L.A.B. LOSES ON BOARDS\Sweet gets 19\MARSHALL 64, L.A. BAPTIST 53.

Byline: Eric Sondheimer Daily News Deputy Sports Editor

This is the 18th and final year of coaching for L.A. Baptist High School boys' basketball coach Maury Neville. He's pulled off his share of upsets over the years, and he had hoped his players would find a way to beat a taller, more athletic Marshall of Pasadena squad Saturday night in their Alpha League opener.

Except the Knights were dominated on the boards in the first half and could never recover in suffering a 64-53 defeat to Marshall at Pasadena High.

L.A. Baptist (10-5, 0-1) fell behind by 13 points at halftime and trailed by as many as 18 points in the third quarter. With no player taller than 6-foot-2, the Knights couldn't compete in the rebounding department. Marshall (10-2, 1-0) grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the first half alone.

Adding to the Knights' troubles was their failure to be aggressive on offense. It was a disappointing performance for a team that usually plays well in big games. Even Neville was confused.

"This is not the way we've played all year," he said. "We didn't attack the basket."

The one L.A. Baptist player who kept the game from becoming a blowout was talented 5-10 junior guard Jermaine Sweet, who scored a game-high 19 points. Sweet fearlessly drove toward the basket in the second half to rally the Knights. L.A. Baptist closed to 53-45 with 2:02 left before back-to-back defensive breakdowns let Marshall regain command.

Marshall's 6-3 Shamar Griffin scored 18 points, including 14 in the second quarter when the Eagles outscored L.A. Baptist 24-15.

"I just think we were timid in the first half," Sweet said. "We always attack the basket and tonight we were kind of scared. We had a lot of open chances to make layups."

Sweet, who comes off the bench, has a chance to become one of the best players in the Alpha League. He can shoot outside and possesses the athleticism to maneuver his body in traffic.

Now the Knights must learn from their Saturday experience so they can offer a better challenge when they face Marshall on Feb. 2 at home. Marshall doesn't figure to face another Alpha test with the exception of Village Christian.

"We have to be more patient and understand they're going to come at us," Sweet said.