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IRVINE, Ca. – The Crean Lutheran boys’ basketball program – in just its 13^th season – won its second CIF Southern Section championship Wednesday night, knocking off visiting Agoura, 68-58, in the 2A contest.

And one of its driving forces was a 6-foot-9, multi-skilled junior who was part of a CIF SS-winning team for the second season in a row.

Koat Keat, who led Glendale’s Renaissance Academy program (which is no longer part of the CIF) to a 4AA title last spring, had his hands in nearly every portion of the Saints’ success in front of a capacity crowd Wednesday.

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LAS VEGAS – The 19^th Pangos All-American Camp wrapped up late Tuesday afternoon with the announcement that was a near-foregone conclusion after the first session of games Sunday night:

Six-foot-10 Jalen Duren, from Philadelphia by way of Montverde Academy in Florida, was selected the event’s Most Outstanding Player.

The consensus No. 1 player in the national Class of 2022 – who, some believe, could “reclassify” to 2021 later this summer and enroll in college in September and play as a freshman – was just one of a large group of quality “big” prospects among the 106 players who participated.

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LAS VEGAS – Day II of the 19^th Pangos All-American Camp was – like the opening of the camp Sunday evening – a showcase for the best-ever depth of quality “bigs” in the camp’s history.

But the 12 games played across Monday’s two sessions also illustrated how many upper-tier jump shooters were on hand among the 100-plus players competing in the three-day event in the Tarkanian Academy in front of dozens of NBA employees and “scout” and “media-types”.

Among those who impressed me during the four games played on Court 1 that I honed in on were:

*Noah Shelby (pictured/Addison, TX, Greenhill School) he was equal parts superb playmaker and jump shooter during Virginia’s 75-74 win over North Carolina, hitting deep shots after the catch and dribble while never forcing anything while overtly contested.

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LAS VEGAS – With approximately 15 players in the range of 6-foot-10 or taller, the 19^th Pangos All-American Camp tipped off Sunday night a lot of “bigs” on each of the three courts over two sessions of games at the Tarkanian Academy.

And, mostly, they delivered.

Jalen Duren (pictured) and Derrick Lively II, twin tower (at 6-10 and 7-1, respectively) teammates on the Nike/EYBL Team Final squad, wielded their dominance in and around the lane in back-to-back games played on Court 1 Sunday in front of representatives of all but Boston from among NBA teams.

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SANTA ANA, Ca. – Two rounds into pool play, only two of the eight teams in the CIF Southern Section Boys’ Basketball Open Division field have been eliminated from a spot in the June 11 championship game.

Top-seed Sierra Canyon (82-70, after trailing by 17 points in the second quarter) and No. 4 Etiwanda (48-46, in a wire-to-wire struggle) toppled Ribet Academy and St. John Bosco, respectively, Tuesday night.

With the Trailblazers and Eagles having won both of their Pool A games, the winner of their game (at Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth) Friday night will advance to the title game.

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