Bruin Recruiting: Prep News Roundup (2/27)

By Bruin Basketball Report

Prep News Roundup published every Monday during the season.

Commits

In a CIF-Southern Section Division III-AA seminfinal game, James Keefe scored 24 and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead Santa Margarita to a 65-43 victory over La Canada at Saddleback College on Friday (2/24). The Eagle's Mychel Thompson added 12 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Santa Margarita will face Artesia in the finals. Bruin Basketball Report.

But, ultimately, the Gladiators (19-10) couldn't begin to compensate for the impact that Santa Margarita's James Keefe had on the proceedings. The 6-foot-8 Best in the West selection finished with 25 points, 19 rebounds nine in the fourth quarter and blocked eight shots to help the No. 2-seed Eagles improve to 25-3 and advance to a semifinal Friday night. "We tried to mix it up (defensively) even more than usual," Becker said. "But they were still able to pound the ball inside to him. (Keefe's) a great player and that's why he is UCLA-bound." Press-Telegram 2/21


Recruits

Kevin Love had 34 points and 19 rebounds as No. 2 Lake Oswego (20-3, 13-0) won 71-51 over the visiting Pacers. Oregonian 2/22

Interestingly, the biggest challenge Kyle Singler had to claiming his top honor came from his peers in the South lineup. Still, the 6-foot-8 wing’s impact on South and the landscape on the SOC was undeniable when it came down to voting. Singler averaged 21.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and almost two blocked shots per game to pave the way for an undefeated run through the SOC. He converted 70 percent of his field goal attempts (121-for-173), and was 10-for-22 from 3-point range. Mail Tribune 2/27

South Medford junior Kyle Singler was making an unofficial visit to Duke and popped up on FSN's national telecast a few times during the Blue Devils' 92-71 victory over Miami on Sunday.
Just another weekend on the recruiting trail for the the top prep basketball players in Oregon. The Register-Guard 2/22

Kyle Singler finished with a game-high 32 points and 10 rebounds, and South outscored Roseburg 44-13 in the final 14 minutes of the game on its way to a 92-53 victory that clinched the Southern Oregon Conference title for the Panthers. The News-Review 2/20

Playing at home, Leuzinger looked like the team that had the long bus ride, turning the ball over nine times in the first quarter alone. Donnell Beverly Jr.'s 23 points were not enough to overcome the early sloppiness as the Olympians lost, 63-58, to East Valley of Redlands in the CIF I-AA quarterfinals. Leuzinger standout Russell Westbrook scored only two points in the first half and finished with nine. Daily Breeze 2/25

Senior Russell Westbrook led the Olympians (26-4) with 23 points, followed by 13 points from Christein Stribling and Beverly Jr¹s 11 points. Westbrook, who entered the game averaging 25 points, was forced to sit out a crucial stretch in the fourth quarter due to leg cramps. He would return, hitting a 3-pointer that drew the Olympians to with 61-58 with 12 seconds left. Redlands Daily Facts 2/26

Leading the Olympians are seniors Russell Westbrook and Donnell Beverly Jr.
Westbrook is a 6-foot-3 guard who leads the team in scoring and rebounding. He averages 25 points per game, grabs eight rebounds and is among the team¹s leaders in every statistical category. Redland Daily Facts 2/24

South Lakes center Julian Vaughn, who finished with 22 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks, proved to be his team’s best inside and outside player, hitting three three-pointers — two of which he made down the stretch. The Connection 2/22

Wilson (14-13) sports a powerful lineup, featuring Wilson is led by 6-foot-9 center Anthony Randolph, who averages 18 points a game, Matthew Garth (15.5 points), Chad Washington (13.3 points) and William Dowell. McKinney Courier Gazette 2/21

"Everything just seemed not to go our way," said Wildcats sophomore Andy Poling, who had a team-high 16 points. "We looked a little timid out there and we didn't play like we know we could play." Oregonian 2/26

Many of the country's Division I college basketball programs are beginning to chase after Andy Poling. The 6-foot-11 Westview sophomore showed why Tuesday night. Poling dominated inside, scoring a game-high 32 points while leading Westview to a key 80-72 Metro League victory over Hillsboro at Westview High School. Oregonian 2/22

All it took for Larry Drew to get the ball in is hands Friday night was a simple hand clap. On occasion, he needed to do it twice to let his teammates know that it was time for him to take over, but rarely did it take three times. The Taft High sophomore point guard dominated the City Section semifinal game from the opening whistle to the final buzzer, scoring a career-high 29 points to lead the host Toreadors of Woodland Hills to a 71-54 victory over Sylmar and into the championship game. "The game was in slow motion," Drew said. "I felt like I could do whatever I wanted." L.A. Daily News 2/25

Taft regrouped on the sideline during the one-minute break, came back out on the floor with a newfound resolve and regained the 20-point advantage by the end of the third quarter en route to an 84-63 championship bracket quarterfinal victory. Haynes finished with 24 points and four 3-pointers, and Bellfield scored 16 points. Larry Drew added five points, nine rebounds and 10 assists. L.A. Daily News 2/23

On Tuesday, they traveled to Santa Barbara and won 70-51 behind senior guard Patrick Christopher and sophomore guard Brandon Jennings, who scored 26 and 17 points, respectively. Press Telegram 2/24

No. 1 seeded Campbell Hall had no trouble finding plenty of production, mainly from the Holiday brothers, a pair of highly touted juniors. Justin Holiday, a 6-foot-6 forward, scored 18 of his game-high 33 points in the second half. Jrue Holiday scored 11 of his 19 points in a third quarter in which Campbell Hall pulled away with a 10-2 run to begin the half. Robert Ford also added 13 points. Daily Breeze 2/26

Fairfax 87, Dorsey 59. Chace Stanback had 31 points and 11 rebounds for top-seeded Fairfax (24-2), with Matt Shaw and Jerren Shipp each adding 21 points. Carlos Garcia had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Dorsey (17-10), with Mark Dorsey adding 16 points and nine rebounds. L.A. Times 2/22

Oxnard (23-6) scored 17 of the final 20 points of the game to defeat Perris (21-8), 57-52, Friday night at home in the CIF-Southern Section Division I-A boys' basketball quarterfinals. Omondi Amoke had a game-high 29 points for Oxnard. Ventury County Star 2/25

(BruinBasketballReport.com)

(photo credit: OC Register)
(photo credit: Mail Tribune /Roy Musitelli)