N. Hollywood Toed the Line Down Stretch

One coach crossed the line. The other team excelled at the line. Therein lies a strange basketball tale.

North Hollywood High escaped with a 60-56 victory over St. Mary’s in the second round of the Bell-Jeff girls’ tournament Monday by taking full advantage of St. Mary’s generosity--in the form of converted free-throw opportunities.

In fact, North Hollywood scored seven points over the final 41 seconds without a field goal.

With 41 seconds left and North Hollywood trailing by three points, a Husky player was fouled. The St. Mary’s coach erupted and was hit with consecutive technical fouls for yelling at officials.

The North Hollywood player on the receiving end of the foul was injured, however, and was replaced by Galia Margalit, who made the second of two free throws to pare the St. Mary’s lead to two points.

Sophomore Anna Celaya then stepped to the line to shoot the technicals and made four consecutive attempts to give North Hollywood a two-point lead. North Hollywood was given possession of the ball, and after the inbounds play, Celaya was fouled and made both free throws to give North Hollywood a four-point victory.

LEAPING HUNTER

Canoga Park senior guard Demond Callahan stands just 6-feet, but when his feet leave the ground he is head and shoulders above the rest.

“He’s got a 38-inch vertical (leap),” Canoga Park Coach Jeff Davis said. “He can reach his entire hand over the box on the backboard. He’s just incredible.”

Callahan, a 175-pound senior guard who leads the team with a 16.7-point average, has blocked 33 shots in 11 games. But his specialty is the reverse dunk.

Just ask North Hollywood Coach Steve Miller. Against the Huskies three weeks ago, Callahan was on display. On one particular play--with his back to the basket--Callahan jumped, received a pass at his waist from point guard Jody Edington, lifted the ball over his head and slammed it through for the reverse dunk.

“It was so good that Coach Miller stood up and slapped (Callahan) a high-five when he ran by,” Davis said.

MY TIME

Coaches have difficult decisions to make regarding the holiday break. Practice or tournament play? Which is more beneficial? And how much time off should coaches give players to spend with family and friends?.

Such was the dilemma facing Highland Coach Tom Mahan. But he decided his players would benefit most during the break from playing in tournaments and spending time with the family. So, it has been 13 days--nearly two weeks--since the Bulldogs practiced. After consecutive Golden League games Dec. 18 and 19, Mahan gave the team an entire week off before the start of the San Gorgonio tournament, its third tournament of the season.

His decision--like many gifts received over the holidays--came complete with instructions.

“I told them to go home, spend time with their families and enjoy it because when you get back, you belong to me,” Mahan said.

League play resumes Jan. 5.

JUMPING OPPORTUNITY

You all know about Marion Jones, the sprinter.

But are you ready for Marion Jones, the long-jumper?

The Thousand Oaks senior is the three-time defending state champion in the girls’ 100 and 200 meters, but she plans to add the long jump to her repertoire for the 1993 track season.

“This is my senior year, and I’ve always wanted to give the long jump a try,” Jones said. “It’s just something I want to do.”

Jones, who has signed a letter of intent with North Carolina to play basketball and run track, refused to make any predictions about how far she is capable of jumping, but she did say she has had some “pretty impressive” marks in practice.

RECRUITING WATCH

Although Hoover cross-country runner Margarito Casillas has yet to take any recruiting trips, he has narrowed his list of potential schools to UCLA, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado and Wisconsin.

He has expressed no preference, but UCLA might have the advantage because former Hoover standouts Eliazar Herrera and Creighton Harris compete for the Bruins.

ALL IN THE FAMILIES

What’s this? A family reunion? No, just the Burroughs girls’ soccer team.

Cami and Cara Tubbs, the varsity goalie coach and junior varsity coach, respectively, are identical twins--as are senior players Lorraine and Lorrie McIntire.

Two other sets of sisters--Erin and Sara Abbey, and Karla and Patricia Ventocilla--and a set of cousins, Sonia Medina and Sandra Rosales, are on the roster. And if that’s not enough, Natalie Perico’s brother, Anthony, plays for the Burroughs boys’ team.

Coach Rob Kodama is at a loss to explain the preponderance of relatives on the team.

Maybe his brother, Mike, knows. He coaches the boys’ varsity.

REDEMPTION

North Hollywood girls’ basketball player Rachel Fogelhut went from goat to hero in the space of about five minutes last week.

Canoga Park, already down to four players because of fouls, watched a late lead evaporate when the Huskies tied the score, 52-52, with eight seconds to play.

Mistakenly thinking her team still trailed by one, however, Fogelhut purposely fouled a Canoga Park player, giving the Hunters two free throws and an almost-certain gift victory.

“We had her transfer papers all ready,” Coach Rich Allen joked. “But we do tell our players not to look at the scoreboard and just play.”

The player missed both free throws, however, and Fogelhut scored both of her team’s baskets in overtime to give North Hollywood a 56-52 win.

“I guess we can forgive her,” Allen said.

KNOWING PRIORITIES

The Nordhoff girls’ basketball team is getting used to victories this season with a school-record 11-game winning streak and championships in its own tournament and the Santa Paula tournament the past two weekends.

But none of the wins came any easier than the one recorded Dec. 19 in the Santa Paula tournament final, when Fillmore forfeited the championship to the Rangers.

Fillmore was unable to field a team because eight of its 10 players decided to go to the school’s Christmas formal dance instead of playing.

MAKING WAVES

Some players from small schools can play at higher levels. Former Montclair Prep standout Kris Johnson is living proof.

Johnson, a 6-5 junior, transferred to Crenshaw last summer after two seasons at Montclair Prep. He averaged 21.4 points and 10.2 rebounds in 1991-92 for the Mounties.

He hasn’t missed a beat.

Johnson, in fact, carried Crenshaw to the championship of the Trabuco Hills tournament earlier this month. Johnson, the son of former UCLA and NBA great Marques Johnson, scored 24 points and added 16 rebounds as Crenshaw defeated Capistrano Valley in overtime, 76-70, in the final.

Johnson made a three-point basket with one second left in regulation to send the game into overtime. He later was named the tournament MVP.

GIANT-KILLERS

The Montclair Prep boys’ basketball team is making it a habit of knocking off highly regarded Southern Section contenders.

The Mounties, barred from postseason play in 1991-92 because of recruiting violations, have twice beaten both Crossroads (the defending Southern Section IV-A champion) and Ribet Academy (the V-A champion) within the past calendar year.

The Mounties, a Division V-A team, also defeated Campbell Hall (defending Division V-A champion) in 1991-92.

David Coulson and staff writers Steve Elling, Paige A. Leech, Kennedy Cosgrove and John Ortega contributed to this notebook.