CIF Southern Section Divisional Preview: Division 2A Teams to Watch (Part I)

Devin Ugland November 15, 2019 @ 04:55 PM

With the the 2019-20 boys basketball season ready to kick off next week, we’ll be rolling out some divisional previews taking a look at some of the top teams and players. In this piece we breakdown some teams to watch in Division 2A based on research combined with what we’ve seen in person this fall. Division 2A Teams to Watch Culver City 2018-19 Record/Result: 18-12 overall, 6-4 Ocean League, lost in Division 2A second round Outlook: There are three things teams can expect when playing against a Roy Walker-coached squad: They’ll be tough, they’ll play hard and they’ll play fast. Culver City will be all of those things and have a point guard to replace the now-graduated Ryan Blackmon in Santa Monica transfer Sean Newman. Walker will need to find a couple more go-to guys as the season goes on, but the Centaurs will certainly make a living off of creating turnovers and scoring easy buckets off of those. Riverside Hillcrest 2018-19 Record/Result: 22-8 overall, 10-0 River Valley League, lost in Division 3AA Outlook: Coach Jackson Wood has done a great job of jump starting the Trojans’ program since its inception six years ago and this season could be the best yet. San Jose State-bound guard Sebastian Mendoza returns after dropping 29 points and 10.5 rebounds per game last season and Hillcrest has fortified its backcourt with two solid transfers from Corona Centennial in Jayson Wiltz and Jeremy Lin. Chris Anderson is back as well after averaging 10 points per game as a junior and Mason Owens and Keith Hall, Jr. have proven to be capable scorers in their own right. Los Alamitos 2018-19 Record/Result: 10-17 overall, 3-4 Surf League, missed playoffs Outlook: It was a down year in every sense of the term for the Griffins last season as they battled through injuries, but they return a good chunk of their scoring from last year. Surf League co-MVP Kevin Kent will be the catalyst for Los Al after averaging a team-high 16 points per game as a junior. Senior forward David Olcomendy is also back in the fold, bringing with him 13.6 and 7.2 rebounds per game. The keys to the Griffins’ success could be on the shoulders of junior wing Everett May and sophomore point guard Tyler Matthews, both of whom played big varsity minutes last season and need to take their games up a notch. Lynwood 2018-19 Record/Result: 12-17 overall, 5-5 San Gabriel Valley League, lost in Division 2A first round Outlook: The Knights are loaded with wing scorers, led by returning starter Jaren Johnson, who will play collegiately at the Division I level when all is said and done. To go along with Johnson, Lynwood added Narbonne transfers (and brothers) Lowrance and Darius McClain. Lowrance is a bruiser of a forward and strong on-ball defender, while the younger Darius is a smooth perimeter shooter. Look for junior point guard Christian Johnson to play a major roll as a ball-handler and offense initiator, while freshman Keyon Kensie has as much upside as any first-year player in SoCal. Murrieta Mesa 2018-19 Record/Result: 16-13 overall, 4-6 Southwestern League, lost in Division 2A first round Outlook: We’ve seen the Rams a couple of times this fall and its clear that first year coach Michael Bertulfo has plenty of talented pieces to work with. Mesa will rely heavily upon the inside presence of Matthew McIntosh and DeMorian Lowe, both of whom are 6-6+ with physically-imposing frames. Sophomore Lewis Singleterry IV will initiate the offense and take hold of most of the ball-handling duties, while Cameron Rentie, when healthy, has to potential to be an explosive wing scorer. Murrieta Valley 2018-19 Record/Result: 15-11 overall, 5-5 Southwestern League, lost in Division 3AA first round Outlook: In one of the bigger transfer moves of the offseason, three-year Rancho Christian varsity point guard Jordan Montgomery made the move over to Murrieta Valley, and, with the reins to the team all to himself, the 6-foot-1 senior could have a massive year from a statistical standpoint. The rest of the Nighthawks’ roster is on the younger side, but sophomore Damian Ruiz is a reliable returning scorer who put up 11.7 points per game as a freshman.