No Brotherly Love on Basketball Court : Basketball: When Zaletel brothers compete against each other, it’s not just fun and games.

The last time the Zaletel brothers competed against each other on a basketball court was in 1987, when Jon and Joe went one-on-one at a park in Torrance.

Jon won one game, and Joe won the other.

The next time--at least, according to older brother Jon--will be for keeps.

“If it ever comes down to money,” Jon said, “he’s going down.”

But the next meeting between the brothers will have to wait for a while at least.

Jon, 21, is a starting swingman for Harbor College. Joe, 17, who at 6-foot-6 has grown three inches taller than his “big” brother, is a senior forward at Torrance High.

“We live our lives around basketball games,” said Georgia Rahmeyer, the boys’ mother. “It’s hard. I want to see both of them play, but I feel like I’m missing Joe’s game if I’m watching Jon.”

And vice versa.

Joe used to watch his brother play at Torrance--Jon averaged 20 points a game as a Tartar shooting guard his senior season in 1986-87.

At halftime, the younger brother used to attempt half-court shots.

“It’s hard to believe how big Joe has gotten,” Jon said. “It seems like only a couple of years ago, he was just a little runt.”

Jon averages eight points and five rebounds a game for Harbor. At 6-3, Jon has played both guard spots and forward positions for Harbor (9-13) this season.

Meanwhile, Joe is averaging 20.9 points and 9.5 rebounds for Torrance.

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When the Zaletel boys were growing up in Torrance, basketball and baseball came easily.

“I pushed them into sports, to keep them away from the streets,” said Rahmeyer, a water supervisor for the city of Torrance.

Instead, the brothers beat up on each other. Following the unwritten rules of sibling superiority, it was usually Jon handing out the beatings.

“When mom was in the other room, I’d just start pounding on him,” Jon said. “I had to toughen him up somehow. I remember we’d play basketball down at the park and we’d come home all bruised up.”

Today, looking from Joe’s 6-6, 190-pound platform, those old bruises look a lot different.

Joe’s feet were size 11 1/2 in the eighth grade, when he stood only 5-8.

These days, Joe laces up size 14 sneakers. Joe predicts he’ll grow to be 6-9 someday.

“I got my butt kicked a few times by Jon in the old days,” Joe said. “But he doesn’t try that too much anymore.”

Jon tried his hand at running a forklift in a Hawthorne warehouse for three years after he graduated from Torrance.

But basketball--especially with his younger brother’s success in the past few years--was still in Jon’s blood. He was going to try out for Harbor’s team last season, but injured a knee.

He walked on this season, made the team and has quickly established himself as Harbor Coach Ken Curry’s most versatile player.

Jon is quick-footed and a good outside shooter, qualities that make him a prototype small forward or off-guard.

But he’s hard-nosed enough to mix it up at power forward and savvy enough to run the point, which he has been doing in Harbor’s past few games.

“Jon uses his body well,” said Joe, who should know.

So far Harbor has struggled, but not due to lack of effort from the elder Zaletel.

“We’ve got too many freshmen this year, but not enough guys like Jon,” Curry said. “He’s tough and he plays within the system. He sacrifices some of his scoring to get the ball to the other players.”

At Torrance, Jon was a prolific scorer, even in the days before the three-point shot was installed in the high school ranks.

“I think Jon would have averaged 10 more points a game if they had the three-pointer back then,” Joe said. “He was unstoppable on 21-, 22-footers.”

Still, Jon was old enough to drink a beer before he scored his first college points.

“I’m still considered a freshman,” he said. “If everything looks cool and I’m still playing well, I’d love to play Division I or II college ball. But that’s yet to come.”

So, unfortunately, are the college recruiters. Even the younger Zaletel--with his unique blend of size and ballhandling ability--has been virtually ignored by college scouts.

Bob Little, who has coached at Torrance for 25 years, is amazed that such a prospect has been overlooked.

“Here’s a boy who’s got all the tools, size and skills,” Little said. “Maybe he’d be better off going to a (junior college). But it’s kind of a shame. Other coaches are always asking me what schools are after Joe.”

With Joe’s numbers, he will be tough to miss. His high-scoring game was 30 points against Rancho Alamitos, and Joe is coming off a 27-point, 18-rebound performance against North Torrance.

Playing between 6-8 junior center Joe Otos and 6-2 small forward Kris Radcliffe (16.4 points per game), Zaletel has finally found his niche.

“To this day I don’t like playing with my back to the basket,” he said. “But when it comes down to pressure time, Coach Little tells me to go to work inside.”

Fortunately for Little and Torrance (10-6), Joe’s all-around skills are well developed because of his late growing spurts.

“Joe is a natural forward,” Little said. “He’s a good open-court player. Sometimes he gets into trouble because of his skills. He likes to dribble behind his back, which tends to bother coaches.”

It doesn’t bother older brothers, however. Jon relishes the chance to watch Joe play.

One-on-one grudge matches aside, Jon likes what he sees.

“I hope Joe gets a better chance than I did to play college ball,” Jon said. “I’d like to see him get a fair shake. He deserves it.”