Los Angeles Times 1987 ALL-STARS : Matt Bowley Repeats on Boys Team, Helping Whitney Renew Title

The pressure on Matt Bowley was tremendous.

“You have no idea how hard it is to repeat as a champion,” said former Whitney High School boys basketball Coach Bruce Carlisle about Bowley, who felt he had to carry the load as Whitney trudged to its second consecutive Southern Section Small Schools Division title.

Bowley earned his second consecutive spot on The Times All-Southeast basketball team. He is one of 10 boys selected to the 1986-87 team.

Bowley, last year’s Small Schools Division player of the year, did not repeat in that capacity in 1987, but he did share first-team All-Southern Section berths with two teammates. The 6-foot-2 senior forward averaged 14 points and 12 rebounds a game.

“I pulled him a lot when we were way ahead in games,” Carlisle said. “I think that might have hurt him in the Small Schools MVP voting because his stats weren’t that high, but I couldn’t see running up the score against a lot of those teams.”

Whitney finished with a 25-3 record.

With nearly four years of work completed at the college prep school, Bowley says he wants to take college life slow. The Cypress resident plans to attend a community college in the fall, but is unsure which one.

Whittier Christian High, the 1-A Division runner-up, was the only team to place two players on the All-Southeast team.

Here is a rundown of the all-star team:

Corey Hoffert, California--He was the scrawny 15th man on the freshman team four years ago. This year he blossomed as a 6-5 scoring machine who tallied 49 points in one game and averaged 18.5 points and 12 rebounds per game. He was voted the co-MVP of the Whitmont League.

Tyler Austin, La Serna--One of only two underclassmen on the team, he shared MVP honors with Hoffert. The 6-4 1/2 junior averaged 22.5 points and 11.2 rebounds a game from his forward position.

Corey Jennings, Norwalk--The 6-foot-4 center will enroll at Cerritos College in the fall after averaging 19 points and 12 rebounds for the second-place team from the Suburban League. He was an all-league choice.

Anthony Jenkins, Pius X--He makes his second consecutive appearance on the team. The 6-4 senior averaged 23.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots. He will attend the University of Washington.

Butch LeNoue, Schurr--The 5-11 senior guard was a dead-eye from the perimeter. He averaged 17 points a game and is considering playing at Citrus College. A two-time All-Foothill League choice, he helped the Spartans tie Burbank for the league title.

Mike Goodcase--The consummate prep player, he did it all for Whittier Christian, which advanced to the Southern Section’s Division 1-A title game for the second consecutive year. This is the second appearance on The Times team by the 6-2 senior. He carries a 4.0 grade-point average and has been accepted at Stanford and UC Irvine, but may play baseball instead of basketball.

Erik Martin, Whittier Christian--The 6-4 1/2 Covina resident led the Heralds in scoring (21 points a game) and rebounding (14 a game).

Matt Bowley, Whitney--The 6-2 senior forward helped Whitney repeat as Small Schools Division champion. He averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds a game. The Cypress resident has not decided which community college he will play for next year.

Clay Schwartz, Downey--The 6-6 center helped Downey get off to a 13-0 start in the preseason and was named the MVP in three preseason tournaments. He averaged 21.6 points a game, although Downey failed to advance to the playoffs.

Danny Lizotte, Bell--The only City Section player on the team averaged 20.5 points a game as the Eagles won the Eastern League championship. “He’s the big reason we took the league title,” said Coach Rod Tange of the 6-0 guard. It was Bell’s first title since 1969.

The all-star boys and girls teams, each consisting of 10 members, their coaches and parents will be guests of the Times at 9 a.m. Sunday at the annual Times High School Basketball Awards Brunch where all-star teams from 10 circulation areas will be honored at the Anaheim Hilton. The featured Speaker will be first-year USC Coach George Raveling. The players and coaches of the year from each area will be announced.

The teams were chosen on the basis of a poll of area coaches, who are asked to fill out ballots nominating their own players and opponents, plus the observations of college scouts and sportswriters. Each player will receive the traditional Times golden basketball plaque and award certificate.

BOYS PREP TEAM

Name School Year Position Height Corey Hoffert California Senior Center 6-5 Tyler Austin La Serna Junior Forward 6-4 1/2 Corey Jennings Norwalk Senior Center 6-4 Anthony Jenkins Pius X Senior Forward 6-4 Butch LeNoue Schurr Senior Guard 5-11 Mike Goodcase Whittier Christian Senior Forward/Guard 6-2 Erik Martin Whittier Christian Junior Center/Forward 6-4 1/2 Matt Bowley Whitney Senior Forward 6-2 Clay Schwartz Downey Senior Center 6-6 Danny Lizotte Bell Senior Guard 6-0

Name Average Reb. Avg. Corey Hoffert 18.5 12.0 Tyler Austin 22.5 11.2 Corey Jennings 18.5 12.0 Anthony Jenkins 23.9 7.3 Butch LeNoue 17.0 3.0 Mike Goodcase 14.6 6.1 Erik Martin 21.0 14.0 Matt Bowley 14.0 8.0 Clay Schwartz 21.6 7.0 Danny Lizotte 20.5 4.0