Binns Giving Dorsey Ironclad Coverage

Marques Binns of Dorsey High is a 21st century gladiator disguised as a cornerback.

He lines up and dares receivers to beat him.

“I think I’m good enough to cover anybody,” he said.

Binns isn’t just talking--he’s telling the truth.

In five of the last six games, he has covered receivers considered among the best in the City Section. None has been able to score.

First there was Gary White of Jefferson, then James Finley of Manual Arts, followed by Mark Bradford of Fremont. Two weeks ago, he shut down Sam Calhoun of Westchester. Last week in a City Championship semifinal, he frustrated Bradford again and batted down a fourth-down pass in the end zone in the final two minutes to secure Dorsey’s 20-14 victory.

Now comes Binns’ ultimate matchup in the perfect venue for a gladiator--the City Championship game at the Coliseum. He’ll have a one-on-one duel Friday night against Woodland Hills Taft’s Steve Smith, who many consider the best receiver in California.

“Maybe he needs to face me because he hasn’t had a real DB guard him,” Binns said.

Binns knows about Smith’s speed, leaping ability and athleticism.

“I have a lot of respect for him,” he said. “He’s an excellent athlete, but if you go in fearing somebody, you’re setting yourself up to fail. He’s a great player, but I’m a great player also.”

Binns is physical and aggressive. He bumps opponents, he uses his hands, relies on his speed and never backs down.

“They trust me like being home alone,” he said of the coaching staff.

Playing cornerback can result in humiliation.

“You’re out there on an island by yourself,” Dorsey Coach Paul Knox said. “You either make a play or everybody sees the mistake you made.”

Binns has come a long way in a short time. He entered Dorsey as a 5-foot-3, 92-pound freshman. He was 5-7 and 110 pounds as a sophomore, 5-11 and 150 as a junior and is a 6-0, 165-pound senior. He believes that self-confidence is crucial to the success of a cornerback.

“I just figure if I lose confidence, they’re going to score on me,” he said.

In two years of varsity competition, he has given up only one touchdown--to Finley last season.

“He got me on a three-yard fade,” Binns said. “Everybody knows when we’re playing somebody, I’m on their best receiver.”

Binns said he can’t wait to attend college so he can learn new techniques and continue to improve. USC is his likely destination.

Asked if he’d be ready to take on the likes of future hall of famer Jerry Rice, Binns said, “I’d like a lot more work before I have to take on a challenge like that, but I’m never scared.”

No one had a better opening week in high school basketball than 6-8 junior forward Mark Lovein of Anaheim Esperanza.

First he scored 24 points on 10-for-11 shooting and had eight rebounds against Placentia Valencia. Then came a 20-point, 11-rebound effort against Anaheim Servite, followed by a 40-point, 17-rebound performance against Costa Mesa. In the championship game of the Loara tournament against Dana Point Dana Hills, he had 27 points and 17 rebounds.

Lovein has been a varsity starter since the end of his freshman season. He’s a lean 215 pounds with three-point shooting range.

“He’s steadily gotten better and stronger,” Coach John Cyrus said.

Lovein and 6-7 Jesse Hills should allow Esperanza (4-0) to challenge Huntington Beach Marina, Fountain Valley and Los Alamitos for the Sunset League championship.

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Bryce Taylor, the son of former NBA player Brian Taylor, is a 6-31/2sophomore at North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake who’s on his way to becoming a big-time player. He averaged 18.5 points in helping the Wolverines (4-0) win the Saugus tournament last week.

He has grown nearly three inches in a year, and that’s not including his rising Afro.

“He’s got tons of ability,” Coach Greg Hilliard said. “He just has to learn to play intense and hard every play and every game.”

Taylor scored 25 points in an overtime victory over La Crescenta Crescenta Valley.

Rob DiMuro, boys’ basketball coach at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, and his wife, Kelli, girls’ basketball coach at West Hills Chaminade, are expecting their first child in May, when basketball season is over.

“That was the whole idea,” Rob said. “We had to make sure the schedule was correct.”

Omar Wilkes scored 21, 27 and 23 points to help Los Angeles Loyola (3-0) win the championship of the Bellarmine tournament at San Jose.

Woodland Hills El Camino Real, 7-18 last season, is 4-1 behind 6-7 junior Todd Wolfson and sophomore point guard Rai Colston.

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Marcel Jones, a sophomore forward who played last season at Chaminade, made an impressive debut for Santa Ana Mater Dei, scoring 17 points against Claremont. He’s among the Monarchs’ top seven players.

“He’s 6-61/2 with long arms and has real skills,” Coach Gary McKnight said. “In the last summer game, he took two charges.”

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Eric Sondheimer can be reached at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com