Boys’ basketball: Former Etiwanda players shine

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Someone must be doing something right at Etiwanda.

Coach Dave Kleckner has received some anonymous flak for his emotional outbursts during games, most recently when the Eagles lost to Fairfax in a Southern California Regional Division I quarterfinal earlier this month.

You can’t argue with his success in developing players, however.

Two of his former pupils, Darren Collison of UCLA and Rene Rougeau of Nevada Las Vegas, helped their teams win NCAA first-round games Thursday, and another, Jeff Pendergraph of Arizona State, led his team to a second-round victory in the NIT.

It’s no coincidence that the former teammates were part of stellar defensive efforts in their victories, an Etiwanda trademark under Klecker.

Collison had to sweat the least on the offensive end, totaling five points and three assists in a 70-29 victory over Mississippi Valley State, which shot the lowest field-goal percentage (19.7%) in an NCAA tournament game in 58 years.

Rougeau, a 6-foot-6 guard for UNLV, totaled 12 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots and three steals in a 71-58 victory over Kent St., which tied a tournament record by scoring only 10 points in the first half.

Pendergraph, a 6-9 forward for the Sun Devils, had 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight blocks in a 65-51 victory over Southern Illinois. Pendergraph and Arizona State are on a mission to win the NIT after the Sun Devils were passed over for the NCAA tournament.

-- Dan Arritt