VENTURA COUNTY ALL-STAR BASKETBALL : Lauer Takes Center Stage With 7 Bombs

Peter Lauer of Thousand Oaks High failed to qualify for the halftime three-point shooting contest earlier in the week, but after connecting on seven three-pointers in the Ventura County all-star basketball game Friday night, Lauer managed to upstage all his counterparts.

Lauer scored 30 points and Washington-bound teammate Jason Hartman, also of Thousand Oaks, added 24 to pace the South’s 119-94 victory over the North at Ventura High.

Lauer, who will play for Redlands next season, and Hartman combined for 19 of South’s 38 points in the fourth quarter and turned a close game into a rout in the closing minutes.

Although Thousand Oaks claimed the Marmonte League title this season, Lauer still felt he had a point to make.

“It proved T.O. basketball is one of the best in the area--as usual,” Lauer said. “I think there’s a lot of schools out there that think we’re not as good as them. We proved tonight that we’re a good program.”

The South led throughout most of the game, due in great part to the consistency of Lauer and Hartman.

The South reclaimed a lead, 56-54, on Lauer’s three-point play just before halftime. The South maintained the lead, but the North stayed close with six players scoring in double figures. Guard Josh Babatua of Channel Islands totaled a team-high 16 points, followed by Oxnard’s Jewels Eubanks with 15.

The South owned a four-point lead with 7 minutes 19 seconds remaining, but pulled away on a 14-4 run to build a 102-86 lead.

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Earlier, for those who turned out to watch the girls’ game, there were two sources of excitement.

The first was a late scramble for the ball that left a pile of bodies at midcourt and finally got a reaction out of the crowd.

The second was Shawanda Hotchkiss, the 5-foot-8 guard from Channel Islands High who scored a game-high 12 points in leading her North to a 47-26 victory.

She showed a little of everything against the South, hustling for rebounds, driving the lane and playing tough defense.

“(Coach Joe Riccio) wanted to break it open,” Hotchkiss said, “and we were going to do it with defense. Defense causes turnovers and turnovers cause layups.”

The North, which had a 28-8 halftime lead, increased its margin to 45-17 in the fourth quarter after Jesaca Lepper made two free throws with 4:41 remaining. Kathy Kelly’s three-point basket narrowed it to 45-24, but the South got no closer.

Both teams had trouble converting easy scoring opportunities in the opening seconds before North’s Mikko Giordano provided the first score with a layup one minute into the game.

“We kind of came into the game with the jitters,” Hotchkiss said. “Then we settled down and once the players got to know each other on the court we played more smoothly.”

The South could make only two baskets in the first quarter, and by the end of the quarter, the North had a 15-6 lead.

That was when Hotchkiss got hot, playing smothering defense. She scored eight points during a surge early in the second quarter, culminating with a three-point play that increased the North’s lead to 26-6.

Forward Kristen Hansen of Simi Valley led the South with seven points.