High School Basketball

Terren Frank scored 19 points and BJ Boston added 18 as Sierra Canyon School defeated St. John Bosco 67-39 in the CIF Southern Section playoffs' Open Division bracket Friday.

Sierra Canyon opened the playoffs with a THIRTY PIECE! 👀🔥 @SCanyonSports pic.twitter.com/xg50OG3Z9S

— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) February 15, 2020

The Chatsworth, California, school outscored its opponents from Bellflower, California, by 27 after the first quarter.

Frank and Boston both provided highlights during the Trailblazers' postseason-opening win.

Frank threw down a poster dunk that got his teammates out of their seats:

DON’T JUMP😳 @TerrenFrank https://t.co/sJ1gVaa90w

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) February 15, 2020

Boston provided a heads-up play after tossing an inbounds pass at his opponent's back before gathering the ball for an easy two: 

Brandon Boston got ‘em off the back! 🤣 @bboston_ pic.twitter.com/9NcMug2sB3

— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) February 15, 2020

Sierra Canyon freshman guard LeBron James Jr. (known as Bronny) scored two points on a pair of free throws during a third-quarter run that helped put the game away. The Trailblazers led 49-28 heading into the fourth.

James is the oldest son of Los Angeles Lakers guard/forward LeBron James.

The 25-4 Trailblazers, who are ranked second in MaxPreps' latest high school boys basketball ratings, will now face St. Anthony and Etiwanda to round out round-robin pool play. St. Anthony is first up Tuesday.

Sierra Canyon's six-game win streak is no more. In the second of back-to-back games at the Metro Classic Basketball tournament in New Jersey, the Blazers fell to local powerhouse Long Island Lutheran, 84-74. 

Kentucky recruit BJ Boston finished with 20 points, Ziaire Williams had 19 and Bronny James added two points and one assist. 

Final: Long Island Lutheran 84, Sierra Canyon 74. Zed Key 25, Andre Curbelo 23 to lead Luhi. B.J. Boston (Kentucky) with 20, Zaire Williams 19 to lead Sierra. (Bronny Watch: James finished with 2 points on 1-3 shooting, 1 assist in about 14 minutes).

— Matt Manley (@Matt_Manley) February 9, 2020

https://twitter.com/LuHiBasketball/status/1226355371041853441

Yet the true star of the night didn't play for Sierra Canyon. 

Long Island's Andre Curbelo (23 points) was the unquestioned hero on Saturday. The college scouts and talent evaluators couldn't stop raving about his play: 

Sierra Canyon - Long Island Lutheran is the nightcap at the @MetroClassic. Completely packed gym here for BJ Boston, Ziaire Williams and Bronny James vs Andre Curbelo and co. pic.twitter.com/ezVcWopQBj

— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) February 9, 2020

Sierra Canyon brought the crowd and TV cameras, but Illinois commit Andre Curbelo was the best player on the floor tonight. Wizard with the ball, terrific passer and scored from everywhere, especially with his floater. Love his leadership, creativity and toughness. Total baller. pic.twitter.com/nHgwNv2QRJ

— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) February 9, 2020

Andre Curbelo had fans chanting MVP and took home a W over Sierra Canyon🇵🇷

@papicurbelo11 @PaulBiancardi @LuHiBasketball @MetroClassic #Illini #EverydayGuys #MetroClassic pic.twitter.com/W98lqXbt7q

— League Ready (@LeagueRDY) February 9, 2020

Curbelo is committed to Illinois and will be terrorizing the Big Ten soon enough. On Saturday, he stayed dialed in, helping Long Island hold onto a 10-point lead late to close out the victory. 

Sierra Canyon was back in action Friday, taking down Gill St. Bernard's 74-58 in the opening night of the Metro Classic Basketball tournament in New Jersey. 

BJ Boston and Ziaire Williams each posted 15 points, while Bronny James added in six points. 

The Trailblazers have now won six a row after a stretch in which they dropped three of seven. 

The victory featured a few highlight reel dunks from Boston for good measure. 

Sierra Canyon will wrap up its weekend on the East Coast on Saturday against Long Island Lutheran. Tipoff is at 9 p.m. ET, and the game broadcast will be on ESPN3. 

Lutheran, the No. 13 team in the country, features 4-star recruit Andre Curbelo, who signed with Illinois in November. The point guard also had offers from Kansas, Georgetown, Louisville, Dayton and Miami, among others.

He'll provide a solid challenge for Zaire Wade, James, Boston and Williams and the No. 2 Blazers as they look to close off the weekend with another victory.      

Members of the Malcolm X Shabazz High School basketball team in Newark, New Jersey, are reportedly under investigation after allegedly assaulting their coach.

ABC 7 in New York and TMZ Sports reported the news, noting the alleged assault took place Tuesday night after the team returned from a road game in Livingston.

ABC 7 in New York shared video that showed multiple people, who police say are players on the team, punching and kicking a man identified as the coach:

Disturbing video out of Newark, NJ where a high school basketball coach was attacked by his own players. Police are working to identify the suspects. (Sharing recut video due to offensive language) Live report on Eyewitness News and updates here: https://t.co/ASc7PagSOp pic.twitter.com/5elHx2ujQo

— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) February 6, 2020

"Our detectives are investigating this incident to identify and to appropriately charge those individuals involved," Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said. "Because high school students are typically juveniles, the names of the suspects will not be released. But those found to have participated in this senseless act of violence will face criminal charges."

According to ABC 7, the coach was attacked because he tried to stop the bullying of another student.

A school official alerted police of the social media post depicting the incident, and the students allegedly involved have all been suspended.

Sierra Canyon continued its impressive season with a 96-55 win over Paraclete on Tuesday at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster, California.

Zaire Wade had some positive moments on his 18th birthday while contributing to the Trail Blazers' victory.

His father, Dwyane Wade, wished him well before the game on TNT:

Happy 18th birthday to @DwyaneWade's son, Zaire! 🥳 pic.twitter.com/3kugfICGco

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 5, 2020

The other son of an NBA star, Bronny James, came through with a handful of threes in the win.

Sierra Canyon is certainly a lot more than just these big names, however, with Ziaire Williams and Amari Bailey showcasing some incredible athleticism.

Ziaire Williams making it look EASY out of the gate ☠️

@therealZiaire @espn @SCanyonSports #SCtop10 #espn #sierracanyon pic.twitter.com/nxZQsPVOSK

— League Ready (@LeagueRDY) February 5, 2020

https://twitter.com/WhosNextHS/status/1224909246623555584

Williams and fellow McDonald's All-American BJ Boston were nearly unstoppable as one of the best duos at this level.

The squad was on fire offensively from the opening tip, scoring 34 in the first quarter before jumping out to a 25-point lead by halftime.

The Trail Blazers kept their foot on the gas while outscoring Paraclete 32-14 in the third quarter. A running clock in the fourth quarter (due to a 40-point margin) prevented the team from reaching the 100-point mark for the second time this season, but it was still quite an offensive showing in just a 32-minute game.

Sierra Canyon has had some setbacks this year but is as talented as anyone in high school basketball. The 23-3 squad entered the day ranked No. 2 in the country by MaxPreps, and the team showed maybe even this is too low with a fifth straight win.

The team will try to keep up its hot streak Friday and Saturday in the Metro Classic in New Jersey to close out its regular season.

Sierra Canyon (22-3) added to its long list of victories this season at Brentwood School with a 86-58 victory over its conference rival. 

Ziaire Williams led the way with an impressive triple-double, posting 15 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists in the win. BJ Boston poured in 29 points himself while Zaire Wade tallied two points. The Blazers are now 5-0 in conference play and have won 55 straight league games. 

Sierra Canyon DOMINATED tonight, beating Brentwood 86-58 😈 pic.twitter.com/MKHKovdDdC

— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) February 1, 2020

Wade took flight at the end of the first half with a buzzer-beating dunk to give the Blazers a 50-24 lead at the break. 

Zaire Wade ends the half with a dunk for Sierra Canyon‼️ @SCanyonSports pic.twitter.com/TdHWKTb2IO

— SLAM HS Hoops (@SLAM_HS) February 1, 2020

Not to be outdone, James showed off his passing skills with a perfectly placed lob to Amari Bailey for an alley-oop midway through the first quarter. 

#BronnyJames throws the alley-oop to Amari Bailey
For the 2-hand dunk.
—-#SierraCanyon #Brentwood pic.twitter.com/n5peoUbuMA

— SNGLV Hoops (@SnglvHoops) February 1, 2020

Sierra Canyon is back in action on Tuesday against Paraclete High School. 

BJ Boston had 21 points and Terren Frank added 15 as Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, California) defeated Campbell Hall School (North Hollywood, California) 83-57 in a Gold Coast League high school boys basketball matchup.

Boston scored 12 of his 21 points in the first half to give the Trailblazers a 36-28 halftime edge. Sierra used a 27-point third quarter to propel itself to a 26-point win.

Zaire Wade was the catalyst of Sierra Canyon's 10-0 second-quarter run that turned an 18-all tie into a 28-18 lead, scoring four points and dishing two assists.

Wade, who finished with 10 points, is the son of NBA legend and 13-time All-Star Dwyane Wade.

Freshman guard Bronny James contributed the highlight of a night with a sky-high alley-oop dunk to put Sierra Canyon up 49-33 in the third.

This Bronny alley-oop got LeBron on his feet  pic.twitter.com/WY94MjGaDJ

— ESPN (@espn) January 29, 2020

Among his other highlights of the night, James found Shy Odom for a couple of buckets and had a fourth-quarter steal and dish to Amari Bailey for two.

James is the son of Los Angeles Lakers guard/forward and four-time NBA MVP LeBron James, who was in attendance.

Sierra Canyon and Campbell Hall paid tribute Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and the eight other victims of a helicopter crash on Sunday in Calabasas, California.

LeBron arrives to watch Sierra Canyon's game, where some players opened the game in Kobe shirts.

Both teams took a 24-second violation. pic.twitter.com/L3mdoxNYuy

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 29, 2020

Sierra Canyon wore jerseys and shirts honoring Bryant to begin the game. The game's shot-clock rules were also briefly adjusted so the Trailblazers could take an eight-second backcourt violation and Campbell Hall could take a 24-second shot clock violation in honor of Bryant's No. 8 and No. 24 jersey numbers.

Bryant's daughter, Gianna, also died in the tragic crash that also killed John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli; Sarah and Payton Chester; Christina Mauser; and Ara Zobayan.

The group was en route to a girls' travel basketball game at the Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks, California.

Sierra Canyon, which is ranked No. 14 in ESPN's latest High School Boys' Basketball Top 25 poll, improved to 21-3 on the season. Campbell Hall fell to 11-9.

Sierra Canyon was back in action in Santa Monica, California, on Friday night, earning an 87-61 victory over Crossroads for a second straight victory. 

Kentucky recruit BJ Boston was inactive for the game, though appearances by Zaire Wade and Bronny James were more than enough to have the building packed. The duo helped lead Sierra Canyon to a 26-point win and flashed a bit of the give-and-go style that their fathers LeBron James and Dwyane Wade made routine while playing together in Miami. 

https://twitter.com/VersaceBoyEnt/status/1220939986196783104

Getting another look at Sierra Canyon - matching up against Crossroads. Unfortunately, no Brandon Boston tonight

Ziaire Williams with the pass ahead in transition to Amari Bailey for the dunk pic.twitter.com/XMw9CqvkBL

— Zach Milner (@ZachMilner13) January 25, 2020

It's the 53rd consecutive victory in the Gold Coast League for the Trailblazers, who were led by Amari Bailey (16 points) and Ziaire Williams (15 points) on Friday. 

The Blazers are back in action on Tuesday against Campbell Hall. 

Bronny James' Sierra Canyon defeated Winward 71-68 on Thursday night, led by BJ Boston's 20 points. 

Hard to stop this. Fall away jumper from BJ Boston. Sierra Canyon leads 33-25, 4 to go in the half. pic.twitter.com/QsOlVBRa0w

— Tarek Fattal (@Tarek_Fattal) January 24, 2020

Ziaire Williams added 19 points and Harold Yu chipped in 16 for the winning side, while Devin Tillis put on a show for Winward with 29 points, albeit in a losing effort.

Sierra Canyon gets a tough 3 point win tonight 😈🔥 https://t.co/2c2qAi4ykG

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) January 24, 2020

The win comes on the same day that both Kentucky commit Boston and Williams (undecided) were named to the McDonald's All American Game roster. Williams is the No. 5 overall recruit in the Class of 2020, per 247Sports.com's Composite Rankings, while Boston is No. 15. Both are 5-star prospects.

Up next for Sierra Canyon is a matchup against Crossroads on Friday night at 11 p.m. ET.

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame high school coach Morgan Wootten died Tuesday night at the age of 88.

DeMatha Catholic High School, where Wootten coached for 46 years, shared the news early Wednesday morning on Twitter:

The Wootten Family would like to extend their deepest gratitude for all the prayers and overwhelming support they have received during this time. Arrangements will be forthcoming.

— DeMatha Catholic High School (@DeMathaCatholic) January 22, 2020

During his stint at the Hyattsville, Maryland, school, Wootten accrued a record of 1,274-192 (.869) and led DeMatha to five high school national championships.

Additionally, Wootten led DeMatha to 22 Washington, D.C., titles and 33 Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Championships. The Stags also won at least 20 games in all but one of his seasons at the helm from 1956-2002.

ESPN analyst and former Duke basketball star Jay Bilas was among those who remembered Wootten on social media:

RIP to former DeMatha basketball coach Morgan Wootten. Wootten was a legend that had a profound influence on the game and so many of its great players. A true gentleman, and one of the finest coaches ever, at any level. pic.twitter.com/PwiCBcPHQL

— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) January 22, 2020

Per ESPN.com's Jeff Borzello, one of Wootten's signature victories came in 1965 when DeMatha ended the 71-game winning streak of a Power Memorial Academy team, which featured Lew Alcindor before he went on to star at UCLA, and he became the NBA's all-time leading scorer as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

By virtue of his remarkable resume, Wootten was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000, making him only the third high school coach to receive that honor.

According to Borzello, the Durham, North Carolina, native turned down several college head coaching offers during his career, including Georgetown and NC State, plus overtures from Duke, Wake Forest and Virginia.

Wootten coached several eventual NBA players, including Adrian Dantley and Danny Ferry, and he also coached current Notre Dame head men's basketball coach Mike Brey, which aided in him leaving an indelible mark on the sport.