Patriots were about to secure a 3-point win, the Islanders' Geoff Worley hit a 3-pointer to force the game into overtime.

Both teams scored six points each in the four minute overtime before the Patriots picked up the scoring pace in the second extra stanza to grab the win.

ANDRIUS MIKUTIS scored 26 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and 4 steals. He was 7 of 13 from the field and 12 of 17 from the free throw line. The 6-foot-4 senior guard has accounted for 51 points and 37 rebounds in his last two games.

Hazlett added 17 points, nailing 3 triples and 8 of 9 free throws. VIKTOR ASACIOVAS pitched in with 13 points and 7 rebounds.

" Coronado had us scouted well and attempted to make anyone besides Hazlett, Asaciovas, and Mikutis shoot. All three of them earned every bucket they got," Copp said. "Coach Bailey put together an excellent game plan and once the boys followed it the results came."

Bailey did note that his roster was a little bit short, considering "the stomach flu has hit some of our kids."

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 26, Daniel Hazlett 17 (5 reb.), Viktor Asaciovas 13, Danny Mitchell 5 (4 ast.), Jordan Graves 2, Brad Johnston 2.

HELIX 74, MONTE VISTA 51 -- It was no contest Friday night (Jan. 12) in La Mesa . And most likely that will be the case in all 10 of the Helix Highlanders' Grossmont South League encounters.

On the strength of senior veteran LAWRENCE HURDLE, DAVID JEFFERSON and BRANDON FOUNTAIN the Highlanders mauled the Monarchs in a game that was close for only the first five minutes.

"This was supposed to be the battle between the No. 1 and the No. 2 teams in the Grossmont South," said Hurdle, who scored 23 points, dished 6 assists and recorded 5 steals. "We just had to come out and show them that we're better.

The Highlanders (15-1, 1-0 GSL) have no doubt played better games this season, but they were convincing in dispatching the Monarchs (8-8, 0-1 GSL).

"I think we frustrated them a little bit because they kept on switching from zone to man and back and forth," added Hurdle. "We did a good job adjusting to what they were playing."

Helix took command in the first quarter, outscoring the Monarchs 25-11. KAREEM ABUKAR accounted for 10 of those points, hitting all four of his shots from the field -- two of them from 3-point range.

Hurdle pitched in 7 and senior center Jefferson added 6 in that quarter.

"It was about our defense tonight, which probably caused them to rush their shots," said Hurdle.

The Monarchs shot only 32 percent, hitting only 15 of 47 chances. The game might have been even more lop-sided had the Monarchs not converted 20 of 30 free throws.

Jefferson finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds, while Abukar totaled 12 points. Fountain finished with 9 rebounds, 8 points and 4 assists.

JAMAR RANSOME paced Monte Vista with 18 points -- most of it coming on 12 of 16 free throw shooting -- and 10 rebounds.

ROSHUN WYNNE added 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Monarchs.

"It seems like every game another guy will get some good minutes for us," said Helix coach JOHN SINGER, who on this occasion was referring to senior ERIC FORNEY.

The coach was also high on the play of DORIAN STATON, who contributed 7 rebounds, 5 points, 4 assists and 2 steals.

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 23, Lawrence Hurdle 23, Kareem Abukar 12, Brandon Fountain 8, Dorian Staton 5, Eric Forney 2, Alex Aguirre 1.

Monte Vista scoring: Jamar Ransome 18, Roshun Wynne 12, Geoff Hartman 9, Ryan Houser 4, Eric Griffin 3, Mike Watkins 2, Trent Watkins 2, Fred Webb 1.

STEELE CANYON 61, MOUNT MIGUEL 52 -- Visiting Steele Canyon overcame a 12-point second-half deficit Friday night (Jan. 12) to stun Mount Miguel in a Grossmont South League opener.

For one of the few times this season the Cougars (5-9, 1-0 GSL) showed power inside the paint. Six-foot-6 senior ANDREW TIMM hit 7 of 10 shots on his way to a team-best 17 points, while 6-3 TONY MINNIFIELD netted 7 of 12 shots en route to a 16 point finish.

Timm led in rebounds with 9, while 6-2 junior guard JAKE RANSOM collected 8 caroms. Minnifield snagged 6 rebounds, one more than teammate ARLIN TAYLOR.

JEBARI ROBINSON chipped in with 10 points for the Cougars, who may be the GSL's most surprising team down the stretch.

Taylor, a senior guard, dished 8 assists for Steele Canyon . RILEY BALIKIAN accounted for 2 of the Cougars' 5 triples in the game.

TRAVON CAPLES scored seven of his game-high 22 points in the first quarter, helping the Matadors take a 14-3 first quarter advantage. He also led the team with 8 rebounds.

"We were up 12 at halftime (31-19)," said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "We just stopped playing defense in the second half."

The Cougars outscored the Matadors 23-11 in the third quarter to tie the game 42-11, and then continued their surge in the fourth period for the win.

"They scored two 3-pointers in the third quarter and we got in foul trouble," said Rowlett.

Steele Canyon scoring: Andrew Timm 17, Tony Minnifield 16, Jebari Robinson 10, Riley Balikian 8, Arlin Taylor 5, Jake Ransom 4, Josiah Smith 1.

Mount Miguel scoring: Travon Caples 22, Courtney Wrather 12, Ahmaad Nunley 9, Devyn Moore 6, OC Basey 3.

SANTANA 51, EL CAJON VALLEY 44 -- KEVIN ENGELKE scored 13 points and ANTHONY DeBARROWS added 10 as host Santana snapped a six game losing streak by beating the Braves in the Grossmont North League opener Friday (Jan. 12) with a win.

"We played hard tonight although we missed seven free throws in the first half and 5 of them in the second quarter," said Santana coach TIM BARRY. "And we missed 18 lay-ups."

Although the Braves were up by two points at the half, Santana outscored El Cajon Valley 25-16 in the second half.

DeBarrows, a junior guard, accounted for 2 of Santana's 3 triples in the game.

"DeBarrows, was huge in the second half," said Barry. "Our defense was outstanding in the second half. We did a good job of taking them out of what they wanted to do."

Santana scoring: Kevin Engelke 13, Anthony DeBarrows 10, Tyler Blackledge 8 (3 reb.), Jesse Vargas 7, Chris Sodergren 6, Brett Romero 5 (9 reb.), Kyle Salzman 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Shivan Sulyman 11, Chris Franco 9, Dejon Joy 6, Lucas Stafford 6, Dewayne Alexander 5, A.J. Ussery 4, Andrew Johnson 3.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-11-07) -- Just call the Foothills Christian basketball team "the young and the restless." Competing in just their second varsity season, the Knights, whose lineup consists of all underclassmen, continue to play like unheralded veterans -- restless for recognition.

Foothills (12-4), which is averaging more than 73 points per game, sprinted to a 24-8 first quarter lead and looked as if it was prepared to run the Patriots off the court.

Christian (7-7) was forced to play catch-up all night. The Patriots, led by the 25 points and 25 rebounds of ANDRIUS MIKUTIS, never got closer than one point.

The Knights led by as many as 16 points early on as Christian's first nine possessions resulted in four turnovers and five missed shots. Still, the Patriots closed the gap to 26-24 on two DANIEL HAZLETT free throws with 2:22 left in the half.

But Foothills finished the opening 16 minutes on 3-point buckets by Leaf and BRANDON HALE, and 6 points from freshman guard KALOB HATCHER to lead 38-28 by intermission.

Foothills opened up a 14-point spread early in the third quarter and maintained a 55-41 advantage with two minutes left in the quarter.

"Hats off to Foothills -- they did a great job," said Christian coach KEN BAILEY. "They ran their stuff well and we did a poor job defensively."

Even though Christian was on a continual comeback trail, they still fell short for several reasons. Most glaring was Foothills' ability to hit 15 three-pointers to just 4 for the Patriots -- a 33-point difference. It was Foothills' consistency in hitting the long ball that offset the Patriots' 55-24 rebounding edge.

"They had a lot of scoring runs, but we always had an answer," said Foothills coach BRAD LEAF. "This is the way we play, you know. We just come out and start firing away."

Foothills shot 42 percent from the field, netting 25 of 60 attempts, but the Knights camped on the perimeter where they hit 15 of 37 treys.

Hatcher and ZACH KAUL joined Troy Leaf on the 3-point scoring parade with 4 triples apiece. Brandon Hale accounted for the other 2 treys.

"That's our game plan," coach Leaf said."œWe have four or five guys that can shoot threes."

Hatcher added 17 points and 10 assists for the Knights. Kaul finished with 14 points, and AARON HALE pitched in 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 blocks for Foothills Christian.

Mikutis was the most powerful player on the floor, nailing 11 of 17 shots from the floor and all three free throw attempts. Sixteen of his rebounds came off the offensive glass.

VIKTOR ASACIOVAS added 18 points -- most of it coming on 7 of 14 shooting -- and 14 rebounds. Hazlett accounted for all 4 of Christians' threes and totaled 18 points for the evening.

Foothills Christian: Troy Leaf 21 (5 ast., 3 reb.), Kalob Hatcher 17 (5 reb., 2 stl.), Zach Kaul 14, Aaron Hale 10, Brandon Hale 8.

Christian scoring: Andrius Mikutis 25, Viktor Asaciovas 18, Daniel Hazlett 18, Danny Mitchell 5 (6 reb.).

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-8-07) -- The game plan devised by Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT was simple: Stop Grossmont's IAN COCHRAN.

Cochran, a 6-foot-6 junior who came in averaging 23.9 ppg for the host Grossmont Foothillers in Monday's (Jan. 8) Grossmont Conference contest, was almost silent as the Matadors defused his firepower and pulled out a 59-53 victory in overtime.

The focus of this game should be shared between Mount Miguel's effective defensive strategy and the career-high 30 points scored by Matadors senior guard COURTNEY WRATHER.

Wrather gave the Matadors a 49-46 lead for keeps when he hit a baseline 3-pointer from deep in the corner.

Sophomore AHMAAD NUNLEY followed with a lay-up to extend Mount Miguel's advantage to 51-46 with 2:35 left on the clock in overtime.

Grossmont (9-7), which finished last in the Grossmont North but is favored to win it this year, fought back.

A putback by ALEX CHIAPPONE and a 3-foot turn around by RICHARD OGUNSALU pulled the Foothillers to within one point with 1:20 remaining in OT.

Wrather kept Mount Miguel in control with a bucket and a free throw, staking Mount Miguel to 54-50 lead with 45 seconds remaining.

Faced with having to foul or watch the clock run out, Grossmont elected to do the former. The Hillers picked on LARON RUSH, who connected on 4 of 6 free throws to all but seal the victory for the Matadors.

Wrather scored 9 of the Matadors 11 points in the third quarter and 5 of 10 in the fourth quarter. There was no question that he was the go-to guy.

"I'm the team captain, I'm the shooting guard so they look to me," said Wrather, who came into the game averaging 15.4 ppg. "That's my job. I felt hot -- I wanted the ball."

Wrather beat the Foothillers with his long-range shooting (4 triples), but didn't hesitate -- when the Hillers extended their second-half zone -- to drive to the basket.

"They were doubling me a few times but if I couldn't get through, I'd just kick it through to my teammates," said Wrather, who also had 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

One thing Wrather never lost was his confidence.

"When we went into overtime all I thought about was: game -- win," he said.

Rush was strong on the inside for the Matadors, tallying 10 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks. It was the 6-foot-4 Matadors senior who drew the critical 5th foul on Grossmont's scoring machine, Cochran, with 2:50 left in regulation, and the Foothillers leading 43-38.

"That was our game plan in practice: To stop No. 22 (Cochran)," said Wrather. "We talked about that about 11 times. That was our main priority."

Cochran finished with a sub-par 11 points, making just 3 baskets and 5 of 10 free throws. Even his rebound count of 8 was below his regular contribution.

"We did a great job of sinking down and doubling down on the low post," said Rowlett. "All I know is our guys played really well defensively and were smart with our game plan. I was very impressed with our defense and our unselfish ability to move the basketball around on offense."

Mount Miguel (11-5) blew an early 21-13 lead in the first half and trailed 27-25 at the break.

"I thought our pressure hurt them in the second half," said Rowlett.

As for Wrather's 30 points, Rowlett said, "I didn't even know he had that many. It was a quiet 30, but we'll take ‘em."

Sophomore AHMAAD NUNLEY pitched in a critical 9 points, while TRAVON CAPLES picked off 8 rebounds, and A.J. STANFORD and OC BASEY picked off 6 rebounds apiece.

"This is a really big win for us going into our league season," said Rowlett, whose Matadors open the Grossmont South League season at Mount Miguel against Steele Canyon .

Grossmont, which was led by the 12 points and 8 rebounds of junior RICHARD OGUNSALU, takes on West Hills in Friday night's (Jan. 12) Grossmont North League opener.

Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO believed that his Foothillers did not respond to the physical play of Mount Miguel in Monday's loss.

"They were almost tackling us," said Foggiano. "Our kids wanted to complain about it, but I told them to stop worrying about what the other team was doing, that they needed to ‘get basketball mean.' I wasn't talking about playing dirty. I was just talking about getting physically tougher."

JUSTIN RUTHERFORD added 11 points and 6 rebounds for the Foothillers in the disappointing loss to Mount Miguel . MICHAEL GRAHAM hit 2 of the Foothillers 5 three-pointers to finish with 10 points.

"We had our chances," Foggiano said. "Our on-the-ball defense wasn't very good. And we didn't play good help defense either. We need to shore up our defense and play more aggressive than we have of late if we want to win the league."

Mount Miguel scoring: Courtney Wrather 30, Laron Rush 10, Ahmaad Nunley 9, A.J. Stanford 4, Travon Caples 4, Devyn Moore 2.

Grossmont scoring: Richard Ogunsalu 12, Ian Cochran 11, Justin Rutherford 11, Michael Graham 10, Khalid Waters 7, Alex Chiappone 2.

WEST HILLS 64, VALHALLA 32 -- Mark the West Hills Wolf Pack ready to compete for the Grossmont North League title. The Wolf Pack stunned visiting Valhalla by taking a 43-9 halftime lead in Monday's (Jan. 8) Grossmont Conference tuneup for Friday's (Jan. 12) league opener against preseason favorite Grossmont in Santee.

"We play three of our first four league games at home, beginning with Grossmont," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. "Obviously we need to get off to a good start."

For nine of the 12 quarters in the Wolf Pack's last three non-league games the Wolf Pack has played like champions. The Pack was certainly at its best against Valhalla , taking a 19-5 first quarter lead and never looking back.

West Hills (8-9) shot 52 percent from the field (25 of 48) and took advantage of 16 offensive rebounds.

The Wolf Pack's PETER GILSON, who hit 9 of 15 shots and 4 of 7 free throws for a game-high 22 points, was the game's leading rebounder, collecting 14 caroms. Ten of those rebounds came on the offensive glass.

Gilson, who also had 3 assists, was one of four players reaching double scoring digits.

CHRIS LIFGREN hit 4 of 5 shots from the field on his way to a 14-point night. The NOWLIN brothers -- TROY and TIM -- contributed 10 points apiece to the Pack attack. Tim had 6 rebounds, while Troy collected 5 caroms, made 3 steals and blocked 2 shots.

The West Hills backcourt was led by BLAINE HOFFARD, who contributed 4 points, 5 steals, 4 assists and 4 rebounds. TAYLOR ROBBINS jumped off the pine to grab 7 rebounds and deal 4 assists even though he didn't score.

"We had great play from our bench tonight," said Armstrong. "We have seven kids who could start for us on any given night."

If there was any consolation for Valhalla , it would be knowing they outscored the Wolf Pack 23-21 in the second half.

Valhalla sophomore AUSTIN SUHAY led the Norsemen with 9 points.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 22, Chris Lifgren 14, Troy Nowlin 10, Tim Nowlin 10, Blaine Hoffard 4, Garret Cabral 2, Tony Lynn 2.

Valhalla scoring: Austin Suhay 9, Travis Foelsch 6, Kevin Kriebel 6, Ruffy Bacong 6, Aahron Mims 3, Rod Fakhoury 2.

GRANITE HILLS 62, EL CAPITAN 31 -- Visiting Granite Hills used a 16-2 third quarter spread to blow out the Vaqueros in a Grossmont Conference game Monday night (Jan. 8) in Lakeside.

"About the best thing I can say about this game is we played well defensively," said Granite Hills coach RANDY ANDERSON.

The Eagles (11-4) shot an unspectacular 43 percent from the field, hitting 20 of 46 attempts. They did, however, make 5 of 12 shots from above the arc.

Steady BRIAN HUMPHRIES, who did not play in the fourth quarter, paced the Eagles with 17 points, 11 rebounds, 9 steals and 5 blocks. More than half of Humphries' points came from hitting 3 triples.

DEAN MILLER pitched in 14 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Granite Hills, which opens the Grossmont South League season against Valhalla , might want to work on its free throw shooting as the Eagles were only 17 for 32 at the charity stripe.

Lone wolf BARRETT BRAUN continued to carry the offense for El Capitan (1-15), scoring 18 points. Included in Braun's totals were a pair of 3s. The 6-foot-3 junior also grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds.

The defending Grossmont North League champion El Capitan also got 10 rebounds from JERAMIE CARR and 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 points from sophomore JON MOLZEN.

The Vaqueros' problems were exacerbated by turning the ball over 34 times.

Granite Hills scoring: Brian Humphries 17, Dean Miller 14, Nico Sanchez 6, Andrew Joslyn 6, Kyle Snyder 6, Kyle San Nicolas 5, Ian Birmingham 4, Casey Beatty 2, Derick Edwards 2.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 18, Jon Molzen 6, Jeramie Carr 4, Robert Vicaldo 2, Michael Overson 1.

HELIX 88, EL CAJON VALLEY 30 -- Top-ranked Helix can't be accused of looking ahead to Friday's (Jan. 12) Grossmont South League opener of Monte Vista. The Highlanders hardly broke a sweat in Monday's (Jan. 8) pre-league tune-up at El Cajon Valley .

Helix (14-1) raced out to leads of 28-7, 51-10 and 77-18 before a running clock was utilized against the Braves (5-12).

"I don't believe in all that stuff about looking ahead," said Helix coach JOHN SINGER. "You deal with the game at hand and then worry about the next game when you play it."

Despite limited play four Highlanders reached double figures led by LAWRENCE HURDLE's 22 points. Hurdle had a hot hand, netting 10 of 15 shots from the field, including a pair of triples. The Highlanders senior playmaker also pitched in 6 assists, 5 steals and 4 rebounds.

If Singer were to single out a player for a sparkling individual performance, that player would likely be junior guard KAREEM ABUKAR, who knocked down a season-high 16 points. Abukar had a keen shooting eye as he made 6 of 8 shots from the field -- one of them a 3 -- and 3 of 4 free throws.

"That's two good games in a row for him," Singer said. "We need for him to keep it going now that we're starting league games."

DAVID JEFFERSON chipped in with a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Highlanders, while BRANDON FOUNTAIN, who was 5 for 6 from the field and 2 of 2 from the free throw line, added 12 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals.

Helix held an 18-2 scoring edge in points coming off turnovers.

When asked about Monte Vista, Singer said, "That's going to be a tough game for us. They match up well with our key players."

Helix scoring: Lawrence Hurdle 22, Kareem Abukar 16, David Jefferson 15, Brandon Fountain 12, Dorian Staton 8, Tyonte Hosley 5, Donnie McGowan 4, Darrell Chandler 2, Alex Aguirre 2, Andray Jackson 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: A.J. Ussery 8, Lucas Stafford 7, Shivan Sulyman 3, Jesse Codear 3, Dejon Joy 3, Andrew Johnson 3, Mohammed Zubair 2, Dewayne Alexander 1.

© East County Sports.com
EL CAJON (1-7-07) -- Sophomore guard ZACH KAUL drained 9-of-11 shots from beyond the arc en route to a 38-point performance, helping Foothills Christian dominate another Citrus South League opponent by whipping lowly Midway Baptist, 91-33, Saturday (Jan. 6) at Granite Hills High.

The Knights (11-4 overall) moved to 2-0 in a league in which almost every opponent holds a sub-.500 records.

Freshman point guard KALOB HATCHER was credited with 16 assists, as Foothills reported 31 helpers on its 34 buckets. Included were nine makes by TROY LEAF, who finished with 23 points, while Hatcher scored 17 -- each in just three quarters of action against the overmatched Patriots. And the Knights never bothered to press Midway Baptist, while playing all of the reserves in the final quarter.

East County 's version of The Holy War is slated for 4:30 p.m. Wednesday (Jan. 10), when Foothills meets Christian High at the Ryan Athletics Center in the first-time clash between East County 's two private high schools.

© East County Sports.com
LA MESA (1-6-07) -- For one half, visiting West Hills went toe-to-toe with the once-beaten Highlanders in Friday night's (Jan. 5) Helix home opener. But the Highlanders turned things in their favor with a strong third quarter to pull out a 74-55 non-league victory.

Upstart West Hills (7-9) was nursing a one-point lead with less than a minute to go in the opening half. But the Highlanders put down one of their 6 three-pointers in the game to take a 33-31 edge at intermission.

Foothills in the Forest

Foothills Christian guard Kalob Hatcher drives the lane against Dover Bay of British Columbia. Dover Bay is ranked 4th in Division AAA in B.C. according to website Basketball.BC.ca. (File Photo by Greg Eichelberger)

Foothills foils another East County foe © East County Sports.com SANTEE (1-6-07) -- Fresh-faced and full of firepower, Foothills Christian is proving they can hang with some teams in East County basketball circles. The Knights defeated their second Grossmont Conference opponent in as many tries Friday (Jan. 5), racing past host Santana, 83-57, behind 26 points and six assists by freshman TROY LEAF. "Those guys can really shoot, and have three players who are all point-guard-esque," said Sultans coach TIM BARRY, who, as a player, helped lead Santana to the San Diego CIF Division I championship in 1988. "You can't rest for a moment against them or they will beat you down the court and fill-up the basket." Which begs the question: How good are the Knights? "In the Grossmont North League, it would be between them and Grossmont," noted Barry. "The Hillers would give them problems with their height." The lack of a true big man is something Foothills coach BRAD LEAF hopes will be taken care of by Mother Nature since he fields, perhaps, the youngest team in the county. "All of our starters are 14-to-16 year-olds," noted the coach on his starting quintet, which features two freshmen, a pair of sophomores and a junior -- some junior varsity teams field more experience. "They're all young, so we hope some of these guys grow to be 6-foot-4 to 6-foot-6." The lack of height didn't stop 6-4 junior AARON HALE from taking control inside. The forward blocked nine shots, including five in the fourth period, to prevent Santana from mounting a comeback. Hale finished one block shy of a triple-double, also collecting 14 points and 13 rebounds. Only once did Santana (5-12) make a run at the Knights, trimming a 10-point deficit down to a bucket at 31-29 midway through the second quarter. However, Foothills ignited on a 19-4 run, capped by a bucket by RONNIE RICHARDS following a scramble for a loose ball, then Hale stole the inbounds pass and also scored on a layin for a 50-33 lead for the Knights (10-4). ZACH KAUL then closed out the victory by going 3-for-3 from beyond the arc in the final period. Kaul finished with 17 points, 15 coming on 3-balls. KALOB HATCHER, the other starting frosh, added 15 points before fouling out. "All of their guys were shooting like that," added Barry. "It didn't matter where on the court they were." Which makes the future bright for the Knights. "I'm really looking forward to the spring (club) season," noted coach Leaf. "Among the top 20 teams in the county, 15 or so are senior-laden, so that will be our opportunity to really step forward." Not that Foothills is phoning-in the 2006-07 season. The Knights are considered the top team in Division V in the San Diego Section, with aspirations to advance to the CIF state playoffs. Sophomore KEVIN ENGELKE turned in one of his better games for Santana, which also is a team laden with underclassmen. Engelke tallied 15 points, most of it coming on 9-of-11 free throw shooting. Same is true for Santana junior BRET ROMERO, who doubled his season average with a 13-point effort. Junior TYLER BLACKLEDGE added 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Sultans. Foothills Christian scoring: Troy Leaf 26 (12 reb., 6 ast.), Zach Kaul 17, Kalob Hatcher 15, Aaron Hale 14 (13 reb., 9 blk.), Ronnie Richards 4, David Carter 4, Brandon Hale 3. Santana scoring: Kevin Engelke 15, Brett Romero 13, Tyler Blackledge 11 (13 reb.), Jesse Vargas 10, Blake Harper 4, John Vasquez 2, Anthony DeBarrows 2.

The Highlanders (13-1) then applied the defensive clamps on the Wolf Pack in the third quarter.

"I don't think we got a shot attempt in the first four minutes of the third quarter," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. "We played so well in the first half, but once again we had those 6 to 7 minutes of lapses, like we've had all year."

Helix coach JOHN SINGER was impressed by the Wolf Pack's strong showing in the first two quarters.

"Their coaches had them well prepared to play us," said Singer. "I could tell -- this being our first home game -- that our kids were too excited, too anxious. But give West Hills credit. I think every shot they made in the first half was a lay-up. They just killed us inside."

Singer no doubt gave one of his famous halftime "pep talks," as the Highlanders bounded out of the locker room to outscore the Pack 27-11 in the third quarter. BRANDON FOUNTAIN scored 8 of his 10 points in that period, while DAVID JEFFERSON sank 7 of his 15 markers in the third.

"It all came down to defense, like it always does with us," said Singer. "In the first half we were too much in an attacking mode -- going for the steal too frequently. But when we came out for the second half, we got back into our game. We were a lot more conservative. Sure, we got 26 points, but a lot of that came from playing solid defense."

The Highlanders are only two points away from being undefeated. A 56-54 loss to Rancho Buena Vista on Dec. 5th is their only blemish. Since then they've won 11 in a row.

"Give our kids credit for doing the things we needed to do to win," said Singer. "We had good balance and got some 3-point shots when we needed it. We know we're going to see more zones this season, and we have to be able to take advantage of what the other team gives us."

KAREEM ABUKAR had one of his better offensive nights, sinking 3 triples on his way to a 13-point finish. DORIAN STATON also had a pair of 3s and totaled 8 points.

The ever-reliable LAWRENCE HURDLE tossed in a team-best 20 points, dished 8 scoring passes and logged 4 steals for the Highlanders.

It was not one of Jefferson's best nights, but he did make 7 of 10 free throws, collected 7 rebounds, delivered 4 assists, made 3 steals and blocked 2 shots.

"I know the numbers don't show it, but David really didn't come ready to play," said Singer. "But it's all part of the process. I know he's a solid player and we have a good team, but we can't have letdowns like we did in the first half tonight."

Singer had added praise for Fountain, " Brandon was one of the biggest differences in the third quarter. He kept a lot of second chance shots alive in that key third quarter."

PETER GILSON was the guiding light for West Hills, scoring 20 points and securing 8 rebounds. Gilson, one of East County's top shooters from the field, put down 8 of 12 shots and 4 of 5 free throws.

"Peter works so hard down low, he earns those points," said Armstrong.

TROY NOWLIN had an outstanding game for West Hills. The 6-foot-4 senior hit 7 of 9 shots from the floor and 4 free throws for 18 points. Nowlin also snared 7 rebounds, made 2 assists and took three charges.

CHRIS LIFGREN continued his steady shooting, making half of his 10 shots from the floor and 4 of 4 free throws for 14 points.

"We played much better against Helix than we did against Monte Vista (on Jan. 3rd)," said Armstrong. "Hurdle, Jefferson and Fountain are all outstanding players. We tried to pack it in on them defensively, but then they hurt us with the 3. That Abukar kid can really shoot it."

Helix scoring: Lawrence Hurdle 20, David Jefferson 15, Kareem Abukar 13, Brandon Fountain 10, Donnie McGowan 8, Dorian Staton 8.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 20, Troy Nowlin 18, Chris Lifgren 14, Tim Nowlin 2, Taylor Robbins 1.

GROSSMONT 59, GRANITE HILLS 51 -- As the beginning of the Grossmont North League grows nearer, the Foothillers are showing more and more signs that they should be the team to beat in that circuit.

The Foothillers (9-6) outscored host Granite Hills 32-18 in the second half to register an impressive victory over one of the Grossmont South's better teams.

Grossmont junior IAN COCHRAN scored 17 of his game-high 22 points in the second half to help the Foothillers pull a reversal.

"We were down at halftime (33-27), then extended our defense in the third quarter," said Grossmont coach FRANK FOGGIANO. "We held them to five points in the third quarter."

Granite Hills (10-4), which lives and dies on the 3-pointer, was limited to only one triple in the second half. The Eagles totaled only 6 treys -- which was low for them -- 4 of them coming from DEAN MILLER, who led the team with 17 points and 6 assists.

Overall Granite Hills was 18 for 52 from the floor.

"We were pretty flat offensively in the third quarter," said Eagles coach RANDY ANDERSON. "Grossmont outplayed us in the second half. We played real well in the first half, but we gave up a 3-pointer the buzzer just before halftime. We didn't get the final shot. They kinda had the momentum after that."

Cochran collected 11 rebounds, one less than teammate RICHARD OGUNSALU.

Another plus for the Foothillers was the offensive input of guards KHALID WATERS and MICHAEL GRAHAM. The duo combined for 23 points, each of them hitting a pair of triples. Graham added 4 steals, and Waters added 3 assists.

"I would say Grossmont is the team to beat in the North," Anderson said.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 22, Michael Graham 12, Khalid Waters 11, Justin Rutherford 6 (6 reb.), Alex Chiappone 4, Richard Ogunsalu 4.

Granite Hills scoring: Dean Miller 17, Brian Humphries 15 (5 stl.), Andrew Joslyn 7 (7 reb.), Wayne Martin 6, Nico Sanchez 5, Kyle San Nicolas 1.

MOUNT MIGUEL 60, EL CAJON VALLEY 35 -- The Matadors had something to prove when they showed up for Friday (Jan. 5) night's non-league game at El Cajon Valley.

Looking for revenge after a season-opening 57-52 loss to the Braves, the Matadors were all business from the outset as they marched to a 28-14 halftime lead.

It was more of the same in the second half as the Matadors (10-5) outscored the Braves (5-11) in each of the final two quarters.

"We concentrated on no penetration in the lanes," said Mount Miguel coach JAY ROWLETT. "I'm kicking myself that they beat us the first game of the season."

COURTNEY WRATHER ignited Mount Miguel's offense with 21 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.

LARON RUSH pitched in 16 points and 7 rebounds, while freshman A.J. STANFORD added 11 points and freshman OC BASEY garnered a game-high 10 rebounds.

One surprising note for the Matadors was TRAVON CAPLES, who came in averaging more than 12 points per game, was held scoreless by the Braves. Caples did, however, grab 9 rebounds.

The bulk of El Cajon Valley's points came off the hand of DEJON JOY, who scored 20. Joy also had 10 rebounds as did DEWAYNE ALEXANDER. Both Joy and Alexander had 3 blocks each, as did LUCAS STAFFORD.

"Tonight we made them earn baskets," added Rowlett. "The first game was helter-skelter. We played great "D" tonight."

Mount Miguel scoring: Courtney Wrather 21, Laron Rush 16, A.J. Stanford 11, Ahmaad Nunley 8, OC Basey 4, Devyn Moore 2.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Dejon Joy 20, Lucas Stafford 5, Dewayne Alexander 6, Chris Franco 2, Michael Holder 2.

MONTE VISTA 62, EL CAPITAN 41 -- JAMAR RANSOME nailed his first 9 shots and missed only one of 13 all night en route to a 26-point effort as the visiting Monarchs rolled over El Capitan in Friday's (Jan. 5) non-league game in Lakeside.

The Monarchs (8-7) took leads of 22-5 and 39-14 in the first half as they rolled to their fourth straight win.

Although he scored only 5 points, Monte Vista point guard ROSHUN WYNNE was a steadying influence. Not only did he notch 11 assists, the 5-foot-9 senior led the Monarchs with 7 rebounds, blocked a shot and made 2 steals.

MIKE WATKINS had 9 points and 3 steals for the Monarchs. Ransome had 5 steals to lead his team and settled for 4 rebounds.

"We got up early and played pretty well," said Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY. "We had a chance to play a lot of people."

For El Capitan, non-stop BARRETT BRAUN continued to sparkle in an otherwise disappointing season for the Vaqueros. The 6-3 junior scored 22 points and collected 9 rebounds. To the Monarchs credit, 16 of Braun's points came in the second half after the outcome had been decided.

Sophomore JON MOLZEN pitched in 9 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks for El Capitan (1-14).

ROBERT VICALDO chipped in 8 rebounds and 4 assists for the Vaqueros.

Monte Vista scoring: Jamar Ransome 26, Mike Watkins 9, Alex Robinson 8, Roshun Wynne 5, Brian Williams 5, Trent Watkins 3, Dale Thomas 3, Eric Griffin 2, Anthony Bell 1.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 22, Jon Molzen 9, Michael Landis 2, Michael Overson 2, Brooks Noble 2, Jeramie Carr 2, Robert Vicaldo 2.

CHRISTIAN 71, SAN YSIDRO 28 -- Bogged down for a variety of reasons for half the season, the Christian High Patriots (7-6) are starting to pick up steam. They proved they're on the move to an outmanned San Ysidro squad in Friday's (Jan. 5) non-league action in South Bay.

"This was the first time this season we executed our press efficiently and made the other team pay," said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP. "We ran the break, got the ball inside, and attacked the rim."

DANIEL HAZLETT paced the Patriots' surge by hitting 10 of 18 shots on his way to a 27-point night. Hazlett hit half of his 6 three-point shots.

ANDRIUS MIKUTIS hit 11 of 18 shots for 22 points while collecting 17 rebounds and dishing 6 assists. The 6-foot-4 senior also topped the Patriots with 5 steals.

VIKTOR ASACIOVAS was also tough on the boards, pulling down 13 rebounds and blocking 8 shots to go along with scoring 13 points.

"Our defense -- anchored by Asaciovas -- was excellent," said Copp. "This was a glimpse of what the team we had a year ago did so well."

Christian scoring: Daniel Hazlett 27, Andrius Mikutis 22, Viktor Asaciovas 13, Danny Mitchell 5, Brad Johnston 2, Brad Sandusky 2.

Taking the charge

Helix guard Brandon Fountain is whistled for the offensive foul as Santana defender Brett Romero takes the charge to force the turnover. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

Errant timeout hands game to Hillers

© East County Sports.com
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (1-4-07) -- For the Grossmont Foothillers, it was a sweet victory. For the host Steele Canyon Cougars, it was a stinging defeat.

Steele Canyon appeared to have the victory in hand in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) non-league game, but the Cougars exceeded their allotted number of timeouts and was assessed a technical foul. That presented Grossmont with a golden opportunity to steal a win.

IAN COCHRAN cashed in the technical by making two free throws with 3.6 seconds remaining to lift the Foothillers to a 59-58 victory over the Cougars.

"At Grossmont, the only person who calls timeouts is me," said Foothillers coach FRANK FOGGIANO.

Steele Canyon coach BERNIE BALIKIAN told his troops only a few seconds earlier when the Cougars used their final timeout to set up defensive strategy that they were out of timeouts.

Grossmont was leading 57-55 as the clock wound down in the final seconds. JEBARI ROBINSON vaulted the Cougars into the lead by hitting a 3-point shot with 5 seconds remaining. Grossmont immediately called a timeout.

The Foothillers attempted a length-of-the-court inbound pass that flew wide of its mark and hit the wall. Thus the Cougars had the ball under their own basket with 3.6 seconds remaining.

Grossmont went to a full-court man press. The Cougars panicked as they were unable to inbound the ball, and two players shouted to the referees, signaling for a timeout.

"It may look like that one situation is what cost us the game," Balikian said. "And on the surface, that may be true. But the closer you look at it, making only 7 of 20 free throws and hitting only 9 of 26 two-pointers had as much to do with us losing this game as anything."

Cochran had a hot hand all night, finishing with a game-high 36 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals. The 6-foot-6 junior nailed a pair of 3-pointers and 8 of 11 free throws.

RICHARD OGUNSALU added 15 points and a game-best 14 rebounds for Grossmont (8-6).

"They did a good job of jamming the ball inside to Cochran," Balikian said.

Robinson and RILEY BALIKIAN shared high-point honors for Steele Canyon with 12 apiece. Balikian added 7 assists, while ARLIN TAYLOR pitched in 9 points, and ELIGE CARTER added 8 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals.

Grossmont scoring: Ian Cochran 36, Richard Ogunsalu 15, Justin Rutherford 4 (6 reb.), Khalid Waters 2, Michael Graham 2.

Steele Canyon scoring: Riley Balikian 12 (2 stl.), Jebari Robinson 12 (4 reb., 3 stl.), Arlin Taylor 9 (2 stl.), Elige Carter 8, Nick Stathas 7, Jake Ransom 5, Cameron Moss 4, Andrew Timm 1 (4 reb.).

VALHALLA 55, EL CAPITAN 44 -- Senior MIKE ESPINOZA scored a career-high 25 points to lift the Norsemen over the visiting Vaqueros in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) non-league action. It was the sixth win in eight starts for the Norsemen (9-7).

"Espinoza had three putbacks which were really big for us in the second half, when we really needed them," said Valhalla coach KEITH JACKSON.

Valhalla trailed 9-8 after one quarter, but bounced back to lead 29-16 at intermission. The Vaqueros (1-13), usually out of contention by halftime, scrambled back to gain a 13-9 third quarter scoring edge.

"El Capitan had 7 offensive boards late in the game," said Jackson . "They were really scrappy."

Despite El Capitan 's ability to pound the boards in the final quarters, the Norsemen managed to maintain their lead.

"This was the first time we have been out-rebounded," said Jackson . "We have been trying to win the rebounding battle and we've been winning it. But this game we lost it. We've been getting a lot of our buckets on second chance shots. El Cap kept us off the boards -- did a good job of blocking out."

BARRETT BRAUN led El Capitan with 16 points and 6 rebounds. Jackson credited Valhalla senior TRAVIS FOELSCH (9 points, 7 rebounds) for his defensive work on Braun.

"Foelsch did a good job on Braun, played strong and physical. When we needed someone to step up, Travis did," Jackson said.

The varsity debut of El Capitan sophomore JOHN MOLZEN, who missed the first 13 games due to a football injury, seemed to enhance the Vaqueros' firepower. The 6-foot-3 Molzen contributed 13 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks.

"We're doing better," El Capitan coach ROSS FURROW said. "We've got Molzen back and he's going to help us. We didn't want to lose tonight, but the improvement was nice to see."

JERAMIE CARR returned to the Vaqueros lineup after dislocating his shoulder for the second time this season last month.

Valhalla also welcomed back KEVIN KRIEBEL from an injured ankle. Kreibel contributed 9 points and 5 rebounds.

Valhalla scoring: Mike Espinoza 25, Travis Foelsch 9, Kevin Kriebel 9, Daniel Butchers 5, Aahron Mims 4, Garrett Giles 2, Ruffy Bacong 1.

El Capitan scoring: Barrett Braun 16, John Molzen 13, Jeramie Carr 7, Robert Vicaldo 5 (9 reb.), Michael Overson 3.

MONTE VISTA 70, WEST HILLS 53 -- Although nobody in the Monte Vista camp is openly talking about it, the Monarchs have to believe they are the primary contender to heavily favored Helix in the Grossmont South. The Monarchs and Highlanders open the league season Friday (Jan. 12) in La Mesa .

The Monarchs (7-7), who have won three in a row, rolled over visiting West Hills in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) non-league contest in Spring Valley . Monte Vista led by as many as 27 points over the Wolf Pack (7-8).

Senior JAMAR RANSOME was the driving force in the Monte Vista victory with 26 points, 12 rebounds and 3 assists.

Senior sparkplug, guard ROSHUN WYNNE contributed 16 points, 9 assists, 5 steals and 2 rebounds to the Monte Vista cause.

MIKE WATKINS added 12 points -- half of them from 3-point range.

"If we can shoot it and take care of the ball like we're capable of doing, we're going to be all right," said Monte Vista coach KEVIN MAHADY said.

Monte Vista shot 50 percent (28 of 56) from the field despite flooding the floor with reserves early on against West Hills.

What problems the Monarchs had against the Wolf Pack could be attributed to lack of concentration. Monte Vista recorded 16 steals but turned the ball over 25 times. West Hills had 26 turnovers.

"We play up-tempo so we know there's a risk to it," Mahady said. "We like to think the overall advantage will go our way."

PETER GILSON led West Hills with 17 points, hitting 7 of 10 shots from the field and all three of his free throw attempts.

CHRIS LIFGREN hit 5 of 9 shots from the field and 5 of 8 from the charity stripe for the Pack.

Guard TONY LYNN gave West Hills an outside presence, hitting 2 of 3 shots from above the arc on his way to a 9 point finish. Lynn also dished 4 assists.

"This is how it's been for us of late," said West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG. "We play nice and hard for 20-22 minutes and compete. But the game is 32 minutes long and we can't get away with that kind of lapse and expect to win."

Armstrong pointed to how West Hills cut Monte Vista's one-time 27-point advantage to 65-53 with 1:39 remaining. He also noted how the Pack could have dug deeper into what appeared to be an insurmountable Monte Vista lead.

Jump ball

Helix' David Jefferson (35) out-leaps Jesse Vargas (3) of Santana on the game-opening jump ball. (Photo by Chris Edwards)

"We missed too many lay-ups there at the end. And you can't do that if you expect to compete with a better team," Armstrong added.

Monte Vista scoring: Jebari Ransome 26, Roshun Wynne 16, Mike Watkins 12 (4 reb., 3 ast.), Trent Watkins 4, Alex Robinson 3, Geoff Hartman 3, Fred Webb 3, Cameron Mason 2, Brandon Williams 1 (4 stl.).

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 17, Chris Lifgren 15, Tony Lynn 9, Garret Cabral 6, Blaine Hoffard 4, Tim Nowlin 2.

HELIX 67, SANTANA 27 -- The Highlanders won their 10th straight game with relative ease as they smacked Santana in a game that was never close Wednesday night (Jan.3) in Santee .

Helix led 22-4 after one quarter, 42-10 after two, and 61-16 after three periods.

"For this being our first game back (from the holiday), I thought we played solid defense," Helix coach JOHN SINGER said. "We did OK offensively."

Senior DAVID JEFFERSON nailed 10 of 13 shots from the floor and added 2 free throws for a game-high 22 points despite playing only 2½ quarters. He also had 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks.

"Playing Helix in the summer I thought this is the best team Helix has had," said Santana coach TIM BARRY. " Jefferson is a beast -- he is a man."

LAWRENCE HURDLE added 19 points, hitting 8 of 12 shots from the floor and 2 of 4 free throws. He also dished 5 assists and made 5 steals while playing about three quarters of the game.

"People don't understand why you leave your point guard in a little longer in a game like this," Singer said. "When you put a lot of other kids into the game, you need your point guard out there to distribute the ball so those kids have a chance to shine."

Dome rub

Helix forward David Jefferson (left) receives a "friendly" tap on the top of the head (dome) from Santana's Tyler Blackledge.

Double-stuffed

Davif Jefferson of Helix (in green) gets his shot attempt rejected by two different Sultans, including Kevin Engelke (14) from the front, and Chris Sodergren from behind. (Photos by Chris Edwards)

Helix scored 18 points off Santana turnovers and held a 12-4 edge in second-chance points.

For the game Helix shot 48 percent from the field (29 of 57). Santana shot a dismal 20 percent, hitting just 10 of 35 for the game.

"When your forte is shooting -- and you can't hit anything -- it hurts you," said Barry. "We only made two shots total in the first quarter. We had to have a great shooting night, and we had an awful one."

Helix scoring: David Jefferson 22, Lawrence Hurdle 19, Brandon Fountain 7 (5 reb., 3 ast., 3 stl.), Alex Aguirre 6 (5 reb.), Eric Forney 4 (4 reb., 2 stl.), Dorian Staten 4, Red Narcisse 3, Tyonte Hosley 2.

Santana scoring: Kevin Engelke 6, Tyler Blackledge 6 (5 reb.), Blake Harper 5, Brett Romero 3, John Vasquez 3, Chris Sodergren 2, Jesse Vargas 2 (4 reb., 4 ast.).

CHRISTIAN 59, HOLTVILLE 40 -- When these two teams met n Dec. 13 in El Cajon , the Vikings sailed to a 48-46 victory. Of course, Christian was missing two of its top players. Even so, the Patriots had a shot to win had they not missed two free throws in the final six seconds.

All of that was behind them in Wednesday's (Jan. 3) rematch in the desert. Playing at full strength this time, the Patriots jumped out to a 10-1 lead and then chugged to the finish line with a more satisfying victory.

The victory balanced Christian's record at 6-6, but the club was admittedly a little rusty following the Christmas layoff. This was the Patriots first game in 11 days.

"We missed easy shots and did not execute our press well," said Christian assistant coach ADAM COPP. "What should have been an easy game ended up being a battle that we had to fight until winning the 4th quarter 10-2, all 10 points coming on free throws."

VIKTOR ASACIOVAS had 19 points to lead the Patriots. DANIEL HAZLETT added 17 points and ANDRIUS MIKUTIS had 15.

"Mikutis had his toughest game as a Patriot as his shots would just not fall after the first quarter," Copp said.

The bright spot of the night was the return of senior BRAD SANDUSKY. He had surgery for a collapsed lung just over a month ago and Wednesday was his first day back in game action.

"He only logged about 40 seconds of playing time but it was a morale booster for him and his teammates," Copp said. "We look forward to him being a contributor the rest of the year."

Scoring for Christian: Viktor Asaciovas 19, Daniel Hazlett 17, Andrius Mikutis 15, Danny Mitchell 8.

EL CAJON VALLEY 65, ORANGE GLEN 47 -- Non-league; No details reported by the coaching staff.

El Cajon Valley scoring: Lucas Stafford 20, Dejon Joy 19, Michael Holder 11, Andrew Johnson 10, Ford 5.

© East County Sports.com
SANTEE (1-3-07) -- The post-holiday syndrome took another bite out of the West Hills Wolf Pack in Tuesday's (Jan. 2) non-league home game against San Diego Southwest,

Even though the Pack held the Raiders to just two points in the second quarter to lead 25-14 by the break, West Hills (7-7) blew the lead yet still had a chance to snatch a victory in the final seconds.

That's where Southwest's Ruben Nunez foiled the plans, throwing in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Raiders (5-8) a 48-45 victory.

"Their kid got an offensive rebound at the top of the key and then shot an uncontested shot to beat us," West Hills coach JEFF ARMSTRONG said. "I don't know how we could watch a rebound roll all the way out to the top of the key and then let a kid shoot without having a hand in his face."

Senior PETER GILSON paced West Hills with 16 points -- hitting 7 of 11 shots -- and 7 rebounds. TONY LYNN added 7 points and 4 assists, while TIM NOWLIN clicked on his only two shots for 4 points, snagged 5 rebounds and dished 4 assists.

The referees working this post-holiday game must have been in a hurry to get home as they called only 16 fouls between the two teams.

:It was a pretty physical game, too," Armstrong added.

West Hills scoring: Peter Gilson 16, Tony Lynn 7, Blaine Hoffard 6, Chris Lifgren 6, Tim Nowlin 4, Troy Nowlin 2, Garret Cabral 2, Lucas Armstrong 2.