Overtime, a triple double and a rough second half for the defending champs highlighted the action Saturday at The Drew League, with recent HS standouts Richard Solomon (Price/Bishop Montgomery/Cal/NBDL) and Antonio Biglow (Sylmar/Mt.SAC/Montana State) leading their teams to wins on Saturday.
By Dave Rogahn
The Reapers 86, I Can All-Stars 84
The first game of the day saw The Reapers edge the I Can All-Stars, 86-84, behind 19 points and 11 rebounds from Solomon and 16 points from Craig Sword (Mississippi State).
Lorenzo McCloud (Artesia/Santa Rosa/Pacific) added 11 points for the winners, who nursed a slim lead throughout the fourth quarter. Reigning league MVP Vince Camper (Cal State LA) led all scorers with 25 points, and he added 4 assists and 2 steals for I Can.
Justin Cobbs (Bishop Montgomery/Cal/France) had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and just missed what would have been the game-winning 3-pointer at the final horn. Krys Faber (Poland) had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Travele Jones (Cerritos/Texas Southern/Greece) had 12 points and 9 rebounds.
The Jaguars 76, Hank's Bulldogs 74 (OT)
In the next game, David Hall (Cerritos/Cal State LA) had 13 points and 10 rebounds, including a steal & slam with 10.5 seconds left in regulation to help the Jaguars to a 76-74 overtime win over Hank’s Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs led by 4 points with under 30 seconds to play in regulation, but trailed throughout overtime.
Brandon Fields (Nevada/NBDL) had 10 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, and Tyree Beals (Locke/LA Southwest/NBDL) had 10 points and 8 rebounds. Jacques Streeter (Fremont/UTEP/Kosovo) had 8 points, 7 assists and 3 steals.
LA Loop 87, LAUNFD 67
The next game saw LA Loop rally from a pair of 7-point deficits to hammer defending champion LAUNFD, 87-67.
Granted, LAUNFD was without its NBA contingent, including James Harden, which captured the title last August. But five LAUNFD players had NBA experience and two more have played extensively in the NBDL.
Patrick Rembert (UC Irvine/Saudi Arabia) led all scorers with 32 points, including 5 three-pointers, and added 5 assists and 5 steals. Eric Williams (Long Beach CC/Tarleton State/Colombia) had 20 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals, and Gaelan Bewernick (Manuel Arts/Northern Arizona/Switzerland) had 13 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Onetime UCLA standout Dijon Thompson (Redondo Union/NBA), now playing in Israel, led LAUNFD with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Eugene Pooh Jeter (Serra/Portland State/NBA), who now plays in China, had 13 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal. John Lucas III (Baylor/Oklahoma St/NBA), who now plays in Puerto Rico, had 10 points.
Birdie’s Revenge 78, Hank's Panthers 72 (OT)
The next game went to overtime as Birdie’s Revenge, featuring rapper The Game (Jayceon Taylor) needed overtime to get past Hank’s Panthers, 78-72. Franklin Session (Jordan-LA/Saddleback/Cal State LA/NBDL) posted a triple-double with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists, and he also grabbed 6 steals.
Willie Reed (St. Louis U/Brooklyn Nets) nearly posted a triple-double of his own with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 8 blocked shots. The Game chipped in with 15 points, including 3 threes, and Stephaun Branch (Mt. SAC/West Georgia) had 10 points.
Joseph Morgan (Centennial-Compton/LA Trade Tech/Morgan State/China) led the Panthers with 17 points, and he also had 4 assists and 4 steals. Phillip Reed (CS San Bernardino) had a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds.
Hank’s Houdini’s All-Stars 72, The Pandas 60
The fifth game of the day saw 2014 champion Hank’s Houdini’s All-Stars romp past the Pandas, a team led by LA Laker forward Metta World Peace.
Biglow had a game-high 25 points and added 7 rebounds, and Darnell Martin (Mt. SAC/CS Dominguez Hills) had 11 points and 7 rebounds for the winners.
Kaimyn Pruitt (University-LA/Mt. SAC/Adams State) had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, and George Banks (UTEP/Hungary), now a coach at Colony HS, had 10 points and 8 rebounds.
World Peace had 9 points and 8 rebounds, and retired NFL great Terrell Owens came off the bench for 4 points and 2 rebounds.
The Drew League continues each weekend with games starting at 10 am on both Saturday and Sunday at King-Drew HS. Admission is free, though the crowds are known to arrive early when the NBA players arrive in July.
Check the league website http://www.drewleague.com for more details, and check out the Drew Documentary on Showtime for the history of the league.
