VARSITY BOYS BASKETBALL:
Pushing for Top Spot In WCAL
By Ryan Eshoff
In years past the West Catholic
Athletic League has proved itself to be a basketball powerhouse.
This season is no different.The Valley Christian Warriors reside
near the top of the league.
A successful preseason for the boys varsity basketball team was
capped off with a 3-1 tournament record and a seventh place finish
in the Chaminade Christmas Classic. Junior point guard Terrance
Worthy was named to the All-Tournament Team.
With an 8-3 preseason mark entering WCAL play, the Warriors opened
against rival Bellarmine. The Warriors rolled behind good shooting
and a tough full-court press, and defeated the Bells 51-43. They
became the first Valley Christian team ever to beat Bellarmine,
an amazing accomplishment. On January 7, the Warriors traveled
to Junipero Serra to engage the Padres.
Facing a size mismatch, the Warriors fought hard but came up short
51-43 against the league power. Four days later the Warriors hosted
the Lancers of St. Francis. Using a tenacious full-court press
in the second half helped the Warriors overcome poor shooting
and a size disadvantage to tie the score at 46 in the final minute.
But a Lancer three-pointer in the final seconds gave St. Francis
the victory. Worthy and Andrew Daou led the Warriors with 12 points
apiece. Next on the Warriors schedule was the St. Ignatius Wildcats,
a team loaded with outside shooters, and strong rebounders. Utilizing
the fresh legs of Worthy in the second half, Valley Christian
ran by the Wildcats, 46-35.
Competing in game five of the Sacred Heart sextuple-header on
January 15, the Warriors relied on the low-post presence of senior
Montel Lee, who led the way with 19 points. Valley rolled, 52-42.
Heated rival and closely skilled Archbishop Mitty played host
to the Warriors January 18. Trailing by a few baskets for most
of the game, Valley rallied in the second half. A pair of highlight-reel
dunks by Jerry Cotton, as well as Cotton’s slam-dunk saving
block on 6’-7” Mitty freshman sensation Drew Gordon,
and the clutch shooting of Worthy down the stretch, gave the Warriors
a two-point edge in the final seconds. But a Mitty guard hit a
three-pointer with two seconds left on the clock to give Mitty
the win, 42-41. Worthy led the scoring with 15 points, and Cotton
contributed 14. Worthy has been outstanding after through the
first league swing. He is fourth in the league in scoring at 13.7
points per game, first in the league in free throw percentage,
third in three-pointers made, and seventh in three-point percentage.
