HOLMES GIVES CLUE TO H.-W.; HE PROVIDES KEY TO CLUB'S SEARCH FOR CLUTCH SHOTS.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Daily News Staff Writer

One of the goals for the Harvard-Westlake boys' basketball team this summer was to find someone besides Russell Lakey to take care of games in the closing minutes.

On Thursday, the Wolverines might have found their man.

He comes in the form of 6-foot-4, 260-pound Alex Holmes, a burly power forward known more for his football exploits than his basketball skills.

That could change this year. Holmes made two big-time three-point shots Thursday, the second with 12 seconds remaining in the second overtime as the Wolverines upset highly regarded Clovis West 63-61 to advance to the semifinals of the War on the Floor Tournament in Chatsworth.

Harvard-Westlake plays Inglewood in the semifinals today at 12:20 p.m.

Holmes also sank a 3-pointer with eight seconds left in the first overtime to force the second extra period. He finished with 17 points, some on outside jumpers, others on nifty drives to the basket. In doing so, he gives the Wolverines hope that they will have a nice complement to Lakey, their primary go-to player.

Even at his size - considerable to say the least - Holmes shows tremendous poise and athletic ability. He can dribble, pass and has a nice game around the basket.

Surprisingly, he can also shoot from distance. That is, when he decides to.

``We want him to shoot from the outside,'' said Wolverines coach Greg Hilliard. ``Last year he wouldn't shoot because he was new and he wanted to fit in. But this year that will be part of his game.''

Holmes didn't need any more convincing Thursday to extend his game beyond the key, which is where he did most of his damage last year. He calmly made the two crucial baskets to help put the defending Central Section Division I Eagles away.

``I knew the team needed it, so all I worried about was putting them in,'' said Holmes.

There's no question that football is where Holmes will make the biggest name for himself. Anyone who saw him roll through would-be-tacklers last year can attest to that.

He is a nimble, sure-handed tight end and linebacker who is already drawing interest from major colleges. Who wouldn't want a big, tough, athletic tight end catching passes over the middle of the field?

The same skills that make him a standout football player are helping him on the basketball court.

``He's got the biggest, softest hands of any big man I've ever coached,'' said Hilliard, who knows a little bit about talented big men after coaching Stanford's Jarron and Jason Collins. ``And when he shoots the ball, he's got a feathery touch.''

Harvard-Westlake needed Holmes' clutch play considering Lakey, a normally sharp-shooting guard, struggled from the field. And 6-foot-7 center Dan Kinzer was unavailable to play. That meant Holmes had to take care of the middle, plus go outside to pick up the slack for Lakey.

``With Russell not shooting like he normally does we needed somebody else,'' Holmes said. ``Fortunately we got the job done when we needed to.''

Lakey finished with 11 points.

In other quarterfinal games:

Inglewood 51, Cleveland 49: Sandy Fletcher hit a driving layup with four seconds left as the Sentinels beat the surprising Cavaliers.

Sylmar 50, Compton Centennial 33: Gilbert Arenas scored 19 points to lead the Spartans into today's semifinals. Arenas of Grant High is rumored to be transferring to Sylmar next season.