It's Now or Never for Southern Section Teams

By MITCH POLIN

Feb. 18, 1993 12 AM PT

Questions and answers about South Bay teams at the start of the Southern Section boys’ basketball playoffs:

* How many South Bay teams are competing?

Eighteen area teams were among the 255 in the 10-division field that was announced Sunday.

The playoffs opened Tuesday in Divisions I-AA, IV-AA and IV-A, including four games involving South Bay teams. Peninsula advanced in I-AA with a 57-41 win over Channel Islands and St. Bernard advanced in IV-AA with an 84-81 victory over fourth-seeded San Jacinto. Leuzinger (I-AA) and El Segundo (IV-AA) were eliminated.

Most area teams play their first-round games at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

* What teams are most likely to compete in a Southern Section final?

Morningside (22-5) has been ranked No. 1 in the state in Division III all season. Led by guard Stais Boseman, the Monarchs will be tough to beat in Division III-AA.

Serra, seeded second in Division IV-A, is 16-6 and won the Camino Real League title. The Cavaliers have four starters returning from a squad that reached the IV-A final last season.

Bishop Montgomery (20-2), which won the Mission League, appears in good position to reach the III-AA final. The second-seeded Knights, led by All-Southern Section center Andre English, reached the second round of the II-A playoffs last season.

Chadwick (18-8) survived a difficult schedule to earn the top seeding in V-AA.

* What team is most likely to win a championship?

Morningside and Serra will be tough to beat, especially considering that Divisions III-AA and IV-A have only 16-team fields. Most divisions have 32-team fields.

* What teams are expected to have trouble reaching a championship game?

Neither North Torrance nor Inglewood received any favors in the draws.

North (14-10), the second-place finisher in the Pioneer League, must play its II-A opener Friday against a Bishop Amat squad that finished third in the tough Del Rey League. If North wins, it would probably play top-seeded Artesia, the defending state Division II champion. A possible matchup against fourth-seeded Ventura (21-3) would await in the quarterfinals.

Inglewood (16-9) won the Bay League, but must play Compton in a II-AA opener. The Tarbabes finished 14-10 and placed third in the Moore League, which had all six of its teams advance to the playoffs. If Inglewood wins, a probable matchup against Tustin (19-7) awaits in the second round. Fourth-seeded Cajon (22-4) would be the expected opponent in the quarterfinals.

* Who has the schedule to a title game?

Serra should have little difficulty in its IV-A opener against Maranatha (12-11). In the second round, it would play either Rosamond or Carpinteria (both 13-9). The most difficult game for the Cavaliers is expected to be in the semifinals, when they could meet third-seeded Santa Clara.

Chadwick opens against Grace Brethren (11-8) and appears in good position to play fourth-seeded Capistrano Valley Christian (19-4) in the V-AA semifinals.

* What team received the best draw to open the playoffs?

Torrance couldn’t have asked for a better opening matchup in the II-AA playoffs. The Tartars (12-13) play Burbank Burroughs (11-12), the second-place finisher in the Foothill League.

Redondo (13-12) also received a favorable matchup in the II-A playoffs. It will play La Mirada (13-12), which finished third in the Suburban League.

Morningside Coach Carl Franklin is worried about Servite (11-14), the Monarchs’ opening opponent.

“They’re an unusual team because all of their opponents are bigger schools than they are,” Franklin said. “Their record is also deceptive because they’ve played a lot of opponents close and they’re a pretty good defensive team.”

He said the Friars, who have won six of the past seven games, are giving up an average of 52 points.

“We’re concerned about them because they beat South (Torrance) in the playoffs last year,” Franklin said.

Franklin is worried about a possible second-round game against Estancia. The Monarchs defeated Estancia in the III-AA final and the Southern California Division III final last season en route to the state title.

“We know that we will really have to be ready in order to defend our title,” he said. “I think (the Southern Section) just wanted to make it difficult for us to defend, and I think they have.”

Does Franklin think his team will repeat?

“I’d like to wait and see how we do Friday first,” he said. “I don’t want to make any grand statements until then.”

Perennial South Bay track and field powers Morningside and Hawthorne will have several athletes entered in the 34th annual Sunkist Invitational indoor meet at 12:15 p.m. Saturday at the Sports Arena.

Hawthorne is entered in seven boys’ and three girls’ events and Morningside will compete in five boys’ and three girls’ events. The Torrance girls are also entered in six events.

Among the competitors for Morningside are Edward Turner in the long jump, Shawn Shamsia-deen in the 50-meter hurdles and Tai-Ne Gibson in the 50-meter dash.

Turner, who had a best of 24 feet in the long jump last season, and Gibson are regarded among the best in the state in their events. The Monarchs finished second in the state last season in the boys and girls divisions.

Among the competitors for Hawthorne are Corey McCoy, who has signed a national letter of intent to play football at Arizona State in the fall, and Tevita Moala, who has signed with Brigham Young.

McCoy, a running back, will compete in the 50-meter dash. Moala, a linebacker who helped lead Hawthorne to the 1992 Southern Section Division III title, is entered in the football 50 meters.

Also entered for the Cougars are Marquis Jones in the 50 hurdles, Damon Oliver in the 500-yard run and Mashana Mays in the 50 hurdles.

Torrance’s Kim Blankinship and Suzanne Radcliffe will compete in the long jump and sprinters Darlisa Good and Fiona Mason will compete in separate heats of the 50 meters.

Marcus Ferrara of South Torrance will compete in the 880-yard run, Morris Giddens of Gardena in the rated mile and Dan Minami of Peninsula in the two-mile. Girls competing distance events include Jamie Artzner of Peninsula and Leanna De Gazon of Bishop Montgomery in the rated mile and Kamara Mayberry of St. Bernard in the 880.

Notes

Guard Mimi McKinney, Peninsula’s scorer who injured her right ankle in a 54-31 loss Saturday to New York Christ the King, could miss the Panthers’ Southern Section playoff opener Saturday against visiting Alhambra. The starting time has been switched to 4 p.m. because of a school dance that night. . . . The Morningside girls’ basketball team, which is seeded No. 1 in Division III-AA, will take a 22-2 record into Saturday’s first-round playoff game against the winner of the Fullerton-Western game. St. Bernard (20-4), seeded third in Division IV-AA, will play host to Immaculate Heart in its opener Saturday night.

Leroy Wilson, a former coach at Jefferson High and an assistant at South Gate last season, has been named football coach at Narbonne. Wilson replaces Patrick Bender, who had only two wins in two seasons as coach. . . . Forward Jessica Reifer of the University of Hartford, a former Torrance High player, has been named to the Soccer America Women’s All-Freshman team. Reifer helped lead Torrance to the 1992 Southern Section 3-A Division title and was named 3-A offensive player of the year two seasons in a row. . . . LaMont Henry of South Torrance, Rick Sabosky of El Segundo, Doug Mitchell of Bishop Montgomery and Jim Nielsen of Redondo have been named coaches for the annual South Bay All-Star Basketball Classic on March 12 at 7 p.m. at South Torrance. The game, which will match many of the top senior boys in the South Bay, is sponsored by the South Bay Athletic Club.

South Bay Boys’ Basketball Top 10

Selected by Times Sportswriters Through Tuesday’s Games

Rank, School, League: Record

1 Morningside (Ocean): 22-5

2 Bishop Montgomery (Mission): 20-2

3 Westchester (Metro): 18-6

4 Serra (Camino Real): 18-7

5 Inglewood (Bay): 16-9

6 Peninsula (Bay): 19-7

7 South Torrance (Pioneer): 23-2

8 Redondo (Ocean): 13-12

9 Mira Costa (Ocean): 18-7