CITY BOYS 3-A : North Hollywood Surprises Favored Fremont, 76-71

North Hollywood, behind a strong performance by center Dana Jones, pulled off an upset Friday night at the Sports Arena, winning the City 3-A title by beating Fremont, 76-71.

It marks the first basketball championship in the history of the school and propelled the Huskies into next week’s Southern State Regionals.

Jones, a 6-foot-6 senior bound for Pepperdine, dominated the game at both ends of the floor. He scored 29 points, had 29 rebounds, blocked seven shots and had two assists.

“I just wanted it real bad,” said Jones, who had been told by Coach Steve Miller that he would have to play “the game of his (Jones’) life” for the Huskies (24-3) to win.

“I said, ‘I’ll do it,’ ” Jones said.

For Fremont (29-3), the state’s fifth-ranked team in Division I, the loss before 5,240 may have cut short a season that some had speculated would end with a state title.

“He did an outstanding job,” Fremont Coach Sam Sullivan said of Jones. “He was the key defensively. He shut us down all night and kept us from penetrating. That was the key, since we depend on penetrating offensively.”

North Hollywood scored 15 consecutive points in four minutes to turn a 16-11 first-quarter deficit into a 26-16 lead. The run was highlighted by the play of Jones, who had seven blocks and 11 rebounds in the first half.

Fremont, stunned by the Huskies’ quick start, answered with a 12-2 run at the end of the half to tie the score, 30-30.

“We came in here, everybody was saying how this was the best 3-A team ever and we played them even,” an ecstatic Miller said. “It’s a storybook ending. A perfect scenario. Case closed.”

Leading 41-40 with 4:40 to play in the third quarter, the Huskies went on a 15-3 run to build a 56-43 lead heading into the fourth quarter.