Isaiah Bennett, a senior point guard at AGBU High in Canoga Park, has known his coach, Nareg Kopooshian, for so long that there’s a photo of Bennett with him as a smiling 9-year-old wearing a headband while holding a trophy.
“He knows all my stuff,” Bennett said. “He knows the inside and out. What I’m thinking, what I do.”
It’s no surprise that AGBU is 16-2 with the kind of chemistry between floor leader and mentor on and off the court.
The 5-foot-11 Bennett is averaging 18.9 points, 8.3 assists and 7.7 rebounds. He has attended Armenian schools since he was 4 and can speak, write and read Armenian. Thirteen years of Armenian education has made an impression.
Isaiah Bennett of AGBU has led his team to a 16-2 start.
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“I feel it’s more like a family,” he said of the students he’s met along the way. “I feel like it’s my second home. Good, bad, they’re always going to support me. They always have my back. They’re like my brothers and sisters.”
His mother and father used to play basketball, so he was attracted to the sport. It has become more than a passion. Basketball means everything to him.
It’s almost the same with his coach, so that’s one reason they know each other so well.
“He’s a Steph Curry fan,” Bennett said. “He’s a maniac when it comes to sports. When it’s basketball time, he’s fully focused and locked in. He takes it to another level. He actually told us, say we win and play another game in a couple days, he sets a timer to go off when he can start looking at the next game.”
Kopooshian said of Bennett: “He doesn’t crave or ask for any attention. He’s all about his teammates.”
As a freshman, Bennett was a contributor on AGBU’s 21-1 team and learned plenty from standout player Avand Dorian and the Martirossian brothers, twins Ryan and Michael.
“I was the bench guy,” Bennett said. “I learned about leadership, how to stay focused, how to stay comfortable in big games. It’s OK to have nerves. It’s how mentally I can stay in the game.”
The next season he was part of the same group that remained close on and off the court. Now Bennett is the one setting the example for others.
“He was our backup point guard his sophomore year,” Kopooshian said. “He came into his junior year and was the leader for a young team. We returned everyone this year. All those experiences having two successful years and one learning year helped mold him for this season when we started 12-0.”
Bennett is part of a group of small-school players making a difference this season. At Shalhevet, senior guard Aiden Bitran is averaging 21.9 points and has made 64 threes. At Pilibos, Pepperdine-bound Anto Balian is averaging 31.8 points.
Los Angeles has the largest Armenian population outside of Armenia, so one game to put on everyone’s schedule is Jan. 31 when AGBU plays at Pilibos in a nonleague game.
“I can almost guarantee there will be nowhere to stand at that game,” Kopooshian said. “You’ve got one entrance and everyone will be trying to come through. It will be a fun way to wrap up the season before the playoffs.”