Crenshaw Wins Title Again : Prep basketball: The Cougars defeat Carmichael Jesuit for the Division I crown, 89-79. Johnson scores 27 points.

Two years of controversy surrounding the Crenshaw High boys’ basketball has not affected the team’s performance on the court.

The Cougars won their second State Division I title in a row with an 89-79 victory over Carmichael Jesuit before 11,564 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena Saturday night.

Crenshaw (29-2) also defeated Jesuit in the championship game last year, 73-66.

The title was the sixth in the last 12 years for Coach Willie West, a state record. But the toughest have been the past two, which were accomplished with a team made up of several transfer players.

Crenshaw has been the subject of much finger-pointing, including many accusations made by Jesuit Coach Hank Meyer that the team illegally obtained the players.

West and his team were investigated by the City Section after last year’s title, but were cleared of any violations. Although the complaining continued this season, there has been no investigation.

Crenshaw has done its talking on the court, where it is 57-4 the last two seasons. It has saved its finest performances for the State championship.

Its 89 points Saturday night set a Division I record, and the teams tied a state record for the most points.

“‘We had a tough schedule,” West said. “Much tougher than last year, and we still prevailed.”

The heroes were numerous for Crenshaw. Kristaan Johnson, a transfer from Van Nuys Montclair Prep, scored 15 of his 27 points in the first quarter and added seven rebounds. Tommie Davis, who transferred last summer from Fremont, set a Division I record with 14 assists.

Tremaine Fowlkes, a transfer from Culver City, finished with a game-high 30 points and eight rebounds. He cited added motivation with California Coach Todd Bozeman sitting courtside. Fowlkes will attend Cal in the fall.

“That gives you a little boost,” he said. “This is my soon-to-be-hometown, so why not put on a show for the fans?”

The final score was not indicative of the closeness of the game. Jesuit (31-7), champion of the Sac Joaquin Section, trailed by only two points several times in the fourth quarter.

Senior guard Chris Griffin hit a jump shot with 3:32 remaining to pull Jesuit to within 79-77. Crenshaw’s depth proved the difference down the stretch, however, as it went on a 10-2 run.

“I knew it would be up and down, but I knew we could compete,” Meyer said. “We made some mistakes and it hurt us.”

Jesuit committed 16 turnovers and Crenshaw nine.

The Marauders started off strong as Omarr Collins scored 14 points in the first quarter, including a pair of three-pointers, to lift Jesuit to a 24-21 lead.

Crenshaw stayed close thanks to Johnson, who made seven of eights shots for 15 points in the first quarter.

But the UCLA-bound Johnson struggled in the second quarter, and seldom-used Raymond Palmer, a junior forward, stepped in and scored three key baskets as the Cougars took a 46-41 halftime lead.

The Marauders were down by 42-41 after a three-pointer by Griffin, but a basket by Palmer and a dunk by Fowlkes in the final 25 seconds of the first half widened the gap.