Sierra Canyon makes early statement at The League
Westminster, Ca. — Since its inception, “The League” has consistently topped the list of best fall league high school basketball events.
Etop Udo-Ema and his Compton Magic brethren didn’t disappoint Sunday at Westminster High in the first installment of the 2017 edition of his brainchild.
Udo-Ema even added another level to the event, summoning the help of Matt Rodriguez and Ronnie Flores of Ballislife to live stream one game each week.
Sunday’s stream, as called by local play-by-play luminary Paul Westphal and hoops legend Frank Burlison, featured a battle between Chatsworth Sierra Canyon and Temecula Rancho Christian.
The game itself lived up to the hype surrounding it, ending in a 55-54 Sierra Canyon overtime victory.
Sierra Canyon has a host of local and out-of-state talent at its disposal, led by 6-foot-3 Ohio State-commit Duane Washington, Jr., who made his way to the valley from Detroit. He scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds in the winning effort.
Another state newcomer who contributed on both ends for the Trailblazers has a name many know well and that was Scotty Pippen, Jr.
Pippen arrived in Chatsworth from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and is brought an energetic, high motor approach with him. The 6-foot-2 point guard is a high-level on-ball defender who does a nice job of probing the lane and setting up teammates on offense. The junior made the game-winning basket late in the overtime period.
Pippen isn’t the only NBA name on Sierra Canyon’s roster as Kenyon Martin, Jr. transferred from Chaminade at least season’s end. Martin is a high-flyer and ferocious dunker just like his father.
Six-foot-7 sophomore Terren Frank, one of three transfers from Harvard-Westlake, had a strong first half effort, scoring nine points and grabbing four rebounds before fouling out early in the second half.
For Rancho Christian, some unfamiliar names had huge impact performances.
Rancho Christian forward Isaiah Mobley recorded a double-double in a close loss to Sierra Canyon.Senior guard K.J. Redfield scored a team-high 15 points on five 3-pointers, while fellow classmate Isaiah Knox added 14 points.
Highly-regarded junior forward Isaiah Mobley recorded a double-double – which has become quite pedestrian for him – scoring 11 points with 10 rebounds. Isaiah’s younger brother, sophomore Evan Mobley, added eight points, eight rebounds and five blocks.
In an earlier game, Sierra Canyon outlasted Corona Centennial, 65-63, despite a Steph Curry-esque performance from Huskies sophomore D.J. Davis.
The 6-foot guard is known for his ability to get it going from deep, but it seemed like the Trailblazers missed that memo.
Davis opened the contest by hitting his first five 3-pointers, all from way behind-the-arc. Once Sierra Canyon became privy to Davis’ affinity for shooting the triple, he made his way to the basket where he finished a handful of drives with smooth reverse layups.
Centennial played without esteemed sophomore wing Jaylen Clark, which gave more minutes to talented guards Paris Dawson and Jaden Byers. Junior forward Allan McBride also played well for the Huskies.
Other thoughts from The League:
- Mission Bay has the opportunity to make a deep playoff run down in San Diego. Talented junior guard Rejean “Boogie” Ellis leads this crew, but has plenty of help from guards Savaughn Davis and Andrea Scott and forward Ronnie Latting.
- Vista High was another San Diego team that made the trip up to Westminster and looked to be in mid-season form. The Panthers are led by Dartmouth-commit Taurus Samuels, hard-nosed senior guard Isaiah Morris and Division I junior prospect Jordan Hilstock.