SGV/Whittier Prep Sports Zone: Boys Basketball Team Previews: San Marino, Temple City
San Marino appears to be the slight favorite to win the RHL, Temple City figures to be an improve squad for 2023-24.
San Marino’s Jack Fuerst. (Photo: San Marino HS Athletics)
San Marino HS
Coach: Mihail Papadopulos
Asst Coaches: Damien Ortiz, Brandon Garner, Ralph Mohutsky, Ben Cordeiro
PROJECTED GUARDS RETURNING
Adrian Huang 12 6'2 185G 2x RHL first team. OGP Fall Kickoff Tournament MVP
Bobby Reyes 12 6'3 145 PG RHL Second Team as junior. Played for the IME Mexican National Team this off-season.
Jayden Tse 12 5'10 165 G
Casey Chan 11 6'0 165 G
PROJECTED FORWARDS RETURNING
Jack Fuerst 12 6'1 160 F/G
Dean Ryan 12 6'4 165 F/G
PROJECTED CENTERS RETURNING
Mitch Mooney 11 6'3 225 C/PF
TOP NEWCOMERS
Nicholas Chen 10 5'8 135 PG
Coach Papadopoulos’ Comments: We are excited by this years team as we return 8 varsity players with a lot of key experiece. Senior Adrian Huang is a 2 time first team Rio Hondo League player who averaged 17.5 ppg and 8 rpg as a junior and was the MVP of the Fall Kickoff Tournament this fall down at OGP. Senior Bobby Reyes was 2nd team all Rio Hondo as a junior averaging 11 ppg and 4 assists and played for the IME Mexican National Team this off-season. Seniors Jayden Tse and Jack Fuerst are two of the sharpest shooters in the area and junior Casey Chan is perhaps the fastest player with the ball in our program history who makes exciting plays every time he has the ball. We also return junior Mitch Mooney who had a fantastic off-season and brings a physical toughness to the paint along with an improved offensive game.
We love the competitive spirit and diverse skill sets of this group as this is the deepest roster of scorers that we have carried. We also have some newcomers that are we are very excited about. Sophomore Nicholas Chen is an explosive and saavy PG that can defend and create and is as quick as any guard that we have had in our program. Junior Nick Sung and Sophomore Marco Rangel are new to our program and bring an exciting skill set and toughness that has been a wonderful addition to our depth.”
CRYSTAL BALL: Could this be the slight favorite to win the always competitive Rio Hondo League title chase? The answer is most likely. After a bit of a disappointing finish to the 2023 season, you can be sure that the program hit the reset button a little bit and is ready for a big season. If you haven’t seen Adrian Huang play, you should! He is a pleasure to watch. Once he finds his stroke, as the old saying goes, “Forget about it.” Reyes had a interesting offseason, paying for the IME Mexican National Team. He gives “Coach Pop” a great 1-2 punch in the perimeter. And if youre a team that likes to mix it up in the paint, good luck with that as football lineman/basketball low post standout Mitch Mooney will en sure that any points in the paint must be earned. Tse and Fuerst are two more sharp shooters. The Titans will need all the weapons they can have because, La Canada, Blair, South Pasadena and Temple City appear to be sitting on big seasons. However, for now, we’ll make the Titans the early favorite to win the most competitive league in the area - Rio Hondo League.
Temple City HS
Coach: Lyle Takeshita
Asst Coaches: Jason Takeshita, Chris Furukawa, Jarod DeGuzman
PROJECTED GUARDS RETURNING
Cody Lau 12 5'8"
Hayden Hui 11 5'9"
PROJECTED FORWARDS RETURNING
Mason Collins 10 6'1"
TOP NEWCOMERS
Brayden Kwan 10 5'7"
Coach Takeshita’s Comments: “Our strength is the leadership of our point guard, Cody Lau. We are young but working hard to improve. We are hoping that our quickness and speed will be an advantage this season. We only have three returning members from last season. Our size and experience is part of our weakness, but we are looking to improve on last season with the second year of a different system and a renewed youthful energy. “
CRYSTAL BALL: It was a tough year for the Rams last year as they failed to win a game in the Rio Hondo League. Coach Lyle Takeshita knows that years like 2023 will happen, and no one rolls with the punches better than him. Lau and Hui give him the backcourt shooting that he’ll need. The biggest issue is what takes place in the low post. That will be the key to the season. If TC can make the playoffs in 2024 - that would have to be considered a successful season, considering how deep the RHL is this year.