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We've already posted up the details and our impressions of the juniors, sophs and frosh who played at the WSS Scholastic Hoops Jam in the Underclassmen Southern Section v. City Section game on Saturday night. There were, of course, two other games which followed, both senior games. The first game was the senior girls from both the City and Southern Sections and that was followed by the senior boys. We're not going to write about all of the players (we've already posted the rosters) but just those players who really stood out.

Unlike the Double Pump Classic, where we just didn't write much about the girls game (hey, after Lindsay Davidson, what was there to write about?), we vowed after this one that we'd say something. So here goes: We absolutely disagree with those who say that the girls game is slow, boring or that there's not enough scoring or ball movement, and this game proved it. The Southern Section team dominated the game, winning easily, and virtually everyone on the squad was outstanding, and the scoring was pretty high too, comparable to the boys' games. We especially liked Lillian Hewko, a smooth point guard with great passing skills who has signed with UCSD, and Tara Moore from Westminster who has signed with Grand Canyon College. Both of them seemed to be having just a bit more fun than most, and maybe it was the coaching by Michael Cooper as honorary coach, we can't be sure. The Brea Olinda contingent, with Lindsay Davidson (George Washington), Kate Ides (Harvard), and Jerri Costello (unsigned) who is an excellent outside shooter, was just plain scary, and what's scarier is thinking about how good GW will be next season when both Davidson and All-CIF player Cathy Joens from Calvary Chapel (SA) both show up. Joens is pretty tall and powerful, and she scored in a variety of ways, all of them impressive. Admittedly, none of the girls in this game dunked, but so what? After a while, it's nice to see a half-court game or a smoothly executed transition fast-break that doesn't end in a slam. Also impressive was Gioconda Mendiola (El Toro), and Triana Allen also seemed to be a big crowd favorite, including with Baron Davis and Todd Ramasar :-).

We even heard some interesting recruiting rumors, including one which had Gioconda Mendiola going to Oregon where she'll be followed by her sister; we don't know if there's any truth to it, but it's interesting nevertheless. Oh, and just remember, we don't really know squat about the girls' game, so any recruiting rumors we hear are just that, i.e., rumors. Nevertheless, it was nice to get a last chance to see some of the players we've seen a couple of times previously this year, and to get a first (and last) look at some of the others we've only heard about.

There was one very scary moment in the girls game when Leilani Estavan (Oregon State) of Pacific Palisades, the City Player of the Year, came down really hard after hyper-extending her left knee while going up for a rebound. She didn't get up for a very long time (in excess of 10 minutes) and the game had to be stopped while she was tended to by trainers, and eventually her father and some others carried her off the floor. We saw her after the game out in the lobby of the Southwest Gym, and while she was still in a great deal of pain, it looked like she was able to hobble around on her own power, and we're guessing that she's going to be fine.

Unlike the Battle of the Valley All-Star Game which was going on at the same time last Saturday night in which the Southern Section came back for a dramatic win, the Southern Section in this game was never really in it, and they ended up losing 93-83, but at times the lead stretched to 20 points. Keith Kincade (6'-6" Sr. SF) of Compton Dominguez, who signed with West Virginia last week, had a game-high 18 points, but as usual, they were a quiet 18. The player who made the biggest noise during the evening was Marlon Parmer (6'-3" Sr. PG) who just signed with New Mexico, and he did his usual athletic spin moves, and also showed that he's been working on his right hand and even went to his right a couple of times. The City Section players who stood out were Brandon Moorer (6'-8" Sr. F) from Manual Arts who has signed with Texas A&M Corpus Christi, who displayed great dunking ability, and Gabriel Chipe (6'-1" Sr. SG) and Brian Berumen (6'-3" Sr. SF) both from Franklin who are definite players and who will do very well next season at Occidental and Cal State LA respectively. Ronald Cass (6'-1" Sr. SG/SF) had a couple of nice moments and he was a real crowd favorite, and we still think Ronald has the best footwork of any player in the game; he's still unsigned and wide open. James Wright did some really acrobatic shooting, and he has this great ability to pull up for the jumper and literally change direction in the air, switching shooting hands, and finishing. James will be a major impact player immediately at Long Beach State next season, and we doubt whether there will be any point guards who are as quick in the Big West. Marcus Moore (6'-4" Sr. PG) from Compton Dominguez was also impressive, and he told us that he'll be taking a visit to New Mexico shortly.

All in all, this was a great event, but our only complaint was that it just went too long, starting at 6:00 p.m. and finishing up at about 11:30 p.m.. But really, is there such a thing as too much good basketball? We don't think so.

We can't wait until next year. In the meantime, here are some photos from the event:

Andrew Zahn (6'-8" Jr. PF) Redondo Union High	Ellis Myles (6'-7" Jr. PF) Compton High School	Leroy Dawson (6'-0" Jr. PG) Los Angeles High School	Marlon Parmer
Marlon listens to Coach Baron Davis	Marcus Moore (6'-4" Sr. PG) Compton Dominguez High	Marlon Parmer (6'-3" Sr. PG) Verbum Dei/New Mexico Signee	Marlon Gets Ready
Wesley Stokes (5'-11" Jr. PG) Long Beach Poly High	Eric Alvarez and Stokes go for the rebound	Tommy Johnson (6'-3" Jr. SG) Crenshaw High School	Eric Alvarez (5'-10" Jr. PG) Pacific Palisades High

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