BOYS' BASKETBALL BEAT HOME AWAY FROM HOME.Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer Sergi Lepiashinski is starting to feel more comfortable in America. As a result, Reseda High has one of the region's top players. The Regents' (8-3, 1-0) talented forward by way of Belarus, a former Soviet republic, has adjusted nicely to life here after arriving in America slightly more than a year ago. ``It's getting better and better every day,'' Lepiashinski said. ``I like California. It is home now.'' The comfort level away from the court has helped Lepiashinski on it. His English is dramatically improved, which helps him communicate and understand better during games and practice. His 25 points-per-game average and improved defense and rebounding are proof. ``He knew three words when he got here,'' Reseda coach Mike Wagner Michael Robert Wagner (born June 22, 1949 in Waukegan, Illinois) is a former American football player. He played at safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League from 1971 to 1980. said. ``They were, 'My bad, coach.' '' Not anymore. ``Now I have a lot more friends and that helps,'' Lepiashinski said. ``My English is a lot better so I can communicate with people more. Things are just a lot better.'' TAFT CHANGES Mustafa Asghari, one of the top point guards in the region from Taft of Woodland Hills, was removed from the team Thursday by Toreador coach Derrick Taylor as part of a major overhaul. Taylor also removed starting power forward Tyrone Melton mel·ton n. A heavy woolen cloth used chiefly for making overcoats and hunting jackets. [After Melton Mowbray, an urban district of central England.] and suspended backup forward Chris Catoe. Asghari, who was averaging 26 points and nine assists, was cut from the team due to philosophical differences with Taylor. ``We just couldn't see eye to eye, and it became a situation that could not go on any longer,'' Taylor said. ``I like Mustafa as a person, and I feel extremely bad it has come to this, but there was no other alternative.'' MISSION STATEMENT There isn't a league in the region that boasts more young talent or more familiar names than the Mission League, which features four players with direct links to former NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= players. At Harvard-Westlake of Studio City, Zach Woolridge is the son of former Lakers See Lake poets forward Orlando Woolridge Orlando Vernada Woolridge (born December 16 1959 in Bernice, Louisiana) is a former professional basketball player in the NBA. Woolridge played collegiate basketball at the University of Notre Dame. , and Bryce Taylor Bryce Taylor is an American college basketball player at the University of Oregon. The 6'5", 205 pound junior guard is currently averaging 14.6 ppg and 5.1 rpg. High School is the son of Brian Taylor Brian Taylor (born April 10, 1962), is a former Australian rules footballer and now AFL commentator. Playing career The moustachioued Taylor, known as "Barge", "Bristle" or "BT", began his VFL career with Richmond in 1980, and had the misfortune of being a full-forward at , who played for the New Jersey Nets. Across town at Chaminade of West Hills, Dion Cook is the nephew of former Nets guard Darwin Cook Darwin Louis Cook (born August 6 1958 in Los Angeles, California) is an American former professional basketball in the NBA. Cook, a 6'3"/1.91 m guard from the University of Portland, was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the 1980 NBA Draft. . At Loyola of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , Omar Wilkes is the son of former Lakers standout Jamaal Wilkes Jamaal Wilkes (born Jackson Keith Wilkes on May 2, 1953 in Berkeley, California) is an American former National Basketball Association player who played the small forward position and won four NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. . All four are major contributors to their teams. IMPACT PLAYER So just how good is Nick Stiggers, the highly regarded junior transfer from Memphis, Tenn., who landed at Montclair Prep of Van Nuys last week? Mounties coach Tyrone Fuller isn't shy about declaring Stiggers, a 6- foot-7, 230-pound junior, one of the country's best players. ``The kid can play, there is no question about that,'' Fuller said. ``When you watch him and see the way he's built, you think about (former Kentucky and current Charlotte Hornet hornet: see wasp. ) Jamal Mashburn Jamal Mashburn (born November 29, 1972 in New York City) is a retired American professional basketball player. A small forward, Mashburn was a prolific scorer in his 12 seasons in the league, with a career scoring average of 19.1 points per game. . He's that kind of player.'' Fuller might not be far off. Stiggers stung Brentwood for 36 points in his Montclair Prep debut Tuesday, underlining un·der·lin·ing n. 1. The act of drawing a line under; underscoring. 2. Emphasis or stress, as in instruction or argument. his impressive performance with an emphatic alley-oop dunk off an inbounds in·bounds adj. 1. Basketball Involving putting the ball into play by passing it from out of bounds to a teammate on the court. 2. Sports Within the designated boundaries. play. ATTENTION GETTER In vacuum or gas-filled tubes, it is a small, ring or cup-shaped device containing a powdered metal that reacts strongly to oxygen. When the tube is sealed, the getter is fired (heated) to further evacuate a vacuum tube or to remove impurities from the gas. It's one thing to play with emotion but another to let that emotion get the best of you. That's what happened to Valencia's Ryan Zike against Calabasas in the Chaminade tournament last week. He had two technical fouls and was ejected from the game, forcing him out of the Vikings' next game against Saugus. Valencia lost the game against the Centurions in its Foothill League opener. ``It definitely got his attention,'' Vikings coach Rocket Collins said. ``And as a result, he's been a lot better ever since. Even in practice, you can see a difference.'' To his credit, Zike returned the following game against Burbank and hit a couple of important shots to help the Vikings rally from a 10-point deficit to win. FANTASTIC NIGHT Grant of Van Nuys point guard Gino Riney had a game to remember last Friday, scoring 45 points with a school-record 15 assists in the Lancers' 95-87 victory over Granada Hills. Riney had a direct hand in 75 of Grant's points, but he got plenty of help from guard Jeremy Scharf, who got rolling from the outside and nailed six 3-pointers. Once Scharf heated up, the floor opened up for Riney, who has quickness and an effective midrange midrange Epidemiology The halfway point or midpoint in a set of observations; for most data, MR is calculated as the sum of the smallest observation and the largest observation, divided by 2; for age data, one is added to the numerator; a midrange is usually jumper, giving him several options offensively. When Riney gets that kind of help, the Lancers lanc·er n. 1. A cavalryman armed with a lance. 2. A member of a regiment originally armed with lances. 3. lancers (used with a sing. verb) a. A kind of quadrille. b. are tough to beat. He is averaging 31 points per game and shooting 46 percent from the field, but he needs guys such as Scharf to elevate their game. ``He's doing a version of Allan Iverson for us,'' Grant coach Howard Levine said. ``We feel we have to have him shoot the ball for us to be effective. On the other hand, he has to get others to step up because then he becomes even more dangerous. If that happens on a consistent basis, we'll be in good shape.'' UNDERESTIMATION When Harvard-Westlake of Studio City guard Craig Weinstein looked at the Wolverines' schedule for last week, the first thing he did was wince. In the span of five days, Harvard-Westlake (15-3, 3-1) would play Mission League rivals Crespi of Encino, Loyola of Los Angeles and Chaminade of West Hills. Loyola, the league favorite, and Chaminade, at worst a close second to Loyola, were particularly tough matchups, and Crespi had upset the Wolverines two weeks ago. ``We knew it was going to be tough,'' Weinstein said. Then Weinstein did some math. ``I'm thinking, 'OK, if we can get through this stretch 2-1, that will be great,' '' Weinstein said. ``To me, that was a realistic number to shot for.'' As it turns out, Weinstein was shortchanging the Wolverines, who swept the three games to take over first place in the standings. TAKE TWO ASPIRIN AND CALL ME ... At one point during Burbank High's loss to Hart of Newhall last Friday, Bulldogs coach Ron Quarterman screamed at 6-foot-7 center Joey Street to hustle hus·tle v. hus·tled, hus·tling, hus·tles v.tr. 1. To jostle or shove roughly. 2. To convey in a hurried or rough manner: hustled the prisoner into a van. back on defense. It was the second time in a two-minute span Street had been beaten down the court, and Quarterman wasn't happy. Three days later, Quarterman was feeling bad. ``Turns out Joey was sick, I mean really sick,'' Quarterman said. As in sick with the flu and suffering from a 103-degree fever, which obviously limited Street's stamina. Street didn't tell anyone about his condition. ``I had no idea,'' Quarterman said. ``He never complained once.'' Give credit to Street, a sophomore, for trying to gut it out despite feeling lousy. On the other hand, he needs to know he can seriously harm himself, as well as hurt the team, by playing under those conditions. ``That's something he needs to tell me,'' Quarterman said. YOUNG GUN Camarillo (14-4, 1-0) guard Brett Scyphers, a 5-foot-6 sophomore guard, might look as though he's 12 years old. But in reality he plays like a grizzled griz·zled adj. 1. Partly gray or streaked with gray: a grizzled beard. 2. Having fur or hair streaked or tipped with gray. veteran. That should surprise no one, since he's the son of former Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. baseball coach Mike Scyphers, a fiery, emotional, hardnosed coach who had the Pioneers rolling in baseball during the 1980s and early '90s. Brett Scyphers has many of his father's attributes, which is why Camarillo coach Mike Prewitt trusts him so much. ``He's a coach on the floor for us,'' Prewitt said. ``And he can do so many things well.'' Such as sink three important 3-pointers in a recent overtime victory over Channel Islands in the Pacific View League opener for both teams. ``That's the sort of thing we've come to expect from him,'' Prewitt said. BIG MAN ON CAMPUS Imagine the frustration of being a high school basketball coach, seeing a 6-foot-9, 300-pound kid walking around campus every day and not being able to convince him to play organized basketball. That's what Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley (13-4, 1-0) coach Tom Hegre went through the last couple of years watching Jonathan Holland Jonathan Holland is a Maltese midfielder, born on the 15th August 1978. He made his debut with Floriana FC in the Maltese Premier League in the season 1994-1995. After 10 seasons withFloriana FC, in 2005-2006 he joined Birkirkara FC. cruising around school. ``I tried talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to" lecture, speech rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to him a few times, but he just wasn't interested in playing,'' Hegre said. Fortunately, Hegre doesn't give up easily, which is why Holland, now a senior, finally relented and came out for the team this year. He's a work in progress - there's a big difference between playing on the playground and playing on a team - but he's matured considerably since the opening of practice and recently was named to the all-tournament team during the Ventura Christmas tournament. ``He's starting to put things together,'' Hegre said. ``Every day he gets better, every day his conditioning improves.'' So what changed so much that Holland decided to play for the Antelopes? Part of it was Hegre's sales pitch, part of it was Holland's mom, who wanted her son to play. But mostly it was Holland becoming a senior and running out of time in high school. ``This being his final year, I think he just decided he didn't want to let this chance go by,'' Hegre said. ``I think he's really happy with the decision he made, and I know his mother is happy.'' DAILY NEWS TOP TEN No. School Record 1. Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. 15-3 2. Harvard-Westlake 15-3 3. Sylmar 9-5 4. Chaminade 14-4 5. Hart 15-3 6. Camarillo 14-4 7. Antelope Valley 13-4 8. Moorpark 11-5 9. Canyon 13-5 10. Reseda 8-3, 1-0 GAME OF THE WEEK Who: Hart (15-3, 2-0) vs. Valencia (9-9, 1-1) When: Tonight, 7 Where: Valencia High SEVEN-DAY FORECAST Game of the week Sylmar at Reseda, Jan. 18, 7 p.m. Although this is an intriguing matchup between the top two teams in the Valley Mission League, the better story is coaches Bort Escoto of Sylmar and Mike Wagner of Reseda. Wagner wasn't happy when Spartans forward Frank Robinson This article is about the baseball player and manager. For the Nottingham busker, see Frank Robinson (Xylophone Man). Frank Robinson (born August 31, 1935 in Beaumont, Texas), is a Hall of Fame former Major League Baseball player. left Chatsworth after getting into a fight and was able to transfer and play at Sylmar a little more than a month later. Wagner has voiced his displeasure often, saying that by letting Robinson on the team, Escoto and Sylmar are sending a wrong message. Escoto says Robinson made a mistake, is sorry for it and was disciplined appropriately. Furthermore, Robinson is playing with the full and legal clearance of the L.A. Unified School District A unified school district is a school district which includes both primary school (kindergarten through middle school or junior high) and high school (grades 9-12). In Illinois, these districts are called unit school districts. . It should all make for an interesting evening. Potential hero Canyon's Jeremy Haggerty might be the Foothill League's best player, and he'll need to step it up when the Cowboys travel to rival Hart of Newhall next Friday Next Friday is the 2000 sequel to Friday , which depicts the neighborhood of South Los Angeles in a comedic sense. The hero, Craig Jones (Ice Cube), leaves home and moves in with his lottery winning and sex-crazed Uncle Elroy (Don "D.C." Curry) in Rancho Cucamonga. in a key league showdown. Haggerty's ability to stretch the floor with his shooting and finish on the break will make him a difficult matchup for the Indians. If he can get rolling Verb 1. get rolling - start to be active; "Get cracking, please!" bestir oneself, get cracking, get moving, get started, get weaving, get going begin, commence, set out, start, start out, set about, get down, get - take the first step or steps in carrying , Canyon will have an opportunity to get an important road win. Bound to happen Sylmar's Frank Robinson and Louis Darby will combine to score 65 points and grab 15 rebounds next week against Reseda and the Spartans will show the Regents they're the best team in the Valley Mission League. CAPTION(S): 4 photos, 3 boxes Photo: (1) Belarus native Sergi Lepiashinski, middle, is starting to feel comfortable in America. He's also finding a groove on the basketball court as a forward for Reseda High. Gene Blevins/Staff Photographer (2 -- 3) Gino Riney, left, scored 45 points last Friday for Grant in a 95-87 victory over Granada Hills. He got plenty of help from Jeremy Scharf, who had six 3-pointers. Gene Blevins and Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographers (4) no caption (Jonathan Holland) Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer Box: (1) DAILY NEWS TOP 10 (see text) (2) GAME OF THE WEEK (see text) (3) SEVEN-DAY FORECAST (see text) |
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