Article 339: Mustangs on the Mark(el)

November 23, 2012

As the high school basketball season begins this weekend, many top recruits are deciding on their college destination. Salesian point guard, Markel Leonard, made the call last month to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The senior took his official visit on the weekend of October 12-14.

Leonard felt that the Mustangs' playing style fit his basketball skills. "I saw myself fitting into their offensive style of play and I like how they get after it on defense," said Leonard. "Last year, they were in the top 30 in defense and top 40 in efficiency. They can run sets as well as play up-tempo depending on whom they are playing. Also, they set a lot of ball screens for the point guard so that will benefit me."

Salesian Head Coach Bill Mellis concurs. "I think Markel will fit into Cal Poly's program very well. They do a lot of things offensively that allow for their guards to be put in a position to make shots and make decisions that will directly lead to the success of their team. I believe that Markel makes very good decisions on the court, so I am excited to see him be a factor in their future success."

Academics have always played a critical role in Leonard's recruiting decision. "It is one of the best schools to attend on the west coast," said Leonard. "It's a very competitive school to get into...so competitive that you have to know what major you want to study coming in as a freshman. I also chose Cal Poly because they have my field of study that I'm interested in (Kinesiology)."

The relationship with the coaching staff was important to Leonard. "Sam Kirby and Joe Callero (head coach) recruited me," said Leonard. "What I liked about both of those men was that they were honest with me. They told me what I needed to hear and not what I wanted to hear. They didn't make any guarantees or promises. They told me that if I come to Cal Poly, I have to work for everything. What I like about their coaching staff is that they push you to be the best you can be as a student, athlete, and a person. They care about you as a person just as much as they do on the basketball court."

Coach Callero is going into his third year at Cal Poly as the Mustangs coach with 12-19 and 15-15 seasons in his first two years. The current roster has a very Northern California feel to it as it includes freshman Max Betkowski (Galileo High), senior Drake U'u (Rio Americano High), and sophomore Anthony Silvestri (Sacred Heart Cathedral).

Leonard's current Salesian squad boasts Jabari Bird and Mario Dunn, who have been a close knit unit. As a result, team bonding is important.

"The players at Cal Poly were great," said Leonard. "They are high character type of guys. On my official visit, I bonded with them right away. They treated me as if I was already on the team. That was what sold me and made me want to go to Cal Poly. The team chemistry was great. It reminded me a lot of how my high school team is this year and how we were last year."

Last year's Salesian squad accumulated 33 wins in a state title winning year. Despite committing before the season, Leonard recognizes that he still has more work to put in.

"During my senior year of high school of high school and the summer, I most definitely need to stay in the weight room and get stronger," said Leonard. "Guys on the college level are very strong. I also need to work on getting more explosive when jumping. Other than that, I'll continue working on the things I've been working on like my shooting ball handling and fine tuning my leadership skills."

Coach Mellis had these observations on Leonard's areas of development. "I would say that even though Markel is a good shooter, he needs to continue to grow to become a "lights out" shooter and he needs to continue to improve his ball handling. There is always an adjustment when a high school player makes the jump to college, and I believe that if Markel continues to improve the way he has over his career, he will have a good chance, once he gets there, to adjust to the strength and speed of the game at the next level."

The Big West expands during Leonard's freshman year to include Boise State and San Diego State. The conference will have twelve total members with ten being from California schools. Leonard will have familiar opposing point guards that include UC Riverside's Tajai Johnson (Vallejo 2012) and San Diego State's D'Erryl Williams (Sheldon 2013).

Any main contributor to a winning program will always have the itch to play and not sit the bench. Even though it is a year away, Leonard believes he can have an immediate impact on the San Luis Obispo campus.

"As a freshman, I expect to have some type of impact. Cal Poly needed ball handlers and a floor general for the 2013-2014 season. So, I think that depending on how I perform in practice, that will determine my role on the team next year as a freshman."

Salesian enters the season as the NCP preseason boys basketball top ranked team. With a section title win, the Pride could be playing in the Open Division bracket. Watch for Leonard to guide the Pride to the state postseason before heading south to San Luis Obispo in the fall of 2013.

Article 338: Nor Cal Tip Off Classic

November 22, 2012

As this week's Thanksgivings gives way to sports, high school basketball kicks off in Northern California with a seven game event on Saturday in Newark. The Nor Cal Tip Off Classic will feature nine of the NCP preseason boys basketball Top 20 teams while the feature game will have Kentucky-bound Marcus Lee of Deer Valley against a talented Sacramento High team. Here is a synopsis of the seven games and what to watch for.

Game 1: 11:00 am - Dublin vs. Freedom (Oakley)
The day kicks off with a Dublin squad that has two prolific scorers in Jojo Mcglaston and Jamir Andrews. Dublin lost only one senior from last year's squad and returns a very seasoned and senior laden team. Freedom has a talented junior in forward Elliott Smith, a scorer in James O'Neal, and a glue guy in small forward Tim Jordan. Expect the senior leadership of Dublin to prevail in a close one.

Game 2: 12:30 pm - Heritage (Brentwood) vs. McNair (Stockton)
Heritage has a good inside-outside thing going with point guard George Johnson, wing Pierre Carter, and forward Shon Briggs. The team will be looking to build on a 17 win campaign from last year. McNair had an impressive 22 win season last year but their two top scorers, Thomas Wallace and Eric Duncan, transferred. Expect Heritage to win easily as McNair tries to figure out their rotation in the season opener.

Game 3: 2:15 pm - St. Patrick's-St. Vincent's (Vallejo) vs. Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove)
Both teams had 20 plus wins from last season. Both teams have good guard and post play. Both teams have a good bench and depth. St. Pat's key playmakers will be guard Jason Webster who is a versatile scorer, junior guard Jose Flores, and post player Jalen Canty who can dominate the paint. Pleasant Grove has a good set of senior guards featuring Malik Thames who can take over on offense in addition to Matt Hayes and Cole Nordquist. Expect this to be a back and forth battle with Pleasant Grove coming out ahead at the end.

Game 4: 3:45 pm - El Cerrito vs. Miramonte (Orinda)
El Cerrito should be one of the better teams when the season is over but the team will start the season without footballers Marcellus Pippins, and twins Keith and Keilan Benjamin. The team still has plenty of depth with explosive senior guard Rae Jackson and sophomores Tyrell Alcorn and Devon Eisley. Miramonte has a good foundation with Kiran Shastri and Joey Goodreault who both can put up 20 points easily. Shastri committed to Chaminade who just stunned Texas this past week in the Maui Invitational. Expect Miramonte to win a close game but the shock effect is not as great as the Chaminade victory.

Game 5: 5:30 pm - McClymonds (Oakland) vs. Antelope
McClymonds lost a good deal of their productivity from last year's team but will return senior post prospect Dalvin Guy and a plethora of quick, serviceable guards. Antelope is coming off a 30 win season and returns their two key players in seniors Gabe Bealer and Isaiah Ellis. Expect Antelope to dominate the interior to take the win here.

Game 6: 7:00 pm - Newark Memorial (Newark) vs. Castro Valley
Host Newark Memorial has talent throughout the roster. The team will feature a trio of juniors in guard Joey Frenchwood and post players Damien Banford and Matt Thomas. By all accounts, Castro Valley overachieved last season with current juniors Jalen McFerren and Derrick Clayton. The team also breaks in a new coach this season. Expect host Newark to fend off a scrappy Castro Valley squad.

Game 7: 8:30 pm - Deer Valley (Antioch) vs. Sacramento
Deer Valley features Kentucky-bound Marcus Lee who averaged a near triple double last season in points, rebounds, and blocks while point guard Kendall Smith will provide balance on the perimeter. Sacramento returns a deep and experienced team with six seniors led by guards Aaron Cameron and De'Von Boyd (Chaminade commit) and forwards James Hadnot and Joe Barnes. The Dragons also have a trio of very promising freshman led by post man Devin Young who is on the rise. Expect Sacramento to come out ahead if they can get Lee in foul trouble early. If Lee or Smith is in full gear, then it is anybody's ball game.

Article 337: Preseason Boys BB Top 20

November 20, 2012

3          Sheldon           Sacramento      29-5     3

The Huskies return a senior laden team that is experienced and battle tested with Dakarai Allen, D'Erryl Williams II, Ryan Manning, Armani Hampton, Jalen Hicks, and Chris Haney. Add on Franklin transfer Darin Johnson in the new year when his transfer eligibility requirements are met and the Huskies have one of the deeper rotations in Northern California. Allen, Williams II, and Johnson are already Division I signees while the other seniors are getting serious collegiate looks. However, the team lacks a true post presence as small forward Ryan Manning handles most of the post duties. Despite that, Sheldon presents matchup problems for opposing teams and are the favorites for a section title and Open Division invite. They will travel plenty early in the season for major tournaments including the inaugural Tarkanian Las Vegas Invite, the ESPN Torrey Pines Classic in San Diego, and the All State Sugarbowl in New Orleans. In addition, the Huskies have non-league games against Archbishop Mitty, Bullard (Fresno), Deer Valley, and Salesian.

7          Newark Memorial       Newark           28-5     4

The Cougars return junior starters Joey Frenchwood and Damien Banford to lead the team. The other probable starters include last year's key reserve Sultan Siddiq, 6-foot-8 Matt Thomas, and senior transfer Josef Zamora from Serra. The bench will depend on senior guard Dwight Wilson and 6-foot-5 Chandler Rockwell inside. Newark Memorial will have tremendous quickness at the guard positions with Frenchwood and Zamora, who are both great on ball defenders that will put pressure on opposing ball handers. The Newark size in the front court will create size advantages as well. Newark could hit the 30 win mark but has winter tournaments in Gridley and the ESPN Torrey Pines Classic in San Diego. The Gridley Invitational Basketball Tournament may result in a matchup with Salesian. Big non-league games include Dublin in December and Inglewood will make a trip up north to play Newark in December.

16        Castro Valley  Castro Valley  22-8     17

Castro Valley welcomes in new coach Senque Carey, a former Fresno State assistant coach. The early returns have been positive, which should keep the Trojans among the better teams in the Bay Area. Last year's team was supposed to be in a midst of rebuilding but leaned heavily on current juniors Jalen McFerren and Derrick Clayton. McFerren is a crafty point guard while Clayton is a versatile wing. Nate Moore is another point guard to add depth while Andrew Garcia will be called upon in the post. The team strength will be its tenacious defense while depth may still be a question for the Trojans.

Article 336: Padres cruise

November 4, 2012

Serra ran out to a 27-0 halftime lead against St. Ignatius before cruising to a 47-21 victory in San Mateo. The Padres had six different players score a rushing touchdown as senior Eric Redwood had 227 rushing yards. The victory assures Serra no worse than second place in the West Catholic Athletic League.

Scoring summary: In the first quarter, Serra's Angelo Arco broke through on a 33 yard touchdown run while promising sophomore Kava Cassidy had a 3 yard scoring run to give the Padres a 14-0 lead. Anthony Toms converted two field goals that complemented quarterback Zack Kazakoff's 4 yard touchdown run to give Serra a 27-0 lead at the half.

The lone score in the third quarter was a 30 yard interception return by Wildcat Charlie Ford to cut the deficit to 27-7. St. Ignatius scored first in the fourth quarter with an Albert Waters 1 yard run as the Wildcats trailed by two scores. But SI got no closer as Serra added rushing touchdowns of 1, 12, and 32 yards while St. Ignatius passed for a 3 yard score to conclude the game at 47-21.

Unit Breakdown: Serra had six different players rush for touchdowns as the team had 411 yards rushing. Kazakoff had one nice deep throw to setup a late first half field goal but his arm was not needed for this game. Seniors Arco and Redwood are a solid tandem but the Padres will return sophomore Cassidy and junior Kevin Mcgee for next season.

The Wildcats went to the air game as quarterback Jack Stinn completed 14 passes out of 32 attempts for 146 yards. Stinn led the team in rushing as well with 52 yards. The offense was never in sync and had to rally from a huge deficit that made the play calling even more difficult.

Defense: Serra allowed St. Ignatius to get some first downs on their first two drives of the first half that did not lead to any scores before the unit forced three and outs on the final three possessions of the half. The Padres did not give up any big plays and forced the opponent to drive the ball down the field. The secondary allowed less than 50 percent in completions while the front line surrendered only 69 yards rushing on 22 carries.

The Wildcats defense caused the only two turnovers of the game but that was not enough to offset the 470 yards in total offense. Aside from the turnovers, the defense could only force one punt while the Padres scored on eight different possessions. The team has given up 82 points in the two consecutive losses to Bellarmine and Serra.

Special Teams: Serra made its only two field goal attempts but did miss one PAT. The kickoff and punt return games did not produce anything noteworthy. Serra recovered a key onside kick in the fourth quarter to stem any Wildcat rally.

Next Steps and Analysis: Serra hosts St. Francis next week. The Padres running game will be difficult to slow down and the defense looks balanced. Serra should make another deep run into the postseason.

St. Ignatius lost the battle for first place last week against Bellarmine, lost the battle for second place this week against Serra, and will play for third place against Archbishop Mitty next week. The defense will have to put up a more spirited battle against Mitty and in the postseason as a whole. The offense has the weapons to be balanced but cannot succeed when trailing heavily.

Article 335: Bells alone atop WCAL

October 28, 2012

On a sunny afternoon in the Sunset, Bellarmine and St. Ignatius entered the day tied for first place in the West Catholic Athletic League. Both teams feature dual threat quarterbacks who were indeed playmakers for their respective teams. But in the end, the Bells' ground game grinded enough yards to give them a 35-28 victory and sole possession of first place in league play.

Scoring summary: In the first half, St. Ignatius converted on a turnover in Bells territory to take a 7-0 lead on a 15 yard pass by quarterback Jack Stinn. Bellarmine scored the next three touchdowns in the half as quarterback K.J. Carta-Samuels was responsible for the scores on a 38 yard pass, a 3 yard run, and a 35 yard pass.

St. Ignatius converted on another Bellarmine turnover in the third quarter to lead to an Elijah Dale rushing touchdown of 1 yard to cut the deficit to 21-14. Carta-Samuels ran for another 3 yard touchdown to make the score 28-14. In the ensuing possession, Albert Waters weaved 80 yards to bring it back to a seven point deficit at 28-21. Bellarmine's Joey Sanfilippo scored midway into the fourth quarter on a 29 yard run to increase the lead to 35-21. The Wildcats engineered an 11 play and 80 yard drive that was capped by a 3 yard Stinn pass to close the scoring at 35-28 as the Bells ran the clock out.

Unit Breakdown: Bellarmine has a balanced attack as Carta-Samuels is a legitimate dual-threat quarterback but he can be turnover prone as he had an opening drive fumble and two interceptions. The Bells have two underrated running backs in Kenneth Olugbode and Sanfilippo who helped pick up key yards to extend drives and eventually to run the clock out. In addition, the offense had some holding penalties that stalled out drives.

The Wildcats have a similar offense as the Bells as they also have an effective dual threat quarterback in Stinn who was apt at scrambling while his favorite passing target was 6-foot-5 receiver Andrew Vollert. Dale and Albert Waters are both undersized but tough, shifty runners. The Wildcats are not one dimensional and are a matchup challenge.

Defense: In the two key league victories against Serra and St. Ignatius, the Bells' opponents scored 34 and 28 points respectively. The defense was not spectacular but has played well enough in a bend but not break fashion. The Bells did give up a big 80 yard touchdown run to Waters where containment was broken in the secondary.

The Wildcats had given up a total of seven points in their previous two games. Bellarmine is the league standard right now. With season ending games against Serra and Archbishop Mitty, the Wildcats defensive level will be revealed in the upcoming matchups.

Special Teams: The special teams were fairly mundane. Bellarmine missed a PAT but offset that with a two point conversion. The Wildcats squib kicked it several times and could not recover the onside kick on their final kickoff.

Next Steps and Analysis: Bellarmine closes with Valley Christian and Sacred Heart Cathedral who have a combine one win in league play which Valley Christian had against Sacred Heart Cathedral. It may presumptuous, but crowing Bellarmine as WCAL champions is not that outrageous of a statement at this point. But for the Bells to make a deeper run in postseason, they need to limit the turnovers and play a more stout defense.

St. Ignatius has a tougher road with Serra and Mitty as losses to both drops them out of the top three in league play. The defense has to put up a similar effort comparable to the offense in these tough matchups. As the season winds down, these two matchups show the true grit of the team.

Article 334: Fenton heading east

October 17, 2012

Last month, Central Catholic's John Fenton pulled the trigger and decided to commit to Colgate University, which is located in Hamilton, New York. The 6-foot-9 and 230 pounds post prospect likes the program for playing a tough schedule that includes Syracuse, Illinois, Marquette, and Providence in the upcoming season. In addition, Fenton played open gym sessions with the current roster and felt he could fit in.

From an academic perspective, he felt the school is one of the top academic schools in the country. He likes their academic reputation and the basketball team has a 100 percent graduation rate.

Coach Mark Linebaugh was his primary recruiter but Fenton had a positive opinion of the entire coaching staff. "My primary recruiter was Coach Linebaugh and I really connected over the process," said Fenton. "I get a sense that he knows who I am, and having played and graduated from Colgate, I see him as a great role model. Head Coach Matt Langel is smart, young, and energetic. He has assembled a staff that has similar qualities. On my visit, I enjoyed all five of the coaches and I could really see myself playing for them."

Fenton played for his Fresno based club, Organized Chaos, over the summer. Organized Chaos Coach Chris Stahowski thinks Fenton is a good fit at Colgate. "Colgate is looking to play John at the 5," said Stahowski. "That will let him play with his back to the basket more. Playing a more half-court game allows John to play to his strengths of containing the paint and finishing plays off by rebounding."

Fenton has always come across as being friendly and the consummate team player. As a result, meeting the Colgate roster was important to him on his visit. "I really enjoyed spending time with the team," said Fenton. "I felt like I had some things in common with the players. On my visit, I had many laughs and definitely felt like I would have great friends and teammates as soon as I stepped on campus my freshmen year."

Colgate currently has three centers on the roster with only one returning during Fenton's freshman year. "As a freshmen I expect to help the team anyway I can," said Fenton. "I will get on the court when needed and help us win more games."

During his senior season at Modesto, Fenton expects to work on his offensive game and his body. He wants to finish more at the rim and be a more finesse player. He would like to put on about 15 to 20 pounds as well.

Coach Stahowski believes Fenton still has specific aspects of his game to improve. "He is much more comfortable with his back to the basket and feeling where a defense is at. He needs to work on his offensive arsenal. Add a more polished counter move to each block."

Fenton expects to officially sign on November 15. He expects to enroll by August as that is when school starts. Watch as Fenton goes from being a Raider in Modesto this fall to being a Raider in upstate New York next fall.

Article 333: DII commits on visit

October 16, 2012

Sheldon teammates D'Erryl Williams and Dakarai Allen flew down to San Diego last Friday to witness Midnight Madness with the San Diego State Aztec basketball program. Allen made his commitment to the Aztecs last month. Williams made his desicion during an official visit this past weekend.

The Sheldon point guard had no intention of making a commitment, as he was there to take in the city, college, and basketball program. He planned to take this fact-finding trip and go home to evaluate with his family before visiting Loyola Marymount the following weekend.

But for the 6-foot-4 and 195 pounds Williams, everything fell into place. The key factors that mattered to him in no specific order included the community, weather, academics, basketball program, coaching, style of play, and team chemistry. In addition, his father has asked him to answer the hypothetical question, "If basketball was not a factor, would you be able to attend this college for all the non-basketball reasons?"

After arriving on Friday, Allen and Williams attended Midnight Madness as they sat in the student section, also known as "The Show." Williams liked the student enthusiasm and the overall atmosphere of the event.

On Saturday, Williams attended the first Aztec practice of the season from 1-3:30pm. He observed a competitive practice that had a lot of teaching, direction, and encouragement from the coaches. The coaches challenged the players as Head Coach Steve Fisher iterated to each player on the current roster to challenge himself and to dig deeper. Both Williams II and his father share that philosophy. As a result, watching the first season's practice really impressed him as they skipped the evening football game.

The fast tempo style, pushing the ball up the court, and intense defense were trademarks of the type of basketball that Williams likes. The Aztecs also allow the players to make decisions on their own, as Coach Fisher does not micromanage his players but lets his players play.

Former Pleasant Grove guard, Xavier Thames, was Williams' host for the weekend. He considers Thames to essentially be a big brother. And Allen has been a teammate of Williams since the seventh grade.

The Sheldon point guard liked the cool San Diego weather, which was a factor for him as he was tiring of the dry Sacramento heat. The overall San Diego State community was positive to him.

The Pittsburgh Panthers were coming on strong of late and Loyola Marymount was scheduled to be his other official visit next week. But all the pieces fell into place this mid-October weekend for Williams. Watch him lead Sheldon to another run at league this fall before he heads to San Diego State who joins the Big West Conference in 2013.

Article 332: Bells stop Serra in OT

October 14, 2012

The weekend started with Bellarmine, Serra, St. Ignatius, and St. Francis undefeated in West Catholic Athletic League play. St. Ignatius defeated St. Francis on Friday while the Bells defeated Serra in San Mateo, 35-34, in overtime.

Scoring summary: In the first half, Serra's Eric Redwood started the scoring with a 3 yard touchdown run. K.J. Carta-Samuels tied it up with a 17 yard pass to Joey Sanfilippo. Serra regained the lead 14-7 on a Zack Kazakoff 9 yard pass to Fia Malepeai. Carta-Samuels then ran it in from 5 yards to tie it 14-14. Daniel Fields gave Bellarmine a 21-14 halftime lead on a 5 yard punt block return.

In the second half, Carta-Samuels scored on a 2 yard run to give the Bells their biggest lead at 28-14. In the fourth quarter, Redwood had touchdown runs of 3 and 75 yards to tie the game at 28-28 in regulation. Carta-Samuels threw a 10 yard touchdown to Austin Changras to make it 35-28. Redwood then added a 4 yard run for Serra's overtime possession but the two point conversion running attempt by him was stopped to end the game.

Unit Breakdown: Bellarmine has a true dual threat offensive with Carta-Samuels. He accounted for all four offensive touchdowns as he was efficient in completing 12 of 15 passes for 201 yards and running for another 31 yards. Inexplicably, the offense fumbled the away on the first plays from scrimmage in both the first and second quarters but overcame the lone turnovers of the game.

Serra has a triple threat in the backfield that features Redwood who had 180 yards with 4 touchdown runs. Angelo Arco had 71 yards rushing to complement Redwood while quarterback Kazakoff is a mobile scrambler. Redwood is a threat to score every time he touches the ball which would make opponents wise to load up against the run and force the Padres to throw more often.

Defense: After giving up 41 points to De La Salle in the season opener, the Bells had been playing stifling defense up to this game. The offense had two fumbles that set the defense up with bad field position. But the unit came up big in the overtime with the key stop on the two point conversion and should be expected to play more stoutly for the rest of the regular season.

Give the Serra unit credit as the team could have folded after trailing 28-14 in the third quarter. The team made key stops to give the offense chances to tie and possibly win the game during regulation. A quarterback of the caliber of Carta-Samuels will give most defenses fits as this Serra defensive effort was not all self inflicted but a stronger effort will be needed if the team wants to go far in the postseason.

Special Teams: Bellarmine was able to kickoff into the end zone most of the times to negate Redwood's return ability. The punt block was critical as it swung momentum right before the first half ended. And the two point conversion miss by Serra in overtime was the difference.

Next Steps and Analysis: Bellarmine is the favorite to win the WCAL as they have key matchups with St. Francis and St. Ignatius in the following two weeks. The latter game could be a battle of league unbeatens to determine first place. Carta-Samuels looked accurate with his short, mid, and long throws while being quite elusive in the pocket to buy time or to scramble for yards. The blowout loss to De La Salle looks to be a long time ago as the Bells have made great strides to reach this point of the season.

Serra was unable to replicate a two point conversion like in their win against Buhach Colony. The Padres end the season with St. Ignatius and St. Francis as much is still on the line. Redwood is a shifty runner who can break away at any time. Defenses should key on him and force others on offense to make plays. The Serra defense hung in there against the Bells passing game but should not force the offense to win these offensive slugfests. The boys from San Mateo look to regroup against league doormat Sacred Heart Cathedral to build confidence going into the final three games of league play.