BOYS' BASKETBALL: OUTER LIMITS : THOUSAND OAKS THRIVES ON THE PERIMETER SHOT.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

It's bound to happen at some point. The Thousand Oaks High boys' basketball team will endure a night during which its shooting goes awry.

It really will happen.

At some point.

Right?

Well, it hasn't through four games, all Lancers wins, including Saturday's 67-63 victory over Regis (Colo.) in the championship game of the Loyola tournament.

Thousand Oaks must shoot well to be successful. The Lancers don't have a player taller than 6-foot-4, so they can't rely on their inside players to punish opponents in the paint.

Instead, they put the game into the hands of their perimeter players. So far with great success.

It helps that Thousand Oaks has a handful of players who can shoot.

``Of the teams that I saw this summer, we were one of the best shooting teams,'' said Lancers coach Rich Endres. ``And we went way up north to San Jose and down south to San Diego. Shooting the ball is definitely a strength.''

That was the case last year, when Thousand Oaks struggled to a 13-13, 3-9 record in the Marmonte League.

But that was a young team barely making the adjustment to the varsity level. Things will be different now that the Lancers have experience to fall back on.

Thousand Oaks has all five starters returning and two are playing their third year on the varsity team.

Tim Chevalier, a shooting guard, is off to an excellent start, averaging 21 points per game, including a season-high 31 against Santa Monica in a semifinal game at the Loyola tournament.

But he's only one of many who can stroke the ball. Chevalier had seven points in the final against Regis, but Ben Olsen (18 points), David Anderson (13) and Kassey Myers (13) picked up the slack.

``We can definitely spread it around,'' Endres said.

The concern is what happens when Thousand Oaks plays against a team with size. That hurt the Lancers a year ago in losses to Simi Valley, the Marmonte League champion, which had 6-8 center Rafael Berumen and 6-9 forward Dustin Villepigue.

Even though Thousand Oaks scored more then 80 points against the Pioneers, there was no handling the big men inside. Berumen has left for the University of New Mexico, but Villepigue is back. And Newbury Park has 6-6 center Will Svitek, one of the top post players in the league.

The Lancers will have trouble against both teams. Still, if they shoot well, they have a chance against anyone.

``It's the same problem, stopping (opponents') big guys,'' Endres said. ``We're still undersized and that continues to be a problem we have to overcome.''

The Lancers top inside players are Marcus Ellis, Kahil Fennel and Kyle Kegley, all of whom are in the 6-foot-4 range.

Fennel and Kegley are wiry swing men who battle for rebounds but also can step outside and be productive from the perimeter.

To compensate for the lack of bulk, Thousand Oaks will change things up defensively to confuse opponents, then hope to rebound well and get easy baskets in transition.

AT A GLANCE

Team: Thousand Oaks boys' basketball

Coach: Rich Endres, third year

Last year's record: 13-13, 3-9

Top players: David Anderson, Soph., G; Tim Chevalier, Sr., G; Marcus Ellis, Sr., F; Kahil Fennel, Sr., F; Kyle Kegley, Jr., G; Kasey Myers, Soph., G; Ben Olsen, Soph., F

CAPTION(S):

3 Photos, box

PHOTO (1 -- color) Kahil Fennel, pictured, joins Marcus Ellis and Kyle Kegley as the top inside players for Thousand Oaks.

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer

(2 -- color) CHEVALIER

(3 -- color) FENNEL

Box: At a Glance (see text)