Frank Burlison

SAN DIEGO – The de facto CEO of San Diego basketball – Aaron Burgin (@fulltimehoops1) –  demonstrated why I’ve given him that tag Saturday at St. Augustine High.

The eighth Crème of the County (actually seventh since COVID-19 forced cancellation of the 2020 camp) proved another high-quality preview for San Diego high school hoops.

And I’m talking about an up-close look (over 11 games, beginning at about 8:45 a.m. and wrapping up nearly 12 hours later) at what should be the bulk of the best players and teams in the San Diego Section of the California Interscholastic Federation during the 2022-23 season.

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LONG BEACH, Ca. – It was pretty much “status quo” for the Midwest team in the third Pangos All-American Festival 4 (presented by Puma) Sunday afternoon at McBride High.

After polishing off the East by 23 points in a Saturday evening semifinal, the Midwest – led by event co-Most Outstanding Players Jeremy Fears and Flory Bidunga –cruised past the South, 120-99, in the championship game.

The South (which beat the West in the other semifinal Saturday, 126-116) trailed by 13 points at intermission in the finale.

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LONG BEACH, Ca. – The South team drilled 16 shots from behind the arc, and the Midwest team got a sizzling all-around effort from guard Jeremy Fears Saturday to set the stage for the championship round Sunday of the third Pangos All-American Festival 4 at McBride High.

The South and Midwest squads hook up in the title game that is set for 1 p.m.

It follows the West-East clash for third-place that is scheduled to tip at 11 a.m.

In the first of the semifinals Saturday evening, the South – trailing the West by a point at intermission – pulled away in the final 12 minutes for a 126-114 victory.

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ANAHEIM – Some of the depth and quality of the Corona Centennial High basketball program was on display Saturday and Sunday during the Elite Basket Circuit Camp at the Open Gym Premier.

And, no, all-CIF Southern Section selections Jared McCain, Aaron McBride and Devin Williams – members of the Class of 2023 who’ve helped the Huskies win consecutive Open Division titles – were not among the participants.

But junior Eric Freeny and freshman Justice Griffith were, and their play over the weekend showed just two of the many reasons why Coach Josh Giles’ club is the clear-cut favorite to win Sectional and State Open titles next March.

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LYNWOOD, Ca. – Some of the better boys’ basketball players set to enter their freshmen years in a few weeks – if not sooner – were on display Saturday during The Orientation, presented by Beach City Hoops and hosted by the Lynwood High basketball program.

Created by Beach City Hoops founder Alex Carmon (a former standout at Long Beach Poly High and San Francisco’s Academy of Art University), the event showcased 34 players from the Class of 2026 in a variety of competitive drills and three scrimmages each – “won” when the first team hit 50 points.

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