Dansby locks down first-team honor

Darrell Dansby was never the tallest player on the court for the La Cañada High boys’ basketball team, but he was the first to come up with a game-changing block.

The senior picked up first-team All-Rio Hondo League honors, to go along with his All-CIF Southern Section Division III-AA award, after he anchored the Spartans on defense and posted a single-season school-record 67 blocks to make him La Cañada’s second all-time shot blocker.

“The team’s success all year was based on defense and [Dansby] was our best defender,” La Cañada Coach Tom Hofman said. “He was perhaps one of the best defenders we’ve ever had.”

Dansby also progressed into the team’s top scorer as he averaged a team-high 11 points, six rebounds and two assists per game.

“His defense was huge and his offense really came around for us and that was a bonus,” Hofman said.

The Spartans’ three-point marksman Jay Srinivasan, who averaged 8.4 points a game, and athletic big man Tim Kim, were both named to the league’s second team.

“Jay is a great shooter and was really critical for us,” Hofman said. “There was a lot of pressure on him because he was one of the only guys who threw up a lot of shots consistently, but I think he handled it pretty well.”

Kim averaged 7.6 points and five rebounds a game for the Spartans, who won a share of the league title with South Pasadena with a 17-11 record and 7-3 league mark

“He was just a good all around player, good defender and good rebounder for us,” Hofman said.

Conner Boyd (9.6 points and 7.6 rebounds), the Spartans center, and La Cañada’s sixth man Sebastian Lee both got second-team nods.

andrew.shortall@latimes.com