CITY BOYS’ BASKETBALL PREVIEWS : HARBOR LEAGUE : Little Guys Get Their Big Chance

Disregard last year’s records. The game plan has changed.

The newly formed City Harbor League is the “Opportunity League” for the teams involved, catering to schools with smaller enrollments.

“We can go into a league game now and have a chance to win,” Coronado Coach Bob Stanton said, “instead of playing five teams you can’t beat.”

Coronado, with 650 students, came from the Metro Conference, which had schools such as Sweetwater and Chula Vista with enrollments close to 2,000. Coronado, fourth in the Metro last conference last year, is expected to contend for the league title this season.

St. Augustine, formerly of the City Central League, is the coaches’ favorite to challenge Coronado. But there will be few guaranteed victories in this league.

“Now any game we go into, anyone is capable of winning,” Clairemont Coach Greg Lee said. “This league is more suited for our schools year in and year out. This is better for all teams concerned.”

Clairemont could have a winning season if it begins to play more consistently. League coaches say it has the best athletes.

Marian is an unknown with a new coach and a new attitude.

“Maybe we haven’t had the most competitive preseason, but I think we’ll surprise some people,” Marian Coach Lenny Schlein said.

And you can’t discredit Christian. The team maybe young and inexperienced, but it has Tony Clark, the county’s leading scorer.

THE RACE

Top contenders: Coronado (10-13 in 1988-89), St. Augustine (2-21).

Surprise potential: Marian (5-15), Clairemont (12-15).

Hoping for improvement: Christian (12-11).

Game of the year: Coronado at St. Augustine, Feb. 6. It could come down to these two teams for the title.

THE PLAYERS

The man: Although he’s wearing a different uniform, Christian’s Tony Clark is again dominating county scoring, averaging 43.9 points a game.

Last year at Valhalla, Clark led the county with a 30.4-point average.

“He was the best player in the county last year, and I assume he’ll be the best this year,” Christian Coach Randy Wright said. “There will be so many different kinds of defenses against him, we’ll see how he does.”

Clark, a 6-7 senior forward, will head to Arizona to play for Lute Olson next year.

Taking some of the pressure off Clark should be 6-1 senior Brad Fox, who has recently returned after a football injury. Fox, a fullback and linebacker, had popped a blood vessel in his knee and missed six weeks.

“He makes us a better team,” Wright said. “He balances out the scoring and can rebound.”

Who will fill Ray McDavid’s shoes? Coaches were relieved when they realized Clairemont’s high-scoring McDavid wouldn’t be around to torment their defenses this season.

“When they first talked about forming the Harbor League, the first thing I asked was what year McDavid was,” Schlein said. “He was an outstanding player.”

McDavid finished fourth in the county in scoring (25.1-point average) and led Clairemont to the Division III championship game against Lincoln.

Alex Love, a 6-2 junior, is stepping into McDavid’s position at guard but couldn’t possibly fill his predecessor’s shoes, Lee said.. He compared losing McDavid to somebody such as Joe Montana graduating.

“The coach would have a tough time finding a quarterback to replace him,” Lee said. “I don’t have that guy.”

Love is averaging 16.6 points and 8.5 rebounds a game.

Others to watch: Newcomers to keep an eye on are Christian’s Dave Piester, a 6-5 junior forward and first-year varsity player who is averaging 11.6 points a game. Eric Ott, a 6-3 sophomore, had 10 rebounds in a game for St. Augustine.

THE INTANGIBLES

Coaching changes: There’s two new head coaches in the league--Marian’s Schlein, who used to be the junior varsity coach, and St. Augustine’s Jeff Armstrong, formerly coach at Granite Hills for three years.

Armstrong took the job when a full-time teaching position became available.

“Besides the teaching position, this gives me the opportunity to be in a program where athletics are a vital part of the student-athletes’ lives,” Armstrong said.

The key for Marian could be Schlein’s attitude.

“I’m very competitive, and I hope to instill that in my players,” he said. “We’ve come a long way.”

Who’s that guy?: Coronado’s Derek Wastila hasn’t had nearly as much exposure as Clark, but, “I think he has a chance at league MVP even though Tony is in the league,” Stanton said. “If we are fortunate to win it (the league), then there’s even more reason for him to win it.”

Wastila, a 6-3 guard, is the Harbor’s third-leading scorer, averaging 18.9 points.

“He really blossomed out this year,” Stanton said. “He is quietly taking command.”

In a 75-72 loss to Lincoln, Wastila scored 16 points.

“When we played Lincoln, you saw all these players around the basketball and one head who was the one pulling (the ball) it down,” Stanton said. “He leaps so high and has toothpicks for legs.”

Going the distance: No cross-town rivals in this league. It spans from Coronado to El Cajon, from Clairemont to Imperial Beach.

“The only disinclination I had about forming the league was that I like local competition and neighborhood rivalries,” Lee said. “You expect a 45-minute road trip for nonleague games, not for league.”