State Stat Stars of the Week

Two of this week's top performers in the state would be Jamie Jaquez of Camarillo (a freshman) and Long Beach Poly's USC-bound Ayanna Clark. Photos: ACHS Basketball & USA Basketball.

Two of this week’s top performers in the state would be Jamie Jaquez of Camarillo (a freshman) and Long Beach Poly’s Ayanna Clark. Photos: ACHS Basketball & USA Basketball.

In between the continued acclaim for those like Lonzo Ball of Chino Hills and Sierra Campisano from Torrey Pines of San Diego, this week’s salute of the state’s top outings in boys and girls hoops is infused with some young ones, including Camarillo freshman Jamie Jaquez Jr., Hacienda Heights Los Altos freshman Jared Lucas, San Bernardino Arroyo freshman Haley Vergara and Glendora sophomore Alexis Lowden.

Note: We will collect totals from MaxPreps, newspapers, tweets and from those sent in to us. We also will compile single-game highs from this post throughout the season and of course we use our weekly State Stat Stars collection as an aid for the Cal-Hi Sports State Record Book. That is the only state record book anyone has ever done and we have published it seven times with full copyright protection. To report totals to us for this feature and for the record book, email markjtennis@gmail.com or call 209-463-9050. You can also text to 209-608-1317.

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(All players listed in alphabetical order)
(For games played through Wednesday, Dec. 30)
(Writeups by Mark Tennis, Paul Muyskens & CIF Central Section historian Bob Barnett)

BOYS BASKETBALL

Lonzo Ball (Chino Hills)
One week after he was MVP at the City of Palms tournament in Florida, Ball earned MVP honors at the MaxPreps Holiday Classic in Palm Springs with 33 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds in a 96-80 win over Redondo of Redondo Beach in the title game. Chino Hills starts the new year at 13-0 and will be No. 1 in the state and nation in next week’s rankings.

D.J. Barlow (Brookside Christian, Stockton)
He knocked down 33 points when the Knights topped Stagg of Stockton 68-42 in a non-league matchup between schools located about one block from each other. Brookside Christian improved to 7-1.

Joey Calcaterra (Marin Catholic, Kentfield)
The standout junior had back-to-back 41-point outings for the Wildcats at their own Bambauer Memorial Holiday Classic. He first hit for that total in a 73-70 loss in the semifinals to Ayala of Chino Hills. Then in a 82-71 win over Heritage of Oakley in the third-place game, Calcaterra did it again and helped Marin Catholic overcome a 16-point deficit. He also pushed his season scoring average above 30 ppg.

Tim Falls is enjoying a breakout season for Dublin. Photo: Twitter.com.

Tim Falls is enjoying a breakout season for Dublin. Photo: Twitter.com.


Kayn Calhoun (Arlington, Riverside)
With eight 3-point shots finding the bottom of the net, Calhoun hit for 31 points as the Lions won the third-place game at the King of the Hill tourney with a 75-50 victory over Hillcrest.

Tim Falls (Dublin)
Making some key hoops down the stretch, he finished with 30 points and eight rebounds in leading the Gaels past Windsor 70-65 in overtime in the title game of the Windsor Holiday Classic. Falls was named tourney MVP.

Jamie Jaquez Jr. (Camarillo)
For the first time in the 30 years of the Mt. Carmel Holiday Hoops Classic, a freshman has been named the MVP and it is Jaquez. He scored 28 points in the title game as the Scorpions defeated Helix of La Mesa 61-59 in overtime.

Marcus Jones (Perris)
Junior guard erupted for a career high of 34 points vs. Steele Canyon of Spring Valley in a 75-65 win in the seventh place game of the Mt. Carmel Holiday Hoops Classic.

Talolo Limu-Jones (Davis, Modesto)
A candidate for all-state grid-hoops when it’s done in the spring, Limu-Jones erupted for 37 points to lead the Spartans in their 62-52 triumph vs. Pitman of Turlock in the title game of the Oakdale Rotary Classic.

Jared Lucas (Los Altos, Hacienda Heights)
The son of head coach Jeff Lucas is just a freshman, but is establishing himself as a big-time player. In a 80-62 win earlier this week over Covina at the Covina Christmas Classic, Lucas rained in 45 points. He made 14 of 23 shots from the field.

Luke Nichols (Valley Christian Academy, Santa Maria)
He kept his scoring average above 27 ppg for the season with 36 points and 14 rebounds in a 58-40 win to end the calendar year against Cuyama Valley of Cuyama.

Bryce Peters (Damien, La Verne)
In the title game of the Ford Dealers Division at the MaxPreps Holiday Classic, Peters put on a show with 36 points in a 74-60 victory over Villa Park. The Spartans, who won last year’s CIF Division III state title, improved to 14-1.

Jaelen Ragsdale (Weston Ranch, Stockton)
The Cal State Stanislaus commit had 31 points to help Weston Ranch bounce back from a bad loss to Long Beach Poly at the Modesto Christian tournament in a 67-63 win vs. El Camino Real of Woodland Hills.

Tommy Rutherford (Grossmont, La Mesa)
A 6-foot-10 center headed to UC Irvine, Rutherford pumped in 36 points vs. O’Farrell in a 63-16 win at the Chula Vista Spartan Holiday Classic.

Eric Shaw (Amador, Sutter Creek)
A player who we wrote up several times last year, Shaw had 36 points and 10 rebounds in a one-point loss to Highlands of North Highlands. He had a season-high of 46 just before Christmas in a 90-89 victory vs. Valley Christian of Roseville.

Jase Wickliffe (Wilcox, Santa Clara)
He made four 3-pointers and also scored in other ways to reach 34 points for the Chargers when they defeated Los Altos 74-62 at the Monta Vista Holiday Tournament.

Bryson Williams (Roosevelt, Fresno)
For the second straight week, Bryson makes the honor roll after leading the Roughriders to a tourney title. This time, he had 34 points and five blocks in a 66-57 triumph vs. San Joaquin Memorial in the final of the Clovis Elks tourney.

Eyassu Worku (Los Alamitos)
A 6-foot-2 guard headed to UC Irvine, Worku worked over Lutheran of Orange with 35 points, nine rebounds and six assists in a 71-61 win at the Orange County North/South Challenge. Both teams have been ranked among the top five so far this season in Orange County. Worku is averaging 23 points per game.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Megan Anderson (Clovis West, Fresno)
Top-notch junior had 20 points to lead the scoring when the Golden Eagles set a CIF Central Section record in their 114-9 win over Rivera of Los Angeles at the Larry Doyle OC Championships in Huntington Beach. Not sure why anyone would pair up a state powerhouse like Clovis West against such an opponent, but the 105-point margin of victory broke the section record of 100 set in 2010 by Hanford in a 103-3 triumph vs. Kingsburg, according to section historian Bob Barnett. Clovis West (11-2) went on to win the tourney title and next week will travel to Stockton to play state and national No. 1 St. Mary’s.
Players to Watch 200
Sierra Campisano (Torrey Pines, San Diego)
The Oregon recruit led her team to a title at the SoCal Holiday Classic with 44 points in a 74-59 victory over Buena of Ventura. Earlier in the week, Campisano also had outings of 33, 32 and 31 points and has upped her average to 29.3 per game.

Ayanna Clark (Long Beach Poly)
Well, it’s obvious to all that Clark is eligible for the Jackrabbits and is making a huge impact. She’s the one who was part of the school’s squad that won the CIF Open Division state title two years ago as a freshman, then left for a transfer and is now back. She scored 22 points and had 12 rebounds in a 55-45 win over Bishop O’Dowd of Oakland in the Platinum Division final of this week’s West Coast Jamboree. Poly also already has a win over Chaminade of West Hills but a loss to Archbishop Mitty.

Valerie Higgins (Chaminade, West Hills)
The big-time all-state candidate drilled a half-court shot to end the third quarter and finished with near triple-double totals of 15 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists in a 86-56 win over arch-rival Alemany of Mission Hills in a New Year’s Eve final of the West Coast Classic.

Destiny Littleton (Bishop’s, La Jolla)
California’s leading scorer started her post-Christmas week with a bang with 47 points in a 74-69 win vs. Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas. At the SoCal Holiday Classic, she also had 44 points vs. Serra of San Diego, 30 vs. Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth but was “held” to 32 in a loss to Mission Hills in the tourney final.

Alexis Lowden (Glendora)
A sophomore point guard who is 5-foot-8 and only about 100 pounds, according to head coach Adam Nunemaker, Lowden had an interesting stat line of 11 points, 24 rebounds, seven assists, seven steals and four blocks in a 59-41 win earlier this week over La Serna of Whittier. Lowden is averging a team-leading 11.3 rebounds per game despite her lack of size.

Naje Murray (St. Mary’s, Stockton)
The talented junior guard buried five 3-pointers and finished with 19 points to lead the Rams in a 77-62 triumph over Forestville Military Academy of Maryland in the championship game of the Title IX Classic earlier this week in Washington, D.C. St. Mary’s, ranked No. 1 in the nation by everyone, improved to 13-0 and is taking a 42-game winning streak into the new year.

Kayla Overbeck (Newbury Park)
The Vanderbilt signee continues to put up high totals. In a 65-47 victory over Glendale at the West Coast Holiday Festival, she racked up 38 points.

Brianna Porter (Vista)
Returning all-league player for the Panthers scored 30 points vs. Fullerton in a 61-48 win in the FIBA Gold Division final at the SoCal Holiday Classic.

Ana Resendiz (Don Lugo, Chino)
A girl who has made as many as 13 from beyond the 3-point line in a single game this season, she hit for 12 and finished with 36 points to end this week in a 70-51 victory over Gladstone of Covina. Heading into next week, Resendiz has already made 89 on 3-pointers so far this season.

Khayla Rooks (Mission Hills, San Marcos)
With 23 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, Rooks led the Grizzlies past Bishop’s of La Jolla 67-57 in the title game of the SoCal Holiday Classic. Mission Hills avenged an earlier loss to Bishop’s and also defeated La Jolla Country Day during the tourney and at 11-3 was expected to move up to No. 1 in the next San Diego Section rankings.

Brittany Van Buren (Santa Paula)
She posted a triple-double with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocks in her team’s 56-28 victory over Carpinteria at the Carpinteria tourney.

Haley Van Dyke (Campolindo, Moraga)
In a Sapphire Division game at the West Coast Jamboree, Van Dyke led the Cougars past James Logan of Union City 80-59 with 22 points, 20 rebounds, seven assists and five steals. She’s a 6-foot sophomore who looks like she might be able to play on the wings.

Haley Vergara (Arroyo Valley, San Bernardino)
A freshman to watch, Vergara made a name for herself to us this week with 36 points, 10 steals and six assists in a 87-23 win over Pomona. She’s averaging more than 16 ppg.

Olivia Vezaldanos (East Union, Manteca)
One night after the Lancers lost their first game of the season at the Tom Hawkins/Tracy Breakfast Lions tourney, Vezaldanos pumped in 34 points as the Lancers won the third-place game, 70-44, over Tracy. She made 13 of 16 free throws to help account for her total.

Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle: @CalHiSports


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