All season, Alemany High basketball Coach Kurt...

All season, Alemany High basketball Coach Kurt Keller has urged his players to step forward and take some of the scoring load off Richard Dice (21-point average). With Dice slowed by two sprained ankles last week, Alemany found its man in Chris Bello.

One of the smallest players in the Mission League, Bello (5-foot-8) last week helped pick up the slack created by Dice’s injury. Bello scored 19, 23 and 17 points in three league games (19.7 average). The increase in production helped Bello, a junior guard, increase his season average to 11.4 points a game. . . .

If Notre Dame makes a late run at the Mission League title, it undoubtedly will be partly attributable to the return of two injured players. Glen Carson, a junior forward, was hampered by a knee injury in the preseason but has been at his best since league play started this month.

Back in the starting lineup, Carson has averaged 19.7 points over his past three games and is averaging 14.8 points in league play. Just as important is the return of point guard Damon Germanides, who is splitting time with Omar Seikaly. Germanides, a senior, had experienced a nagging muscle injury in his shoulder and is averaging 11.5 points in league play since returning. . . .

Hart’s Matt Steffe scored a career-high 33 points in an 84-67 win over Burbank on Friday. . . . Joe Ferguson has scored in double figures in all 16 of Canyon’s games. He is averaging 18.1 points. . . .

Crescenta Valley’s Josh Willis scored 60 points in two games last week, including a career-high 34 in a 54-53 Pacific League loss to Muir. Willis, who scored on five consecutive possessions against Muir, increased his season average from 22.0 to 24.3 points a game. . . .

In Buena’s 77-58 win over Oxnard on Friday, the Bulldogs outscored Oxnard, 29-9, in the third quarter. “Everything went right,” Buena Coach Glen Hannah said. “That might have been the best quarter we’ve had, both offensively and defensively, all season.”

Free throws: After missing his initial free throw in Marmonte League play, Simi Valley’s Danny Alexander has made 15 consecutive shots. Alexander is 53 for 59 (89.8%) this season.

Shooting: Oak Park’s Eric Pryor has made 31 of 58 (53%) three-point attempts. Teammate Damian Delfino has made 19 of 39 (49%) three-point attempts.

Miscellaneous: Littlerock (13-3), in its first season of varsity basketball, has been on the short end of three one-point losses. . . .

Girls’ basketball: Michelle Palmisano of Thousand Oaks picked up the slack in Marion Jones’ absence, scoring 58 points in two wins last week. Palmisano, a senior guard, had 24 points in the Lancers’ 58-25 win over Agoura, then added 34 points in a 62-30 win over Newbury Park. Jones, who is expected to miss the rest of the season because of a broken wrist, is averaging 17.2 points and 10.1 rebounds.

Girls’ soccer: Alyze Lowen of Harvard-Westlake scored two goals Friday against Crossroads to run her seasonal total to 17. The Wolverines (9-0-2) won, 3-0. . . . Oak Park junior striker Jen Frank scored 22 goals last season to set a school record, but she is on pace to break that mark this season with 18 goals in 14 games. Frank has helped the Eagles to an 8-3-3 record.

Boys’ soccer: Junior goalkeeper Josh Hahn of Calabasas has 11 shutouts in 15 matches. The school single-season record of 18 was set in 1986. Paced by the strong play of sweeper Richard Lee and stopper Brad Miller, the Coyotes have held opponents to an average of five shots a match. . . . With Royal’s 3-0 defeat of Westlake on Tuesday, senior goalkeeper Steve Hambly recorded his fifth consecutive shutout. Hambly has allowed one goal in six Marmonte League matches.

Regional Basketball

Top 10 Selected by sportswriters of The Times

Lst. Rk Wk Team League Record 1 1 North Hollywood Mid-Valley 15-1 2 2 Simi Valley Marmonte 13-3 3 3 Santa Clara Frontier 15-3 4 6 Buena Channel 11-4 5 4 Saugus Golden 14-5 6 5 Taft North Valley 9-3 7 10 Thousand Oaks Marmonte 10-5 8 8 Chatsworth West Valley 9-4 9 9 Kennedy North Valley 11-5 10 NR Quartz Hill Golden 11-6

NR--Not ranked.