SAN DIEGO PREP BASKETBALL : Roundup : Morse Stays in City Eastern League Lead With Win

Before City Eastern League season started, it was generally regarded that the league would be the most competitive in San Diego County.

Through eight games, that prediction has held up. But, no matter what the circumstances, Morse High has managed to remain a step ahead of the rest.

The Tigers, ranked No. 3 in the county, kept its lead Tuesday with a 67-54 win over No. 10-ranked Point Loma High at Morse. The victory allowed Morse (7-1, 15-4) to stay one game ahead of second-place Serra in league play with two games remaining. Point Loma (4-4, 13-10) now trails Serra by two games in the race for the league’s final playoff spot.

“We’ve been playing pretty well all season long,” Morse Coach Ron Davis said. “We’ve had some trouble playing consistently, but luckily we’ve been able to show consistency in winning.”

Lonnie Wade scored 19 points to lead Morse against Point Loma and the Tigers’ 6-foot 11-inch center, Chris Jeter, added 18.

“Lonnie has really been playing well for us lately,” Davis said. “With him hitting from the outside, we’ve been able to open things up for Jeter inside.”

The Tigers led by 14 at halftime Tuesday and as much as 20 points in the second half before Point Loma closed the gap. The 13-point win was a rarity for any team in the City East.

“We’ve had so many games that have come down to the wire,” Davis said. “We needed one like this.”

Elsewhere in the City Eastern League:

Serra 73, Madison 64--The No. 5-ranked Conquistadors (6-2, 18-3) stayed one game behind Morse with a hard-fought win over the Warhawas at Madison. Steve Smith and Deven Moran each scored 20 points and Anthony Moore added 16 on 8-for-8 shooting for Serra. Madison (1-7, 10-10) was led by Eric Jackson who scored 30 points.

In the City Central League:

Crawford 57, St. Augustine 47--The host Colts (2-6, 9-11) shut out the second-place Saints in the first quarter and led 18-2, but had to score 28 points in the final quarter for the upset. St. Augustine (5-3, 11-9) trailed at halftime, 20-14, but took the lead with 44 seconds left in the third quarter. The Colts committed 13 turnovers and were outscored 18-9 in the third period. The Saints increased their lead to five early in the fourth quarter, but Dondi Bell’s three-point play gave the Colts the lead for good with 5:50 to play. Bell, who had 20 points and 21 rebounds, had nine points and seven rebounds in the final period when the Colts outscored the Saints 28-15. The Colts’s Pat Reyes added 15 points and seven steals, and teammate Dewey Brown scored 10. Joe Shandley had 19 for St. Augustine. Charley Applegate, the Saints’ leading scorer, was shut out in the first half and finished with 10.

Hoover 60, Christian 42--Tyrone Bell scored 16 points and Brian Angelo added 12 to help the defending league champion Cardinals (5-3, 12-8) stay in the race for a playoff spot at Christian. Hoover remains one game behind second-place St. Augustine. Christian (2-6, 11-10) was paced by Steve Grant, who scored 14 points.

Lincoln 99, San Diego 61--Lincoln (8-0, 13-6) clinched the league title with its win over the Cavers (2-6, 4-13). San Diego held the Hornets within four in the first quarter, but after that, it was all Lincoln. Forward Omar McDade paced Lincoln with 21 points and 19 rebounds. Anthony Johnson added 16 points. Glenn Longo led San Diego with 18 points.

In the City Western League:

La Jolla 66, University City 52--Lucky Brown scored 20 points and Tim Sneed had 10 points and 11 assists to help the Vikings (6-2, 11-5) knock off the Centurions (1-7, 3-18) at University City. La Jolla outscored University City, 21-9, in the second quarter to pull away. The victory moved the Vikings within one game of first-place University.

In the Grossmont League:

Grossmont 69, Helix 46--Powered by a 23-8 first quarter, the Foothillers (9-4, 12-5) defeated the Highlanders (7-6, 9-10). “We just came right out, pressed them full court and blew them out,” Grossmont Coach Frank Faggiano said. Leading the Foothillers were Darrell Ransom and Kerry McIntyre with 21 points each. The Highlanders’ Eric Mobley also scored 21.

El Capitan 63, Granite Hills 45--Aaron Johnson scored 31 points to lead the No. 9 Vaqueros (12-1, 16-3) past the host Eagles (1-13, 1-20).