Southern Section Boys’ 1-A : Chadwick, Crossroads Meet Again

When teams move up in class there’s usually a period of adjustment. That hasn’t been the case with Chadwick and Crossroads of Santa Monica.

After dominating the Southern Section boys’ Small Schools division in high school basketball for the last six years, those teams will play for the 1-A Division title today at 10:45 a.m. at the Long Beach Arena.

Chadwick reached the Small Schools final three times during that period, winning the title in 1980. Crossroads won titles in 1982 and 1983 before finishing second to Pasadena Poly last year.

Over the years a rivalry has grown between the schools. In the last six years, they have met three times in the playoffs. In 1979, top-seeded Chadwick defeated Crossroads in the semifinals, 39-34. In 1982, Crossroads upset top-seeded Chadwick, 84-78, in the semifinals. A year later, the teams met again--this time in the final--with Crossroads winning again, 64-53.

Earlier this season, Chadwick defeated the Roadrunners, 57-55, in a game at Santa Monica High. Neither coach was pleased with that game, however.

Top-seeded Chadwick (25-2) has lost to Estancia, 55-53, and Hug of Reno, 72-62. The Dolphins scored their most impressive victory this season in four overtimes over Compton, 67-66.

Crossroads (19-8) has played a demanding schedule, losing to, among other teams, San Francisco Riordan and Las Vegas Clark.

Crossroads relies primarily on the ball-handling and shooting of junior guard Marc Rudolph and the inside play of 6-7 center Kevin Parks.

Chadwick is balanced, with Andre Jackson, Terry Maag and John Hall all averaging about 12 points.