Central boys in a giving mood

Selfless approach has Grizzlies in the D-I final.

Published online on Friday, Mar. 06, 2009

The most impressive assist of the season for Central High's boys basketball team occurred Thursday, when the Grizzlies didn't play a game.

It was provided by Rakim Brown, their most valuable player, who took the shirt off his back and gave it to non-starter Amit Dhillon.

"That's why we're going places. We're learning what it takes to be a true team," said coach Loren LeBeau, whose second-seeded team is going to Selland Arena on Saturday at 8 p.m. to play No. 5 Edison in a westside shootout for the Central Section Division I championship.

Brown, leading the team in scoring (16.5 points per game) and rebounding (8.5 per game), deferred spotlight time to Dhillon after LeBeau was asked to send his five starters to Selland on Thursday to film a video that will be shown in the arena prior to the title game.

Brown, a junior, gave it up for Dhillon, a key senior off the bench.

"That was really special," LeBeau said. "It almost put me in tears. When your top player is willing to give up his starting spot to another player in the biggest game of the year, how special is that?"

Special also is an unprecedented D-I final matching the Grizzlies (22-7) and Tigers (24-6).

Central, twice a D-III champion in the 1990s, has never won a section large schools title.

Edison, with a section-record 19 crowns, has cleaned up in many divisions.

It's an infusion of new blood in D-I, which last staged a title game without a Clovis school in 1996, when Bullard defeated Hanford 47-46. And three of the past four finals have involved all-Clovis Unified matchups.

Those drew well at Selland, which launched the two-day, 10-game boys and girls format in 2005. And Saturday's showdown is expected to have a big impact at the gate, also.

"That's wild, that is going to be a great one," section commissioner Jim Crichlow said.

He's pleased with the momentum heading into Selland, with one glaring exception - Central Valley Christian 96, Clovis Christian 7.

That occurred Wednesday in the semifinals of D-V, which has 13 schools - only five of which chose to participate in the playoffs. The others avoided similarly senseless games with powers CVC and Mission Prep, who will play for the title today at 4 p.m.

"That's embarrassing," Crichlow said. "And there's not much we can do about it."

The problem is a state-mandated cap that prohibits schools with more than 500 students from competing in D-V.

Schools with fewer than 500 students can play up, however. And that occurred this season, when Immanuel (297) was promoted from D-V to D-IV.

Crichlow said the possibility of returning the Eagles to D-V to help legitimize the division will be examined.

Division I

No. 2 CENTRAL (22-7) vs. No. 5 EDISON (24-6), 8 p.m. Saturday

Recent playoff history: Grizzlies - in their first final since 2001, when they lost to Clovis West 77-56. They won D-III titles by defeating Exeter 74-37 in 1992 and Tehachapi 64-37 in '96. Tigers - making their fourth consecutive trip to Selland under coach Arturo Ormond. They won D-II crowns by beating Centennial 76-52 last year and Tulare Western 67-55 in 2007, and lost to Clovis West 63-59 in the '06 D-I final.

How they got here: Grizzlies - beat Bullard 66-62 in the quarterfinals and Centennial 68-61 in the semis. Tigers - made a statement in the quarters by winning 69-65 at Clovis West before rallying at home to defeat Buchanan 61-58.

He will take last shot: Grizzlies - Why deny Alton Williams the opportunity? The senior guard is averaging 23.0 in the playoffs. Tigers - Jameal York, better known as Moody, not only creates shots, he makes them, evident in scoring 30 against CW.