January a critical time in boys' hoops

WENDY PIERRO/Acorn Newspapers THE MAN—Simi Valley High senior guard Brad Lewis, who has been deadly from 3-point range, is averaging 26.2 points per game. Marmonte League boys' basketball action will resume next week, but three of the league's teams are already off to blazing starts.

Last season's league champion, Simi Valley High, has come out of the gates strong by winning 10 of its first 13 games, including a pair of Marmonte contests.

Thousand Oaks (11-2, 2-0 in league) and Agoura (12-1, 1-1) are also playing at a high level.

Simi Valley has been fueled by the sharp shooting of senior guard Brad Lewis. Lewis, who's averaging 26.2 points per game, has scored 27 or more points eight times this season.

"I'm very pleased with the way Lewis has been playing," Simi Valley head coach Christian Aurand said. "He's shooting the ball very well, and he's already made more than 50 3-pointers.

"I've also been pleased with the way he's been taking the ball to the rack more often and making people foul him. He's such a good free-throw shooter, so he's really making defenders pay," Aurand said.

Also playing well for the Pioneers is sophomore center Jonathan Davis. Davis is averaging 8.8 points per game and has been a force on the boards with a team-leading 118 rebounds.

Davis "has come around very well, and he's getting stronger and more physical each game," Aurand said. "To be successful, we're going to need a balanced attack, and so far with Lewis and Davis we've had that."

Simi Valley has defeated Calabasas and Moorpark but will face an enormous challenge on Wed., Jan. 7 when the Pioneers visit Thousand Oaks for the first of two scheduled meetings.

"There's no doubt that's going to be a big game," Aurand said. "T.O.'s fans are going to come out in huge numbers, and it's going to be played in a hostile environment for us. The team in this league that is able to win those tough road games will have a big advantage on the rest of the league."

Thousand Oaks features a strong defense that head coach Richard Endres said is playing ahead of schedule.

"The defense has come along a little faster than I anticipated," Endres said. "Guys like Antonio Lopez and Chris Carter have played extremely well."

In a Thousand Oaks Acorn story last month, Lancer junior center Alex Tiffin said, "We score so much that if we can hold teams to under 50 points, the wins will come."

Tiffin's statement has been accurate, as the Lancers have held opponents to 50 points or less eight times and have earned a victory in each of those games.

One of Thousand Oaks' two league victories came against Agoura. The Chargers won their first eight games despite the majority of the squad being newcomers to the varsity squad.

Only Michael Hatch and Kevin Graf played on the AHS varsity a year ago.

"I've really been surprised with how well we have played," Agoura head coach Joe Riccio said. "They're an excellent group of contenders. We've been down in two or three games with under five minutes remaining and have come back to win. I never have to give this group an enthusiastic team speech."

Although Riccio doesn't give many pep talks, he proved his skills as a coach by deciding to move junior Stephan Hicks from small forward to power forward.

The move has paid huge dividends, as Hicks is averaging 16.5 points per game.

"With (Hicks) and Hatch playing at the same time, we can now really get up and go on offense," Riccio said. "Then we will bring in Graf off the bench and slow things down again with more of a half-court offense.

"We kind of have the best of both worlds right now with those three big men."

With junior guard Hasan Khan averaging 16.6 points per game, the Chargers have four players averaging in doublefigure points.

Agoura, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks may be the top three teams in the league at the moment, but both Riccio and Aurand said things are far from settled.

"The Marmonte League is so unpredictable that on any given night, any team can win any game," Riccio said. "Calabasas and Westlake are competitive teams, and Royal has improved as well."

Although Simi Valley defeated Calabasas at home, 72-65, Aurand said the Coyotes, who are 1-1 in league, will be in the hunt for a championship.

"Calabasas' record is very deceiving, and you have to throw it out the window because they've played a tough schedule," Aurand said. "They've had three or four games where it's come down to the last possession."

Newbury Park is 1-1 in league and 4-9 overall. The Panthers have already defeated Moorpark (5-7, 0-2 in league).

Westlake (3-10, 0-2) won its first three games before losing 10 in a row. Royal (68, 11) has already beat Westlake for its first league victory since Feb. 7, 2007.

In the Tri-Valley League, Oaks Christian has gotten off to a solid start by winning eight of its first 10 games. The Lions have been led by senior guards Tyler McGrath, who's averaging 23.7 points per game, and Jules Sharpe, who's added 15.2 points.

Oak Park, the TVL cochampions a year ago, began the season 3-0 before losing four of its last seven games. Senior Sam Levine and junior Steven Brodie have starred for the Eagles.

League play begins for Oaks Christian and Oak Park on Jan 9.