Frank Burlison

SANTA MONICA – One of Southern California’s two-best high school boys’ basketball teams was missing a key element Wednesday night.

But, despite University of Notre Dame-bound forward Brady Dunlap in warm-ups and a walking boot on his left foot, the Harvard-Westlake Trailblazers clicked on enough more cylinders while beating a quality Crossroads opponent, 69-54, on the fourth night of the Westside Tip-Off Classic that is hosted by St. Monica Prep.

Coach David Rebibo’s team improved to 2-0 as senior center Jacob Huggins (11 rebounds) and junior guard Trent Perry (pictured/eight assists) scored 18 points apiece.

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SANTA MONICA – The No.’s 6-, 16- and 28-ranked teams in the BurlisonOnBasketball SoCal Top 60 opened their seasons with wins Wednesday during the third night of the Westside Tip-Off Classic at St. Monica Prep.

Playing in the day’s finale, the No. 6 St. Bernard Vikings – who won the CIF Southern Section Div. 1 title last spring – pulled away late in the third quarter to come away with a 74-54 decision against L.A. Westchester.

That was before No. 16 Rancho Cucamonga (the CIF SS 3AA champion last season) held off a furious fourth-quarter rally by Newport Beach Sage Hill to prevail, 84-74.

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SANTA MONICA – True “Westside programs” won their season-openers Tuesday during the second day of the St. Monica Prep-hosted Westside Tip-Off Classic.

Los Angeles Windward, in its first game under Coach D.J. Gay (a former standout point guard at Sun Valley Poly and San Diego State, who coached in San Diego for several year), knocked off the host Mariners, 56-50.

Guards Gavin Hightower (one of the better sophomores in SoCal) and Luke Samman (the only senior on the Wildcats’ roster) made numerous big shots and big “plays” in the closing minutes to help their team bag the victory.

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SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA – It’s been more than eight months of spring, summer and fall leagues; grassroots “shoe circuit” and “non-shoe circuit” competition; and enough other camps and “showcase” events to enable me to stack hard-copy programs, rosters and “media/coaches’ packets” to the ceiling in a home office that has long since reached an absurd level of clutter.

Come Monday and running through the evening of the March 11, 2023, CIF State Open championship game in Sacramento, it’s “real high school basketball season” time!

And Coach Josh Giles’ Corona Centennial program returns three core elements from the teams that were a combined 54-3 over the past two seasons.

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LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – Tounde Yessoufou and A.J. Dybansta are my respective choices as the top sophomore and freshman during the annual fall Pangos regional All-Frosh/Soph Camp circuit.

The camps, established in 2002 by Belmont Shore/Pangos founder and CEO Dinos Trigonis, had two-day sessions in Long Beach (West/Sept. 24-25); Duncanville, TX (South/Oct. 1-2); LaGrange, IL (Midwest/Oct. 15-16) and Philadelphia (East/Oct. 22-23).

Collectively more than 900 players, from the classes of ’25, ’26 and ’27, took part in the camps.

The 6-foot-6 Yessoufou (Santa Maria, CA, St.

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