BUILDING A PERFECT DYNASTY YOUNGAND TALENTED, TAFT THIRSTS FOR TITLES.Byline: Sean Ceglinsky Staff Writer They're young, naive and largely inexperienced in·ex·pe·ri·ence n. 1. Lack of experience. 2. Lack of the knowledge gained from experience. in , but don't mistake any of that for incapable. This is no ordinary group. Taft High of Woodland Hills' boys' basketball team, with a roster full of underclassmen, has enjoyed a tremendous season, and it can get better tonight when the third-seeded Toreadors (23-5) take on fourth-seeded Westchester (23-6) in the City Section championship game at the Sports Arena. ``I was concerned with a lack of maturity earlier this season,'' Taft coach Derrick derrick: see crane. Derrick famous hangman; eponym of modern hoisting apparatus. [Br. Hist.: Espy, 170] See : Execution Taylor said, ``because these guys were digesting the things we wanted to do slowly at first. Once they figured it out - dude, they took off. ``Don't get me wrong, there's nothing like experience. But I'll take talent over experience any day of the year.'' Taft, the Daily News' top-ranked team, hopes to win its third City title in its 46-year history - and the second in three seasons - but, win or lose, the future looks very good. Only three players graduate - Calvin Haynes, Anthony Edwards This article is about the American actor. For the British academic see A.W.F. Edwards. Anthony Edwards is also a footballer for Macclesfield Town Anthony Charles Planck Edwards[1] (born July 19, 1962) is an Emmy Award-winning American actor and director. and seldom-used Aaron Sweeney - and sophomores Larry Drew Larry Donnell Drew (born April 2 1958 in Kansas City, Missouri) is a retired American professional basketball player who was selected by the Detroit Pistons in the 1st round (17th overall) of the 1980 NBA Draft. , Oscar Bellfield and Eugene Phelps are fixtures in the starting five, alongside Haynes and Edwards. Freshmen Justin Hawkins and Terran Carter are usually the first players off the bench. ``Our freshmen have stepped up enormously,'' Edwards said. ``They're playing big minutes for us. We knew they were talented but had no idea they'd be able to do the stuff they're doing this quickly. ``It's amazing a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. . They're playing against guys three, four years older than them and doing a great job.'' Juniors Garrett Green and Javael Boykins and sophomore Bryce Smith are steady role players who figure to take on additional responsibility next season. Sophomore Exavier Johnson and junior Malcolm Smith Malcolm Smith may refer to:
``We don't sit young guys on the bench,'' Taylor said. ``If you can play, you can play, and most of these boys can. ``We have some high-end kids here. Nothing bothers them. They have tremendous poise, like nothing I've seen in quite a while.'' Taft had a sluggish start to its semifinal last week against Sylmar, and Taylor made wholesale changes early on, putting Drew, Bellfield, Phelps, Hawkins and Carter - three of them 15 years old, the other two 16 - on the floor at the same time. They responded with a 19-4 run, and Taft was on its way to a 17-point victory. ``It's been a pretty crazy year,'' Hawkins said. ``I wasn't really intimidated in·tim·i·date tr.v. in·tim·i·dat·ed, in·tim·i·dat·ing, in·tim·i·dates 1. To make timid; fill with fear. 2. To coerce or inhibit by or as if by threats. at first - more anxious. Then instincts took over. ``It's been a challenge, both mentally and physically. The hard work is paying off. I think we're living up to the expectations. We think we can be super. A force to be reckoned with.'' There were few pushovers on the Toreadors' schedule. Three of their losses came against Artesia of Lakewood, Centennial of Compton and Ventura, which advanced to Southern Section championship games. The other two were against perennial powerhouse Dominguez of Compton and Modesto Christian, which is playing in a San Joaquin San Joaquin (săn wäkēn`), river, c.320 mi (510 km) long, rising in the Sierra Nevada, E Calif., and flowing W then N through the S Central Valley to form a large delta with the Sacramento River near Suisun Bay, an arm of San Francisco Bay. Section title game. Taft defeated Southern Section finalists Campbell Hall Campbell Hall can refer to:
``Age is just a number,'' Drew said. ``We know we're doing something special here. We want to be known as the top team in the nation by the time we're seniors. We want to take this program to the next level.'' A triumph tonight over six-time City Section champion Westchester, or a solid run in the state tournament that begins next week, would indicate the Toreadors are climbing. Could it be the start of a dynasty? ``We don't hide our goals,'' Taylor said. ``We want to be the No. 1 team out there. No one remembers second place. That's just the nature of the beast Nature of the Beast is the ninth episode of The WB television series Birds of Prey. The episode aired on December 18, 2003. Summary When Al Hawke, her mother's killer, is hunted by The Specialist - a metahuman assassin with the ability to pass through solid growing up in America. ``The pieces of puzzle are in place. Things look promising. We can make a run at this thing for a while, establish ourselves as the big dogs Big Dogs, based in Santa Barbara, California, is a chain of stores in the United States which features clothing and apparel holding the "Big Dogs" brand name. The Company .'' Sean Ceglinsky, (818) 713-3607 sean.ceglinsky(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo, 2 boxes Photo: Taft, its roster largely underclassmen, could be City Section title contenders for many years. Tina Burch/Staff Photographer Box: (1) SO YOUNG, SO GOOD (2) TODAY'S FINALS |
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