Southern Section Basketball Capsules : ALPHA LEAGUE

Montclair Prep

COACH: Howard Abrams, 15th season

LAST SEASON: 19-5, 1st in league, 11-1

PLAYERS TO WATCH: J.T. Billingslea, a 6-foot guard who scored 15 points a game as a junior and was the league MVP, returns to lead the Mounties. Also back is forward-center Chris Sanger (6-6), who averaged 13 points. From the football team come two more cogs: 6-foot-7 center Donovan Roy and third guard Eddie Cibrian (6-1). Defensive specialist Andre Gower (5-6) and point guard Steve Cain have been promoted from the junior varsity. Freshman Kris Johnson (6-4) is the son of former UCLA All-American Marques Johnson.

OUTLOOK: The Mounties shape up as the prohibitive favorites in the league and remain the standard by which other league members judge their programs. Said L.A. Baptist Coach Maury Neville: “Montclair Prep is at the top. No question.”

Village Christian

COACH: Brian Gibson, 1st season

LAST SEASON: 8-14, 6th in league, 4-8

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Two returning starters will form the core of Gibson’s first varsity team. In the middle of it all will be center John Brown (6-7), a senior who will miss every Friday game because of religious reasons. Brown (21.3 points) was the team’s leading scorer last season. Returning at point guard is senior Matt Henzie (5-11), the son of former Coach Mike Henzie. Surrounding that nucleus are lettermen who will start, including junior post player Vic Lozano (6-2), who started at the end of last season, and small forward David Orso (6-3). Gibson also likes sophomore guard David Fennell (6-1), an all-around player with good leaping ability. From the football team comes junior Myles Brown, a 6-foot guard.

OUTLOOK: Gibson knows that his team will be at its best on any day but Friday, when Brown cannot play. When Brown is in the lineup, Gibson said, “as a whole, this team will be better than last year’s. They blend well together. If they do what they’re told to do, we can play with anybody in the league.”

L.A. Baptist

COACH: Maury Neville, 15th season

LAST SEASON: 9-15, 5th in league, 5-7

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Like Village Christian, L. A. Baptist will center its hopes on two returning starters. The taller of the two is center-forward Alex Pistone (6-3), who led the team in scoring last season with an 11.4 average. The other is point guard Glenn Dodson (6-0), a two-year varsity letterman. Other returning lettermen are seniors Larry Masters (6-4), a center, and guard Dan Shackelford (5-10). The rest of the positions in the rotation are wide open. Dane Brown (6-4), a junior quarterback, has joined the team and will play inside with junior Judd Frazier (6-3). Brad Imbler (5-10) is a swingman vying for playing time.

OUTLOOK: Neville is cautious when gauging this season’s team. “The outlook is rather guarded,” he said. “We’re probably a little quicker and a little bigger than we were in the past, but we’re going to be counting on an awful lot of juniors that don’t have any varsity experience. Those kids may come through. If they do, we’ll be looking pretty good.”