AROUND THE LEAGUES : Alemany Runs Off Track When Swanson Misses Bosco Tech Game

Alemany forward David Swanson had been one of the major reasons the Indians were 5-0 in Del Rey League play before last week. He was averaging nearly 19 points and 11 rebounds a game and had combined with center Bill Lucid for more than 50% of Alemany’s points and rebounds.

Swanson is also an excellent high jumper and finished second in the high school competition at the Sunkist Invitational on Jan. 16 with a jump of 6-6. Pleasant coincidence: The basketball team had a bye the day of the track meet, and Swanson didn’t have to decide between the two.

Swanson was sick the next weekend, however, and missed Alemany’s next game. Unpleasant coincidence: The team played Bosco Tech, which was tied with Alemany for first place. The Indians lost, 61-58.

“I really think Dave’s absence was the difference,” Coach Joe Anlauf said. “They pounded us on the boards.”

Although Swanson returned Friday and had 22 points and 12 rebounds, Alemany lost to Loyola on a last-second basket to fall two games behind Bosco Tech.

“It can slip away pretty fast,” Anlauf said. “I think there was a carry-over effect from the first loss. We were down.”

Feeling secure: Although the San Fernando-Birmingham game on Jan. 9 ended with heated words, San Fernando Coach Dick Crowell said no extra security measures are planned for Friday’s rematch. Birmingham won the initial meeting, 65-64, after officials disallowed an apparent last-second, game-winning basket by San Fernando. “The kids realize that their anger and frustration should have been at the officials and not the Birmingham players,” Crowell said.

Trivia time: Three point guards starting for Valley-area City Section schools attended the same grammar school. Name the players and the school. (Answer below.)

Injury report: Senior forward Sean DeClouet, San Fernando’s third-leading scorer, will miss the rest of the season after undergoing emergency surgery Monday to repair a ruptured blood vessel in his groin area. It was uncertain how the injury occurred. DeClouet first complained of pain Thursday and was hospitalized Monday morning after his right hip swelled. He is expected to be released Friday.

“He’s in a lot of pain right now, but he’s doing well,” DeClouet’s father, Latin, said. “He’s really heartbroken that he can’t play anymore.”. . . Westlake Coach Roy Gilmore said he isn’t overly concerned that starting center David Heckmann will miss at least two weeks after straining ligaments in his left ankle last week. “Bill Fassl did a pretty good job for him,” Gilmore said. “We’re in good shape.”

End of an era: Bob LaBelle, who has taught at Agoura for 20 years and coached the basketball team the past eight, will leave the school in June. LaBelle, also a full-time student at Pepperdine, is working on an advanced degree in teacher administration this spring and plans to work in that field in the fall.

History lesson: Midway through the Foothill League schedule, Burbank and Hart are tied for first place, but Burbank Coach Russ Keith hopes history will help his team to its fourth championship in five years. During the previous four seasons, Burbank was 18-2 in the second half of league play, a mark Keith attributes to the Bulldogs’ extensive review of game films. “We spend three or four hours a week looking at videotape,” Keith said. “We try to use video quite a bit more than other teams and use it to make adjustments.”. . . Montclair Prep’s David Sanger, a 6-7 junior center, is averaging four blocked shots per game. Sanger’s aggressive play, however, has kept him in constant foul trouble. He’s fouled out twice and regularly accumulates four fouls by the end of a game.

Record rebounder: Early in Friday’s game against Santa Paula, Calabasas forward Jon Drezner clearly was playing the best game of his career. And Calabasas Coach Bill Bellatty wasn’t going to deprive him, no matter how one-sided the game became. Drezner played the full 32 minutes in the Coyotes’ 80-52 win and finished with 27 points and 34 rebounds, breaking the school record of 31 rebounds set by Jeff Chodorow in 1985. “If a kid has a chance to break a record, I’ll leave him in,” Bellatty said. “I don’t care what the other coach thinks.”

Technical try: With his team trailing Canyon, 58-52, with three minutes to play, Saugus Coach John Clark received a technical foul when he leaped off the bench and shouted at the referees. “I just felt that it was time for a technical,” Clark said. “Sometimes it fires up the team.” Greg Paskwietz, Canyon’s leading scorer who had made nine free throws in the fourth quarter, badly missed both technical foul shots. “It didn’t hurt us any,” Clark said about his technical. But Canyon won, 61-54. . . . Paskwietz said the “real” Canyon (15-5, 4-1) returned Friday night in the Golden League victory over its Santa Clarita Valley rival. Paskwietz has taken exception to complaints that the Cowboys’ schedule this season has been soft. “Sure we played a couple of sorry teams, but when we won our first few games, we were playing better as a team,” Paskwietz said.

Trivia answer: Jason Bromberg of Taft, David Waco of Chatsworth and Danny Enowitz of Grant are graduates of Northridge’s Heschel Day School, which has about 30 boys in each graduating class.

Girls basketball: Simi Valley currently has Twin Towers under construction on the girls junior varsity team. If junior Donna Houck (6- 1/2), and sophomore Caline Kosanke (5-11 1/2) develop, the Pioneers might continue to be a power in the Marmonte League. “They certainly could help our future,” Coach Dave Murphy said. “We feel next year we can battle for the championship. Caline almost made the varsity this year. She has very good offensive skills. Donna has been a great, great surprise. She’s improved so much.” . . . Julia Johnson, a senior forward at Newbury Park, has scored in double figures in eight consecutive games. She’s averaging 15 points a game.