SG DeJuan Stevens scored 16 pts and grabbed 6 rebs to lead host West LA (21-13) past Southwestern (16-15) in a first round playoff game.
Stevens made 6 of his 8 shots from the floor to lead the sharp-shooting Oilers, who shot 55% on FGs for the game and 61% in the second half.
West LA led all the way, and got off to a good start on a pair of baskets by PF Zac Jordan in the game's early moments. By the middle of the first half, the lead was 10 at 25-15.
Southwestern rallied to close the gap to 4 at 25-21 on a putback by PF Tremayne Singletary, but Stevens answered with a layup and a feed to Jordan for another layup, and West LA pushed the lead back to 8 at 29-21. That's where things stood at the half.
After a Stevens layup gave West LA a 44-34 lead midway through the second half, Southwestern rallied to close within a score at 44-41 on a 7-0 run finished by a 3-pointer by Singletary.
But then West LA pulled away once more. A jumper by PG Antqawn James followed by a driving layup by Stevens pushed it back to 48-41. Stevens was fouled on the play, and his FT to complete the 3-point play made it 49-41. The next time down the floor, Stevens again drew a foul, and made 1 of 2 FTs to make it 50-41. A 3-pointer by PG Quenton Crenshaw made it 53-41 with just over 5 minutes left, basically ensuring a West LA win as Southwestern never got closer than 9 the rest of the way.
Southwestern was led by SF Will Waggoner, who scored 15 pts. Ctr Ronnie McMillan had a double-double with 11 pts and 13 rebs, and Singletary had a big game off the bench with 13 pts and 9 rebs. But the Cougars shot just 31% from the floor.
In addition to Stevens, West LA standouts included Jordan (11 pts) and Crenshaw (9 pts, 2/3 FGs). The Oiler reserves were a big part of the win: PF/C Lester Clay had a solid game with 11 pts and 4 rebs, while James had 7 pts and a game-high 6 asts.
---------------------------
Friday, February 28, 2003 - 7:15 pm
at West LA College, Culver City
Southern California - Playoffs - First Round
Southwestern Cougars 52:
5-Ronnie McMillan, C - 4/17 fg, 3/4 ft, 13 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 11 pts
11-Will Waggoner, SF - 6/14 fg, 1/2 ft, 6 reb, 15 pts
21-Isa Abdul-Aziz, PF - 2/6 fg, 4 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 5 pts
23-Richard Hardin, PG - 0/2 fg, 4 ast, 1 stl, 0 pts
33-Dustin Russell, SG - 0/8 fg, 0/1 ft, 2 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 0 pts
14-John Conner, G - 1/4 fg, 0/2 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pts
3-Tremayne Singletary, F - 5/8 fg, 2/5 ft, 9 reb, 1 ast, 13 pts
32-Jeff Francisco, G - 2/6 fg, 2/2 ft, 3 reb, 1 stl, 6 pts
41-Larry Wofford, F - 0 pts
team rebounds: 1
Totals: 20/65 fg (.308), 8/16 ft (.500), 39 reb, 12 ast, 2 blk, 4 stl, 52 pts
3-pt fg (4): Waggoner 2, Abdul-Aziz, Singletary
Tech Fouls: McMillan, Singletary
Fouled Out: Waggoner 48 secs left
Turnovers (14): Waggoner 3, Conner 3, Singletary 3, McMillan 2, Hardin 2, team
West Los Angeles Oilers 65:
14-Quenton Crenshaw, PG - 2/3 fg, 3/4 ft, 5 reb, 2 ast, 9 pts
24-Steve McMaryion, SF - 1/4 fg, 0/4 ft, 3 reb, 3 pts
25-DeJuan Stevens, SG - 6/8 fg, 4/5 ft, 6 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 16 pts
34-Zac Jordan, PF - 4/7 fg, 3/4 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 3 stl, 11 pts
42-David Day, C - 3/7 fg, 4 reb, 2 ast, 3 blk, 6 pts
40-Lester Clay, F - 4/7 fg, 2/2 ft, 4 reb, 2 ast, 11 pts
22-Antqawn James, G - 2/5 fg, 2/2 ft, 6 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 7 pts
20-Philip Givens, G - 0 pts
52-Larry Givens, F - 0/1 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 0 pts
10-Dero Ard, G - 1/1 fg, 1 reb, 2 pts
team rebounds: 6
Totals: 23/42 fg (.548), 14/22 ft (.636), 31 reb, 16 ast, 4 blk, 7 stl, 65 pts
3-pt fg (5): Crenshaw 2, McMaryion, Clay, James
Tech Foul: McMaryion
Fouled Out: Day 4:03 left, McMaryion 2:12 left
Turnovers (18): James 5, McMaryion 4, Day 3, Crenshaw 2, Stevens, Jordan, Clay, Ard
Halftime Score: West LA 29, Southwestern 21
Updated Records: West LA 21-13 (will play winner of Saddleback/Imperial ValleY); Southwestern 16-15
