Frank Burlison

PASADENA, Ca. – The “host” teams won five of the six games played Saturday during the inaugural SoCal-Vegas Showdown, fronted by Gerry Freitas and held at Pasadena City College.

In an entertaining finale that was televised by KDOC, Rancho Christian of Temecula held on to edge Liberty, 74-67, despite a dazzling 44-point effort by Gonzaga-bound Julian Strawther.

He dropped all 22 of his squad’s points in the fourth quarter as it cut the Eagles’ advantage to five points with 1:03 remaining.

The 6-foot-6 Strawther then picked off a pass in the Rancho Christian backcourt and appeared to be fouled in the act of shooting with 54 seconds to go.

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PASADENA – Two of the best regions in the country for producing college – and NBA – hoops talent, without question, are the greater Southern California and Las Vegas areas.

So, do you want to see the proof in your basketball holiday pudding?

You’re in luck.

The first SoCal-Vegas Showdown will offer six matchups of teams from Southern California and Las Vegas on Saturday at Pasadena City College with some of the west’s best teams and players, from across the classes, on display.

Leading the field are the consensus No.

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SCOTTSDALE, Az. –  An eight-game slate, divvied into a couple of sessions, capped Saturday’s final day of the HoopHall West Invitational at Chaparral High.

A drumroll, please .  . .

*There was an SRO gathering (the listed capacity is 2,512) for the Chatsworth (CA) Sierra Canyon squad’s much-anticipated – especially, obviously, locally – clash with Arizona’s top-ranked team, Goodyear Millennium in the seventh game of the day.

And the local lads did much to pump up the masses in the building, taking a seven-point advantage after a quarter behind junior guard Justus Jackson’s pair of deep 3s.

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SCOTTSDALE, Az. – Apparently Evan Mobley and Jaden Hardy had no intention of letting Jalen Green “one-up” them with his startling performance Thursday night.

Twenty-four hours – give or take – after Green dropped 33 points on Hillcrest Prep during Prolific Prep’s 88-71 pounding of the Phoenix-based squad at Chaparral High during a nationally televised HoopHall West contest, Mobley and Hardy did their oh-so-impressive things Friday night in the same building and event.

*The 7-foot Mobley (pictured) showed off the kind of skill that fewer than a dozen or so – maybe – athletes at that size in the world have with a basketball in their hands, leading his Temecula (CA) Rancho Christian squad to a 95-75 victory over Seattle’s Rainier Beach by way of his 16 points (via eight of 10 from the floor), 11 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots.

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SCOTTSDALE – Jalen Green, while playing in a game with a variety of quality prospects, left little room for debate as to who was the best player in the Chaparral High gymnasium was Thursday night during the first day of the HoopHall West.

Green, a transfer from San Joaquin Memorial in Fresno, scored 33 points as Prolific Prep – a “prep school team” based in Napa, CA – slammed another “prep school” program, Hillcrest Prep of Phoenix, 88-71, behind his 33-point performace.

The best of the players in the Class of 2020 yet to sign a National Letter of Intent, Green hit three 3s to go with four rebounds, a steal and an assist as his squad took an eight-point advantage after the first quarter in the nationally televised affair.

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