Sports
High School Hoops Tradition Thrives in Long Beach with All-CIF Selections
Poly boys and St. Anthony's girls boast All-CIF Players and Coaches of the Year in their divisions.
Long Beach schools may field strong teams in other sports, but basketball dominance is almost a slam dunk.
Rewarded for stellar seasons that culminated in CIF titles for the Long Beach Poly boys and the St. Anthony girls, each high school had a player and coach honored as the best on the All-CIF team.
The Jackrabbits’ Ryan Anderson was named Player of the Year in Division 1AA, while his coach, Sharrief Metoyer, was named Coach of the Year.
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Joining Anderson from Poly on the All-CIF team is Alexis Moore. The top-seeded Jackrabbits ran through the 1AA playoffs, defeating Corona Centennial, 68-52, in the championship game.
St. Anthony super sophomore Kendall Cooper, who led the Saints to their second consecutive CIF Division 4A girl’s basketball title, has been named the CIF 4A Player of the Year.
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In fact, the Saints left their mark all over the elite team, as James Anderson was selected Coach of the Year, and players junior Raquel Johnson and senior Jourdan Cooper were also selected to the team.
Cooper, a 6-foot-4 center, has been called “a dominant force inside,” and “built for the college post game,” by hoops experts at the Nike Nationals Camp. She scored 8 points with 19 rebounds and 4 blocked shots in the Saints 53-44 victory over Oaks Christian for the title.
A pair of Poly girls, seniors Ariya Crook-Williams and Sheila Boykin, were also All-CIF Division 1AA selections. The Poly girls lost to Santa Monica in the quarterfinals.
ALL CIF-SOUTHERN SECTION / SCIBCA
2010-2011 BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM
BOYS DIVISION 1AA
Player of the Year – Ryan Anderson, Long Beach Poly
Coach of the Year – Sharrief Metoyer, Long Beach Poly
PLAYER GRADE SCHOOL
Byron Wesley Etiwanda
Jordan Daniels Etiwanda
Michael Caffey Centennial/Corona
Dominique Dunning Centennial/Corona
Gelaun Wheelwright Centennial/Corona
Xavier Johnson Mater Dei
Katin Reinhardt Mater Dei
John Gilliam Upland
Lonnie Jackson Valencia/Valencia
Alexis Moore Long Beach Poly
BOYS DIVISION 4A
Player of the Year – Blair Holliday, Oaks Christian (12); Nick De Bonfilhs, Buckley (12)
Coach of the Year – Mike Hamilton, Buckley
PLAYER GRADE SCHOOL
Chass Bryan 11 Oaks Christian
Tyler Coppin Carter 10 Buckley
Gerry Blakes 12 Morningside
Josh Chamberlain 12 Maranatha
Jeremy Major 10 Maranatha
Miller Brown 12 Whittier Christian
Trenton Coppins 12 JSerra
Robert James 12 Desert Hot Springs
Israel Lacy 10 La Salle
ALL CIF-SOUTHERN SECTION / SCIBCA
2010-2011 GIRLS BASKETBALL TEAM
GIRLS DIVISION 1AA
Player of the Year – Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Mater Dei (12)
Coach of the Year – Kevin Kiernan, Mater Dei
PLAYER GRADE SCHOOL
Jordan Adams 11 Mater Dei
Alexyz Vaioletama 12 Mater Dei
Justine Hartman 12 Brea Olinda
Moriah Faulk 12 Santa Monica
Ariya Crook-Williams 12 Long Beach Poly
Sheila Boykin 12 Long Beach Poly
Jada Blackwell 12 Etiwanda
Teara Laudermill 12 Canyon Springs
Sophia Ederaine 12 Canyon Springs
Chrishae Rowe 10 Santiago/Corona
GIRLS DIVISION 4A
Players of the Year – Kendall Cooper, St. Anthony (10)
Coach of the Year – James Anderson, St. Anthony
PLAYER GRADE SCHOOL
Brianna Barrett 11 Oaks Christian
Kari Korver 11 Valley Christian/Cerritos
Raquel Johnson 11 St. Anthony
Megan Hansen 12 Morro Bay
Meghan McIntyre 10 Oaks Christian
Jenna Dunbar 11 Mission Prep
Imari Brown 10 Duarte
Jourdan Cooper 12 St. Anthony
August Touchard 10 JSerra
Hailey King 12 Santa Ynez