When any basketball coach is raving about an opposing participant, that units off an alarm bell for sportswriters to concentrate and examine.
It seems all the nice issues coaches are starting to say about 6-foot-4 junior guard Donovan Webb of Golden Valley Excessive are true. Canyon Nation Canyon coach Ali Monfared mentioned Webb may be the most effective participant within the Foothill League, which held its media day at Canyon on Saturday.
Webb is a type of gamers who labored laborious when no one was watching. His focus was on bettering his three-point capturing, and all these hours within the gymnasium may repay.
“I’m a gymnasium rat,” he mentioned.
Final season, he was moved to level guard and saved deferring to different gamers. This season, he obtained the message to take cost. “We put the keys to the automotive in his fingers,” first-year coach Scott Barkman mentioned.
With a 4.3 grade-point common, Webb mentioned he understands what his function must be.
“I wanted to take my sport to the following degree,” he mentioned.
Golden Valley and Valencia would be the co-favorites due to the expertise every staff has with returning gamers.
Valencia has its personal much-improved participant in junior Steven Irons. Final season he was 6-5, 170 kilos. Now he’s 6-7, 210 kilos after consuming plenty of rooster and rice whereas engaged on power.
“The day we misplaced the playoff sport, I began lifting,” he mentioned.
Mentioned coach Greg Fontenette: “His improvement has been like night time and day.”
Double-doubles are in his future, and it’s not about In-N-Out. He’ll be scoring and offering rebounds to assist Valencia’s proficient class of 2027 gamers.
Saugus returns Braydon Harmon, who had a 43-point efficiency towards West Ranch final season.
Hart coach Tom Kelly is in his twenty sixth season for the Newhall college and thirty sixth total (he was head coach at Burbank Burroughs for 10 years).
Canyon received a 2A championship final season and misplaced most of its gamers, however returning is standout level guard Isaac Yuhico, who delivered clutch baskets within the Cowboys’ triple-overtime championship sport win over St. Bonaventure.
Former Golden Valley coach Chris Printz has turn into an assistant principal, however his son, Wyatt, stays on the staff. Requested if his father obtained a pay elevate, Wyatt mentioned, “I hope so.”
Conner Peterson of West Ranch was requested about enjoying towards mates within the league. “It’s the identical factor enjoying towards your brother,” he mentioned. “You wish to beat them.”
Castaic coach Louis Fernando supplied optimism about his staff, saying, “I don’t have to educate ego and I don’t have to educate effort this yr.”
It is a every day have a look at the optimistic happenings in highschool sports activities. To submit any information, please electronic mail eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
