Gardena High’s boys’ basketball team improved its hopes for a spot in the CIF-Los Angeles City Section playoffs after downing San Pedro and Banning last week.
At Gardena on Jan. 18, the Panthers cruised to a 66-33 win over San Pedro. At Banning last Friday, the Panthers improved their Marine League record to 3-2 and overall mark to 12-8 by defeating the Pilots 61-44.
Gardena High’s boys’ basketball team improved its hopes for a spot in the CIF-Los Angeles City Section playoffs after downing San Pedro and Banning last week.
At Gardena on Jan. 18, the Panthers cruised to a 66-33 win over San Pedro. At Banning last Friday, the Panthers improved their Marine League record to 3-2 and overall mark to 12-8 by defeating the Pilots 61-44.
Against the Pirates, the Panthers got off to a quick start leading 17-2 after the first quarter and 34-10 at halftime. Gardena continued to outscore San Pedro in the second half for the easy victory.
“We got off to a great start,” Gardena head coach Ernie Carr said about the Panthers’ win over the Pirates. “We did have a few lows.”
Dominique Alexander led Gardena with a game-high 17 points. David Heard added 11 points and Jamil Adams chipped in eight.
Against Banning, the Panthers were able to outscore the Pilots in each of the four quarters to win handily.
Alexander led Gardena with 16 points. Keondre Brown contributed 11 points.
The Panthers visited Washington in a key league game last Monday. Gardena hosts Carson, a team that opened the season with a 47-32 victory over the Panthers on Dec. 12, Friday at 7 p.m. Gardena, then, visits King-Drew Medical Magnet High in South L.A. next Monday at 5:30 p.m. The Panthers topped the Golden Eagles on Dec. 15 at Gardena.
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Grid Star Jackson leaves USC for NFL Draft
By Joe Snyder
Sports Editor
Former Serra High football standout Adoree Jackson opted to forego his senior season with the University of Southern California football team for the National Football League draft, announced on\his Twitter on Jan. 16, the deadline to file paperwork for the NFL draft that takes place in April.
Last season, Jackson, a junior, played predominantly cornerback and on special teams, but continued to see some action as a wide receiver on offense. Jackson is expected to be a high round pick and the chances are very good that he could go in the first round, possibly even in the top five to 10.
During this past season, Jackson received the Jim Thorpe Award as the Major NCAA Division I’s top defensive back. He also made the consensus first team all-American, the first player with the Trojans to do that since another ex-Serra High star, Marquis Lee, received as a receiver in 2012. He was the PAC 12 Defensive player of the Year.
He keyed USC to a 10-3 record that saw the Trojans start out at 1-3 before winning their final nine games, including a dramatic 52-49 victory over Penn State University at the Rose Bowl on Jan. 2 in Pasadena. USC ended up ranked third in the United States, behind national champion Clemson from South Carolina, which edged defending two-time champion Alabama 35-31 for the title on Jan. 9 in Tampa Bay. The Clemson Tide was rated second.
Jackson’s records for the recent 2016 season were outstanding. He intercepted four passes that included two in the Trojans’ upset win over then No. 4 ranked University of Washington in Seattle, and 11 pass break-ups.
Jackson came to USC as a five-star recruit as a freshman in 2014. He played cornerback and wide receiver. As a sophomore, he was the Trojans’ second receiving receiver with 414 yards on 27 catches.
This past season, though, Jackson chose to concentrate on cornerback, a position that he is expected to play in the NFL.
Probably Jackson’s best game came on Nov. 26 in USC’s 45-27 victory over Notre Dame at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. He returned a kickoff and a punt for touchdowns and added a 52-yard TD reception, becoming just the fourth player in more than a 20-year period to score in three ways.
The speedster, who was a 10.4 100-meters sprinter on Serra High’s track and field team, finished with 2,141 yards in returns, a Trojan record.
Jackson becomes the third Trojan to declare for the NFL draft. The others include wide receiver JuJu Smith-Shuster and left guard Damien Mama.
At Serra, Jackson, who graduated in 2014, was a two-time all-American. He keyed the Cavaliers to the California State Division II championship in his junior season in 2012. A year later, Serra won the Mission League over second place West Hills Chaminade only to see the Eagles rally to upset the host Cavaliers 38-35 to win the CIF-Southern Section Western Division crown. Chaminade went on to win the CIF-State Division II title in 2013.
Jackson was also a state prep long jump champion in track and field in 2013 with a personal best jump of 25 feet, 10 inches. He competed with USC’s track and field team as a long jumper and sprinter and was in the 2016 United States Olympic trials in June but fell short of making the squad that competed in August in Rio de Janiero, Brazil.
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Serra Girls’ Basketball
Serra routs Cantwell-Sacred Heart; top Fairfax
By Joe Snyder
Sports Editor
Serra High’s girls’ basketball team has a perfect 3-0 Del Rey League record and is 14-6 overall after a league win over Cantwell-Sacred Heart and a victory in the Narbonne Extravaganza against CIF-Los Angeles City Section power Fairfax last week.
At Serra last Thursday, the Lady Cavaliers rolled over the Cardinals 66-39. At Narbonne on Saturday, Serra cooled off a hot Lion squad 64-53.
Against Fairfax, which started off slow but got on a roll that included victories over three very good teams in Brea-Olinda, Bishop Montgomery and Redondo, the Cavaliers held a 33-31 lead at halftime and by three after three quarters, pulled away in the fourth period.
Alexis Tucker led Serra with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Cheyanne Gibbons had 16 points. Ivory Scott finished with 18 rebounds, six blocked shots and four points.
The Cavaliers led by just three points (10-7) after the first quarter but dominated CSH from there for the easy win. Gibbons sparked Serra with 18 points. Tucker tallied 15 points and 20 rebounds. Camille Hailey totaled 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Serra showed down with second place Bishop Montgomery in Torrance last Tuesday. The Cavaliers come home to play St. Anthony tonight at 7 p.m. before visiting St. Paul in Santa Fe Springs next Tuesday at the same time.
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Serra Boys’ Basketball
Serra wins at Cantwell-Sacred Heart
By Joe Snyder
Sports Ediotr
After struggling to find its rhythm during most of its preseason play, Serra High’s boys’ basketball team caught on as it is in second place, behind powerful rival Bishop Montgomery, in the Del Rey League at 3-1 after downing host Cantwell-Sacred Heart 76-65 on Jan. 18 in Montebello.
The Cavaliers, who improved to 9-10 overall after winning their seventh in their last eight games, used a stingy defense that forced 27 turnovers on the Cardinals. They jumped out to a 24-12 first quarter lead and never trailed from there.
“Our defense was the reason why we were able to win a big league game on the road,” Serra interim head coach Bernard McCrumby said. “Cantwell-Sacred Heart was a very good team and is very well coached.”
The Cavaliers had three players score in double figures in their win over the Cardinals. E.J. Jackson led the way with 21 points and nine assists. Ray Knight, Jr. added 19 points and six rebounds. Doctor Bradley contributed 15 points and six rebounds.
Serra continued the Del Rey with a home game against St. Bernard last Monday. The Cavaliers visit Cathedral in Downtown Los Angeles Friday at 7 p.m. before facing Loyola High, also from L.A., in the Fairfax Showcase Classic at Cerritos College Saturday at 11 a.m. Serra returns home for league against the powerful Knights next Wednesday at 5 p.m.
