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SoCal High School & Prep Report

Best in the West Tournament: MVP
Award and All-Tournament Team--(January 3, 1998)

By now everyone knows who won the Best in the West Tournament, which concluded last Tuesday. Right? In case you forget, Westchester beat Artesia 61-51 in a game which saw Jason Kapono limited to 4 points, and in which David Bluthenthal demonstrated that he's back from his injury, collecting 18 points.

And not surprisingly, the MVP and All-Tournament selections feature more than a few Artesia and Westchester players. Here they are:

Most Valuable Player

David Bluthenthal (Westchester)--18 points, 14 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks against Artesia in Championship Game. Clearly the most dominating player at the Tournament. And he was not 100% recovered. Scary. Will attend USC next season.

All-Tournament Team

Jimmy Miggins (Arlington)--A big, fast 6'-7" senior, this power forward put on a great show here, scoring 35 points and pulling down 14 rebounds in the Consolation Championship game.

Jason Kapono (Artesia)- A very mobile, quick and skilled 6'-8" junior forward, he scored 43 points in first three games, averaging 14.3 ppg, and hit for 24 points and 7 rebounds in the semifinals against Long Beach Poly. Played with the flu, and had only 4 points in Championship game against Westchester. And the best thing is that he's only a junior.

Jack Martinez (Artesia)-- An amazing talent for a freshman, this 6'-7" forward had 10 points in the semifinal against Long beach Poly, and scored 12 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks, in the Championship Game against Westchester. A big strong player, and at only 180 lbs., plenty of room for muscle development. He'll only get better.

Caleb Gervin (Cathedral City)--This 6'-1" senior point guard was one of the most exciting players at the tournament. He scored 25 points against Clovis West (a loss), then scored 49 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists and 7 steals in an 89-81 overtime win against Pasadena; was "limited" to 34 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals in a loss to Etiwanda in the semifinals. One of the best guards in SoCal and the West.

Tito Maddox (Compton)- This 6'-4" junior guard had 13 points, 7 rebounds and 10 assists in the Consolation finals against Fairfax. A young, strong, very explosive guard, who's capable of playing either the 1 or 2, he can drive, dish, has a great first step, and best of all, he's a junior. With Deandre Moore, quickly becoming the heart of this team.

Greg Jefferson (Fairfax)--Scored 21 points against Compton in the Fifth Place Consolation Game. At 6'-5" a big, strong small-forward type who can play the swing position; look for him to be a major signing coup this spring for some lucky D-1 program.

Darren Peterson (Long Beach Jordan)-- A junior, he scored 24 points against Long Beach Poly in the Third Place game (which Poly won 76-63). Creates his own shot off the dribble, a fine 6'-4" player, and like Maddox, the best thing about him is that he's a junior.

Ricky Anderson (Long Beach Poly)-- The Hammer, Mr. Inside. Averaged 14.5 ppg, and 11 rebounds per game for 4 games in tourney. Ricky's playing the best ball of his career. He'll be attending Arizona next year, along with Ruben Douglas from Bell-Jeff and Luke Walton from USDHS.

Mike McIntyre (Long Beach Poly)--Averaged 14.8 ppg in tournament (13 points in third place game against Jordan). A great 6'-2" senior shooting guard who will be attending the University of Hawaii next year. Aloha.

Deon Green (Los Angeles)--A 6'-2" senior point guard for the Romans, Deon scotred 22 points and had at least 15 assists as Los Angeles lost in the Consolation Championship to Arlington 80-76; got great support from Devin Hicks (6-4 Sr. SF) and from Leroy Dawson (5'-11" Jr PG/SG), who scored 20 and 25 respectively in the final. A great player, he had 53 points in the first two games of the tourney.

Ricky Duff (Manual Arts)-- A big 6'-6" senior forward with good touch and fine shooting ability, he's given a verbal committment to Cal State Long Beach for next year. Scored 10 points in Manuals win over Clovis West

Damon Jackson (Perris)--An explosive 6'-3" senior point-shooting guard, Damon had 21 points in Perris' win over Manual Arts, 23 points in Perris' loss to Westchester, and 21 points in Perris' Seventh Place win in the finals over Etiwanda. A great player, unsigned and uncommitted as of yet.

Tony Bland (Westchester)-- Only had 6 points in final Championship Game won by Westchester, but clearly one of the best guards (along with Gervin and Green) at the tourney, and one of the best, if not the best in SoCal. Signed with Syracuse.

Albert Miller (Westchester)--Also scored low in the final Championship Game, with only 8 points, but this 6'-3" senior shooting guard had 20 points in Westchester's key semifinal win over Long Beach Jordan. A great inside presence who can also jack up the j.

Congratulations guys on being selected to the All-Tournament Team. See most of you at the Martin Luther King Holiday Challenge on February 19, 1998 at Pauley Pavilion.