Scoring Outbursts Are Beside the Point

Mark Hill of Los Angeles Fremont had 17 assists in a game last season, but all people seem to remember are the 55 points scored by his teammate.

Such is the case for any point guard orchestrating an up-tempo offense. Break the pressure, find an open teammate, deliver a pinpoint pass and then watch others soak up the accolades.

“It’s a hard position to play,” Fremont Coach Sam Sullivan said. “Mark doesn’t get the credit he deserves.”

But Sullivan, like any basketball coach, knows the importance of having a skilled point guard on the floor, whether he scores in bunches or not. He believes Hill does a better job than any other ball-handler in the area, performing like a four-wheel drive when everybody else is trying to be a Cadillac.

“A lot of games, he’ll have seven or eight points, and, as a spectator, you’re saying, ‘He didn’t do very much,’ ” Sullivan said. “But what you don’t see is the five steals and 10 assists that had a big impact on the game.”

Hill, a 5-foot-10 senior who averages 12.5 points and eight assists, said he doesn’t mind setting the table.

“When I get to the next level, I won’t be scoring like that,” Hill said. “Point guards are supposed to be averaging about 10 points and 10 assists.”

Thanks to Hill’s play, the Pathfinders are having their best season since 1996, when they lost to L.A. Crenshaw in the City Section final. They are ranked No. 6 in the Southland by The Times heading into today’s 2:30 game against Fresno San Joaquin Memorial, part of the eight-game California Hoops Challenge at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

The showcase is loaded with teams sporting savvy point guards, some who shoot early in a possession and often during a game, and others, like Hill, who are patient and precise.

Deandre Myles, a 5-9 junior at Reseda Cleveland, is the latter.

Averaging 6.2 points and 5.2 assists this season, he equaled his season-high point total Wednesday, scoring 12 to help the No. 21 Cavaliers defeat No. 8 Woodland Hills Taft, 63-50, in a key West Valley League game.

“He’s very underrated,” Cleveland Coach Andre Chevalier said. “He doesn’t get talked about a lot because he’s not the type of point guard that puts big numbers on the board.”

Andre McGee, a 5-10 senior at Moreno Valley Canyon Springs, has worn the shooter label ever since he averaged 16.6 points as a freshman.

He improved his average to 18.1 points as a sophomore and then to 25.9 points last season, while still averaging 6.1 assists and 3.2 steals.

Playing with more confident teammates, McGee hasn’t been forced to put up as many shots this season, but he’s still averaging 23.3 points and 4.4 assists.

“Last year, we didn’t have many shooters,” Canyon Springs Coach Jeff Stovall said. “He would throw the ball to his teammates and they would throw it right back.”

Louisville Coach Rick Pitino was so impressed with McGee’s outside touch and his ability to drive into the lane and create shots, he offered a scholarship. McGee signed with the Cardinals in November.

Perhaps the most highly touted point guard playing today at Dominguez Hills is JayDee Luster, a 5-9 sophomore at San Diego Hoover. Luster is ranked by The Sporting News and Street & Smith as one of the nation’s top 20 players for his class, and the only one under 6 feet tall.

When Luster was 10, he routinely worked out with former Southland standouts Tyson Chandler of the Chicago Bulls, Josh Childress of the Atlanta Hawks, Jamal Sampson of the Charlotte Bobcats and UCLA’s Cedric Bozeman.

Compton Dominguez was reportedly on his list of potential high schools before his longtime travel coach, Ollie Goulston, landed the job at Hoover.

Luster had 289 assists in 30 games as a freshman and, if he avoids injury, should make a run at the national high school all-time record of 1,164, set by Jason Kidd at Alameda St. Joseph’s.

This season, Luster is averaging 22.7 points, 7.9 assists and 5.4 steals.

Other top point guards competing today are:

* Mike Gerrity of Santa Ana Mater Dei, a 6-0 senior and four-year starter who is averaging 18.8 points, 4.9 assists and 3.1 steals for the No. 5 Monarchs.

* Seketoure Henry of Lynwood, a 6-4 senior who signed with Arizona State and has proven to be equally effective at shooting guard.

* Agustin Laguana of Long Beach Poly, a 5-6 senior and the lone returning starter for the defending Southern Section Division I-AA champions.

* Brandon Jennings of Compton Dominguez, a 5-10 freshman who has earned a part-time starting role for the No. 1 Dons, the defending Division II state champions.

Justin Thomas of L.A. Loyola and Jesse Woodard of Compton Centennial will not play because of injuries.

Thomas, a 6-0 senior, was averaging 18 points and eight assists before he broke his thumb at the Palm Springs tournament last month. Woodard, a 6-1 sophomore who started last season when the Apaches won the Division III state title, is out with an eye injury.

*

Basketball Showcases

CALIFORNIA HOOPS CHALLENGE

Today at Cal State Dominguez Hills

Canyon Springs vs. Mayfair, 10 a.m.; San Diego Hoover vs. Muir, 11:30 a.m.; San Juan Capistrano Serra vs. Long Beach Poly, 1 p.m.; Fresno San Joaquin Memorial vs. Fremont, 2:30 p.m.; Bakersfield vs. Mater Dei, 4 p.m.; Cleveland vs. Loyola, 5:30 p.m.; Lynwood vs. Fairfax, 7 p.m.; Dominguez vs. Compton Centennial, 8:30 p.m.

DOUBLE PUMP CLASSIC

Today at Long Beach City College

Brentwood vs. San Marcos, 2 p.m.; Oaks Christian vs. Artesia, 3:30 p.m.; Stoneridge Prep vs. Bradenton (Fla.) Pendleton, 5 p.m.; Las Vegas Bishop Gorman vs. Etiwanda, 6:30 p.m.; Westchester vs. Fresno San Joaquin Memorial, 8 p.m.