Health & Fitness
Lighthouse basketball continues league dominance
A small Christian school in Santa Monica sweeps basketball league, raising to five its undefeated streak Saturday night.
LCA Saints/ Westchester YMCA ratified league dominance Saturday beating Gardena rivals 35-28. They are undefeated five games into the season.
“We don't have the best players,” said Coach Ken Berry. “But we do have the hardest working players. That's how we won this game. We outworked them.”
Lighthouse sophomore Shane Berry, the coach's son, was on target with outside shooting, scoring 10 points for the team. In scramble for the ball in which Shane fell, an opponent fell on his head. Dizzy and bleeding, he went off the court to receive firstaid but returned with a bandage to finish the game. He was then taken to emergency medical care to receive stitches.
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Sophomore Michael Moore frustrated opponents with fast feints to maneuver to the basket, where he rocked the net for 11 points.
But if scorers get all the glory, it was the defenders who won the game, Coach Berry said. Adrian Brizuela and Rob Ashcraft tirelessly boxed out opponents, jumped and muscled their way to the overwhelming majority of rebounds on both sides of the court.
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Adrian scored 8 points for the team, and Rob, a virtual newbie to the sport, hit his all-time with 5 points.
The Lighthouse Christian Academy has not had a basketball team for years, but interest among the students was high this year. Since registering in school league involves time and paperwork, Coach Berry enrolled the kids in the YMCA league.
The Saints' strategy of high court pressure made it difficult for opponents to even make it out of their half. By halftime, Lighthouse was winning 20-7.
But Gardena clawed its way back into the game by concentrating on denying access to the key. Though they never overtook the Saints, the outscored them in the second half (21 points to the Saints 15).
LCA keeps opponents off-balance, suddenly dropping back on defense and allowing them out of their half, or surprising them at half-court force turnovers.
At the huddle at games end, the player shouted, not “Saints!” but “Hard work!”
Coach Berry doesn't ask of the kids perfect passes or spectacular shooting. He expects only that they work hard.
