Hartman, Foster Lead Way for Thousand Oaks, 88-66

As first-year varsity players at Thousand Oaks High, Jason Hartman and Paul Foster are supposed to be the rookies on the club who carry the ball bags and water bottles.

But Hartman and Foster don’t fit that mold, a fact that was apparent Friday night in the Lancers’ 88-66 disposal of host Agoura in a Marmonte League game.

Hartman, a 6-foot-4 sophomore forward, came off the bench to score a career-high 17 points and he ignited a 14-0 run by Thousand Oaks (10-5, 5-0 in league play) in the first half. Hartman, who finished seven for 10 from the field, scored seven points in a one-minute span early in the second quarter, breaking a 19-19 tie and putting Agoura (10-4, 3-2) in a hole from which it did not surface.

Thousand Oaks, which committed just eight turnovers, remains alone atop the league standings.

Foster, a 6-5 junior forward, hit eight of 11 shots and led the Lancers with 21 points. The play of Foster and Hartman took the heat off 6-6 senior center Shane Graham (10 points) underneath and enabled guards Jeff Perrault (18) and Andrew Borg (17) to dodge pressure from the perimeter.

“Both of them are young, so it was just a matter of playing time for them this season,” Thousand Oaks Coach Ed Chevalier said. “Both are aggressive and they add a dimension to this team. Obviously, the better they get, the better we get.”

At times against Agoura, it appeared the Lancers could not get any better. They scored at will inside and finished 27 of 48 (56%) from the field, including 15 of 20 (75%) in the second half. When Agoura chose to send Thousand Oaks to the free-throw line, the Lancers finished 29 of 35 (83%). Perrault, a senior point guard, made 13 of 14 free throws.

Agoura, meanwhile, struggled after hitting five of its first seven three-point attempts. The Chargers, who finished 10 for 24 from three-point range, pulled within 69-60 with 2 minutes 21 seconds left, but Thousand Oaks hit its last 15 free throws in the final 2:14.

Senior forward Eddie Corridori hit five three-point shots and finished with a game-high 26 points to lead Agoura, which finished 24 for 50 (48%) from the field and committed 14 turnovers.

“We played with no intelligence at either end of the court,” Agoura Coach Kevin Pasky said. “That’s the worst defense we’ve played in my five seasons here. We’re going back to the classroom (Saturday) and learning how to play defense again.”