Cerritos, LASW Men's Hoops Battle For SCC South Title; ELAC Clinches North Crown
In the final week of the South Coast Conference men's basketball season, East Los Angeles College already has clinched at least a tie for the North Division title while Cerritos and Los Angeles Southwest are in a neck-and-neck battle for the South Division championship.
The state #2-ranked Huskies (25-1 overall) are on a 21-game win streak and take a 6-0 mark into tonight's (Feb. 19) game v. Mt. San Antonio. They have picked up a fifth consecutive SCC North title and sixth out of the last seven seasons and can take first place outright with a win in either of its last two games or a LA Trade Tech (5-2) loss v. Pasadena City. ELAC is paced by Kealen Allen, who is averaging 18.6 points and 9.1 rebounds a game.
The No. 12-rated Falcons of Cerritos were once 2-5, but are 16-3 since then and carry a 7-1 division record with two games remaining. A win in either tonight's game v. Compton or v. No. 28 LA Southwest on Friday would clinch Cerritos third straight SCC title and 26th in its conference history dating back to the 1971 championship. LA Southwest (6-2), though, still has a chance to win as Cerritos lost to Compton in those teams' last meeting (94-75) as the Cougars, directed by head coach Calvin Kyles, face last-place El Camino this evening.
If LASW wins and Cerritos loses, the pair play for the outright SCC South title on Friday, Feb. 21 at LA Southwest. The Cougars (15-10 overall) last won the title in 2012. LA Southwest is 8-2 in its last 10 games. Cerritos is led by Jaishon Forte (10.7 points and 7.2 rebounds averages) while LA Southwest gets nearly a double-double a game from Lamar Harris Jr. at 11.5 points and 9.9 rebounds.