Rally

Seoul shares surged more than 2 percent Tuesday to close at a fresh record high above the 5,900-point mark, driven by strong gains in technology shares. The Korean won fell against the U.S. dollar.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) advanced 123.55 points, or 2.11 percent, to finish at an all-time high of 5,969.64.

The index has extended its upward momentum in recent weeks, surpassing the 5,000-point mark for the first time on Jan. 27 and crossing 5,500 on Feb. 12. It moved above 5,800 on Friday.

Trading volume was heavy at 1.58 billion shares worth 30.73 trillion won (US$21.3 billion), with decliners outnumbering gainers 465 to 407.

Institutions bought a net 2.37 trillion won worth of stocks, offsetting net sales of 199.16 billion won by foreign investors and 2.28 trillion won by retail investors.

The rally came despite overnight losses on Wall Street.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.66 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite declined 1.13 percent.

In Seoul, investors scooped up major chip stocks ahead of an earnings report from U.S. chipmaker Nvidia later this week, while remaining cautious over U.S. President Donald Trump‘s push to impose new tariffs after the Supreme Court struck down his original sweeping duties, analysts said.

Trump signed an executive order Friday (U.S. time) authorizing new 10 percent global tariffs that took effect Tuesday. He has also threatened to raise the rate to 15 percent, though no formal order has been issued.

“Even if the global tariffs are raised to 15 percent, there will be no major impact on the local stock market because current U.S. tariffs on Korean imports already stand at 15 percent,” an analyst at IBK Securities Co. said.

Technology and automobile stocks led the gains.

Market bellwether Samsung Electronics jumped 3.63 percent to 200,000 won, while chip giant SK hynix surged 5.68 percent to a record high of 1,005,000 won.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor rose 0.19 percent to 524,000 won, and leading battery maker LG Energy Solution gained 4.17 percent to 412,500 won.

Among decliners, shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean fell 2.79 percent to 143,100 won, and Lotte Shopping declined 1.67 percent to 111,700 won.

The Korean won was quoted at 1,442.50 won against the U.S. dollar at 3:30 p.m., down 2.5 won from the previous session.

Bond prices, which move inversely to yields, closed lower. The yield on three-year Treasurys rose 0.4 basis point to 3.158 percent, and the return on the benchmark five-year government bonds also climbed 0.5 basis point to 3.410 percent.

Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. It’s championship week in high school basketball with some big-time semifinal matchups Tuesday in the Southern Section playoffs.

Championship week

Brandon McCoy of Sierra Canyon soars for a tomahawk dunk.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

The toughest divisions in high school basketball in the state have their semifinals Tuesday for boys and girls. Get ready for intense, crowd-pleasing matchups.

For boys in the Southern Section Open Division, it’s Sierra Canyon hosting Sherman Oaks Notre Dame and Harvard-Westlake hosting La Mirada.

Both games are rematches, so there will be no surprises for the coaches. Sierra Canyon and Harvard-Westlake won the first meetings, so they deserve the favorite’s role to reach Saturday’s championship game at Ontario Arena. But that doesn’t mean the favorites will win.

Notre Dame has athleticism to play with Sierra Canyon, especially if Zach White is rebounding and NaVorro Bowman is hitting threes. Sierra Canyon, though, is 25-1 and surging with its depth. Harvard-Westlake looked done after losing three of its last four regular season games, but has come on to beat Damien, Santa Margarita and Crespi in the Open Division playoffs.

La Mirada is the surprise team, seeded No. 12 and winning every game on the road. The Matadores eliminated Redondo Union in the quarterfinals behind Gene Roebuck. You have to admire La Mirada. Last season they desperately wanted to be in the Open Division, giving up a chance to be in the state playoffs. Now the Matadores are one win away from playing for a section title.

The girls’ competition should draw even bigger crowds than the boys Tuesday, with the featured matchup Etiwanda hosting Sierra Canyon. The two powerhouses have been preparing for this game all season. Jerzy Robinson of Sierra Canyon will try to make sure Etiwanda doesn’t serve as a roadblock to winning the Open Division or state championship. The other semifinal has top-seeded Ontario Christian hosting Sage Hill. If Etiwanda and Ontario Christian win, they’ll get to play in front of lots of fans Saturday night in Ontario.

Boys basketball

Freshman Phillip Reed was in dominant form for Palisades in the City Section Open Division semifinals.

(Steve Galluzzo)

It comes as no surprise that No. 1-seeded Palisades will play No. 2 Cleveland in Friday’s 8 p.m. City Section Open Division final at L.A. Southwest College. They’ve been the top two teams all season. Palisades is the heavy favorite. Here’s a report from the semifinals.

Jack Levey celebrates a big win in the Dolphins’ return to their home court against Western League rival Fairfax.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

One of the unsung standouts for Palisades is junior guard Jack Levey, who has made 103 threes this season. Here’s a look at his journey to become a three-point specialist.

Sylmar coach Bort Escoto has his team in the City Division II finals. Two of his ex-players at Sylmar, Jeff Bryant and Sam Harris, have their teams in finals. Bryant for Palisades and Harris for Chatsworth in the Division I final.

The Southern Section Division 1 championship game has two surging Orange County schools meeting: JSerra vs. Crean Lutheran.

Division 2 has two surprise finalists in Hesperia taking on Bishop Amat. Hesperia eliminated Mater Dei and Bishop Amat took out defending Open Division and state champion Eastvale Roosevelt.

Here’s the scores from last week’s Southern Section semifinals.

Girls basketball

Etiwanda is ready to take on Sierra Canyon at home on Tuesday night in an Open Division semifinal.

(Nick Koza)

Etiwanda continues to rely on a balanced attack, which should help the Eagles in their showdown semifinal game against Sierra Canyon. Here’s a report from the quarterfinals.

Valencia’s girls basketball team has reached the Southern Section Division 1 semifinals under coach Jared Honig.

(John Duncan)

Valencia has reached the Division 1 final behind coach Jared Honig, who had previous success at Granada Hills. Here’s the report.

In the City Section, top-seeded Westchester and No. 2 Birmingham will play Saturday night at Pasadena City College in the Open Division final. Westchester has the top player in the City in Savannah Myles. Birmingham has used a young team to get better and better.

Baseball

The approaching storm from last week caused South Hills to come up with the novel idea of playing its season opener against Covina early Monday morning before rain came. So the teams began at 12:40 a.m. and finished at 3:34 a.m. in a new way to pull off Midnight Madness. Here’s the report.

Harvard-Westlake unveiled freshman Louis Lappe of El Segundo Little League fame. Here’s the report.

With darkness coming, Huntington Beach took a 7-5 lead over Loyola in the top of the ninth inning. Coach Benji Medure confirmed that he tried to have his players on base get into a triple play to end the inning immediately to try to win the game before the umpires called the game. Two players were tagged out at home plate, but the home-plate umpire stopped everything before a third runner one could be tagged out. It ended up as a 5-5 tie because of darkness.

The first runner tagged out at home was Jared Grindlinger, who responded to Medure’s instructions to get tagged out by saying, “What?” The creativity wasn’t approved by the umpires.

No. 1 St. John Bosco and No. 2 Orange Lutheran begin their seasons this week.

Here’s a look at The Times’ top 25 baseball rankings after the opening week of the season.

Softball

Norco pitcher Coral Williams was the Southern Section Division 1 player of the year last season.

(Steve Galluzzo)

If you want to win a softball championship, you have to beat Norco and its top pitcher, Coral Williams, a UCLA commit.

Here’s a preview of the season ahead.

Volleyball

Mike Boehle is entering his 28th season as volleyball coach at Loyola.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

The boys volleyball season has begun, and Loyola figures to be one of the title contenders in Division 1 after a rough season last year in which players lost homes to the Palisades fire, their coach had prostate cancer and a classmate was tragically killed.

Here’s a look at how the Cubs intend to come back this season.

Soccer

It’s championship week in high school soccer. Once again, the top two boys teams in the City Section all season face off. El Camino Real will take on South East. Both teams won their semifinal games by scores of 1-0.

In girls, No. 1 Cleveland will face No. 7 Granada Hills in a rematch from their West Valley League battles.

Trinity League rivals Orange Lutheran and Mater Dei have advanced to Saturday’s Southern Section Open Division boys final after beating Placentia Valencia and JSerra, respectively.

The girls final will have Santa Margarita taking on Mater Dei in another Trinity League rematch.

Wrestling

The state wrestling championships are set for Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Dignity Health Arena in Bakersfield.

The Southern Section held its Masters Meet last weekend, and here’s the results of players headed to Bakersfield.

Notes . . .

Oaks Christian won its second consecutive Southern Section Open Division girls’ water polo championship with an 11-8 victory over Mater Dei. . . .

Senior Jaslene Massey of Aliso Niguel, one of the top girls discus and shotputters in the nation, began her outdoor season with a discus mark of 179-6 to set an Orange County record. . . .

Aaron Riekenberg has resigned after nine years as boys basketball coach at La Habra. . . .

Junior defensive lineman Isaia Vandermade from Division 1 champion Santa Margarita has committed to USC, where his father, Lenny, was a lineman. . . .

Pat Harlow, a former head football coach at JSerra, is returning to serve as an assistant coach under new coach Hardy Nickerson. Harlow is well known for his ability to coach the offensive line. This is the second time he’s come out of retirement. “I really believe in the school,” he said. Also added to the staff is former Servite, Notre Dame and NFL quarterback Steve Beuerlein. . .

Former Gardena Serra and USC star Robert Woods has retired from football. . . .

Former Garfield football coach Lorenzo Hernandez has come out of retirement to become football coach at Whittier. Here’s the report. . . .

Former St. Margaret’s and Long Beach Poly coach Stephen Barbee is the new football coach at Irvine Northwood. . . .

Standout pitcher Jared Grindlinger of Huntington Beach has reclassified from junior to class of 2026, making him eligible for this year’s amateur draft. Here’s the report . . .

Chad Rolison from Oaks Christian baseball has committed to Loyola Marymount. . . .

Twins James and Miles Clark from St. John Bosco baseball have committed to Duke. . . .

For the fifth straight year, NFL receiver Trenton Irwin is holding a camp on March 8 at his alma mater, Hart, for grades four through eight. . . . .

Quentin Hale, a junior receiver who transferred from Cathedral to Corona Centennial, has committed to USC. . . .

Patrick Goodpaster is the new football coach at Narbonne. He’s a Narbonne grad, member of the Gardena Police Department and former football player at Colorado State. He’s been a youth football coach in the area. . . .

From the archives: Russell White

Former Crespi, Cal and Rams running back Russell White, who led Crespi to the 1986 Division 1 football championship.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Russell White was one of the greatest running backs in Southern California history, leading Crespi to the 1986 Big Five Conference championship as a sophomore when the Celts routed St. John Bosco in the final.

He’d go on to star at Cal and get drafted by the Rams. He has been at Flintridge Prep the last 10 years coaching eight-man football but is stepping down to perhaps coach 11-man football. His son, Zach, is a standout basketball player at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.

Here’s a story from 2008 when he was coaching in Northern California

Here’s a story from 1993 detailing White’s emotion obtaining his college degree.

Recommendations

From USA Today, a story on South Carolina legislators moving to replace its high school athletic association over transfers and other disagreements.

From CBS, a story on a Florida proposal to allow high school coaches to spend up to $15,000 on player needs known as the Teddy Bridgewater Act.

From KTLA, a story on how AI cameras are helping youth sports parents capture videos.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on the controversy surrounding trans high school athletes in California.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

For just the 11th time in 55 games this season, the Lakers had Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves sharing the court together.

They are the core of the Lakers, the engines that make this team go, but health issues have prevented them from playing together for far too much of the 2025-26 campaign.

During their first game since the NBA All-Star break, Doncic, Reaves and James carried the the Lakers to a 125-122 win over the Clippers Friday night at Crypto.com Arena.

Doncic had 38 points, 11 assists and six rebounds.

Lakers guard Austin Reaves celebrates after Clippers guard Bennedict Mathurin (9) was called for an offensive foul Friday at Crypto.com Arena.

(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

Reaves had 29 points, six assists and made a big defensive play late in the game.

And James had 13 points and 11 assists, his fifth straight game with 10 or more assists.

Up 118-115 with 1:49 left, Reaves took drew a charge on Bennedict Mathurin, the Clipper’s sixth foul that sent him to the bench with 26 points.

Still, the Lakers didn’t escape until Doncic made two free throws with 21.2 seconds left to give the Lakers a five-point lead that barely stood.

With a 125-122 lead and the ball, James threw a dangerous cross-court pass intended for Doncic that Nicolas Batum instead stole.

But Batum missed a potential game-tying three-pointer and James got the rebound to secure the win.

The Lakers put two defenders on Kawhi Leonard, double teaming the Clippers’ best offensive weapon, keeping a crowd of defenders around him, especially when they employed their zone defense.

Leonard was giving it to the Lakers, but he left late in the fourth quarter with left ankle soreness, departing with 31 points on 11-for-19 shooting.

Lakers coach JJ Redick said pre-game that Leonard is back to being a force on both sides of the basketball.

That’s why so much of the Lakers’ gameplan centered around trying to slow down Leonard, who is eighth in the NBA in scoring (27.8) and tied for first in steals (2.0).

“He’s more consistently taking the tougher assignments right now, and he’s back to being just an elite two-way player on both ends of the floor,” Redick said. “And you know, he’s playing as well as anybody in the NBA right now for the last two months, whatever the starting point would be, but it really is on both sides of the ball.”

Leonard is a primary reason why the Clippers are still rolling despite having traded away two key pieces in guard James Harden and center Ivicia Zubac.

The Clippers started the season 6-21, looking nothing like a playoff team.

But then they beat the Lakers on Dec. 20 and that got the Clippers rolling to a 21-7 stretch entering Friday night’s game, a two-month period that saw them get to one game under .500.

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said none of the Clippers ever gave up on the season, adding they were always “playing to win” no matter whether they had “young, old, toddlers” on the court.

“I just feel confident,” Lue said. “I just feel confident in our players, confident in our coaching staff and I just feel confident in the environment and the culture that we’ve set. Why wouldn’t we want to play to win? That’s our mindset. That’s my mindset every single night. As tough as it may be or you start 6-21 whatever it may be, you’re playing to win. So, we make it to the playoffs and anything can happen. So our goal is to make it to the playoffs. I don’t know why somebody would scoff at that.”

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. The high school baseball season begins this week, and it’s the sport that produces the most future pro athletes in Southern California. While everyone thinks they are a scout and thousands of dollars are spent on private coaches, travel ball and showcases seeking any kind of edge, the bottom line is whether a player can produce results against quality competition. And throwing 90 mph without throwing strikes means nothing to the programs that win.

Baseball begins

St. John Bosco High teammates celebrate with a dogpile on the field after winning the regional baseball title last season.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Baseball is the sport in Southern California where you think the best team can win a championship but doesn’t because there’s always another team with equally good pitching Corona was the certain team last season to win it all (just like the Dodgers), but St. John Bosco beat the Panthers in the playoff semifinals and won the Southern Section Division 1 championship.

Now St. John Bosco is the Corona of 2026: Everyone’s No. 1 team to start the season because of numerous returnees, including the Clark twins, James and Miles; closer Jack Champlin; top hitters Jaden Jackson and Noah Everly; plus the addition of a healthy pitcher, Julian Garcia, who was supposed to be the No. 1 thrower last season until an injury.

Just like Corona, however, St. John Bosco is no sure thing because there’s lots of teams with the kind of standout pitching to beat the Braves in a one-game playoff situation.

The Mission League alone has so many pitchers throwing 90 mph and above that if you don’t have a radar gun at a game, you look out of place. Harvard-Westlake, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Sierra Canyon and Loyola all have formidable pitchers capable of winning big games against top opponents.

St. John Bosco faces immediate challengers in the Trinity League, led by Orange Lutheran, which has another team filled with all-star players, including 6-foot-8 pitcher Gary Morse and Huntington Beach infielder transfer CJ Weinstein. Texas commit Brady Murrietta will be a four-year standout. The Lancers can tell anyone that being ranked No. 1 hardly guarantees success in the postseason. They haven’t been able to win a section title despite lots of great teams.

Royal has a group of pitchers with big arms ready to see where they stand. Who’s going to inflict a loss on Huntington Beach junior Jared Grindlinger? Striker Pence of Corona Santiago has been clocked throwing 101 mph.

Cypress, El Dorado, JSerra, Santa Margarita, Mater Dei, Aquinas, La Mirada, Arcadia, Norco, Gahr and Huntington Beach have no fear of taking on the big boys this season.

As far as pro prospects, outfielder Blake Bowen of JSerra, outfielder Anthony Murphy of Corona, infielder Trey Ebel of Corona and infielder Brody Schumacher of Santa Margarita are among the top players to watch.

And prepare for one of the most talented group of players from the class of 2029, led by the hero of the El Segundo Little League World Series team, Louis Lappe, who makes his freshman debut for Harvard-Westlake.

Here’s a profile of Lappe and two of his fellow class of 2029 teammates.

Here’s a preseason all-star team.

Here’s the preseason top 25 rankings by The Times.

Boys basketball

OJ Popoola of Palisades has made major contributions after transferring with his twin brother from Detroit.

(Nick Koza)

The City Section Open Division semifinals are set for Saturday at L.A. Southwest College. Palisades will face San Pedro at 6 p.m. and Cleveland will take on Fairfax at 4 p.m.

Fairfax upset No. 3-seeded Birmingham. San Pedro eliminated Coliseum League champion Washington Prep. San Pedro has the kind of veteran team that might be able to stay with the top-seeded Dolphins for a little bit if its zone is working.

The top seeds are mostly holding in Division I. The semifinals will have No. 3 Venice at No. 2 Chatsworth and No. 5 L.A. Jordan at No. 1 Granada Hills.

In Division II, No. 10-seeded Marquez is making noise behind football standout Elyjah Staples, upsetting No. 2 Eagle Rock 57-50. Marquez will be at Sylmar in the semifinals. King/Drew coach Lloyd Webster has his team in semifinals after a 52-50 win over Downtown Magnets. He also was smiling because his son, Josahn, scored 22 points for Rolling Hills Prep in its win over Orange Lutheran in Southern Section Division 1.

La Mirada got a breakthrough win in the Southern Section Open Division. Here’s the report. On Tuesday, Corona Centennial is playing at Redondo Union to determine No. 1 in its pool and ditto for Harvard-Westlake at Santa Margarita.

Blair upset top-seeded Bonita in Division 4. Blair is coached by Derrick Taylor, who’s won championships at Taft and St. John Bosco. Here’s the report.

Mater Dei and JSerra continue to dominate in Division 2 and Division 1, respectively. JSerra will face a challenge in the quarterfinals on Tuesday from Rolling Hills Prep at North Torrance. Rolling Hills Prep inflicted a loss to Orange Lutheran last week.

Girls basketball

One of the best coaching jobs this season has been turned in by Birmingham’s Victor Koopongsakorn. The Patriots are 27-3 and seeded No. 2 in the City Section Open Division despite being a young team with few returnees. Next up is a semifinal game against Hamilton on Saturday. The other semifinal has top-seeded Westchester facing Venice. Three of the four remaining teams are from the Western League.

In the Southern Section Open Division, there’s no sign any opponent is going to threaten Ontario Christian, Etiwanda or Sierra Canyon among the 12 teams in pool play. All three are preparing to inevitable meetings in the next two weeks.

Oak Park came through with a 67-44 win over Corona Centennial to make itself the likely No. 4 team to challenge the big three. Karisma Flores had 17 points and Ava Rogerson 15.

Two veteran coaches, Charlie Solomon of Brentwood and Kevin Kiernan of Troy, faceed with their teams on Saturday in Division 1. Troy won 61-48. Kiernan is the winningest coach in California history. He came out of retirement to return for a second stint at Troy. Mei-Ling Perry had 19 points and nine rebounds to advance Troy to the quarterfinals. Kelsey Sugar had 20 points for Brentwood.

Softball

Garden Grove Pacifica continues to take pride in all of its former players playing college softball. The list is at 16 for this season. As they say, “Once a Mariner, always a Mariner.”

Norco, the defending Southern Section Division 1 champions, is expected to be the preseason No. 1 with the return of pitcher Coral Williams. The Cougars open the season Tuesday at home against Aquinas.

Defending City Open Division champion Granada Hills has to find a pitching replacement for Addison Moorman, but has lots of hitters, including Zoe Justman, who batted .442, and Elysse Diaz, who hit .470. The Highlanders will try once again to prepare for City competition by playing Southern Section teams in nonleague and tournament games.

Wrestling

Birmingham’s Henry Aslikyan, seen here last year, became a four-time City Section champion on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Henry Aslikyan of Birmingham capped off a remarkable four-year run in City Section wrestling by winning his fourth City individual title. This time it was at 120 pounds, sending him on to the state championships. He has won two state titles but the 120-pound division will be the toughest in state with three returning state champions competing.

Here’s the link to complete City results.

Here’s the link to Southern Section results.

Soccer

El Camino Real, South East, Marquez and Palisades are the four teams that have made it to the City Section Open Division boys soccer semifinals. On Thursday, top-seeded El Camino Real will host Palisades and No. 2 South East will host Marquez.

On Wednesday in City Open Division girls semifinals, No. 1 Cleveland plays host to Palisades and Thursday, No. 6 New West Charter hosts Granada Hills.

In Southern Section Open Division boys, the quarterfinals begin Tuesday with Orange Lutheran hosting Placentia Valencia and JSerra hosting Mater Dei. In Division 1, Servite is the fourth Trinity League still alive and plays host to Santa Monica.

In Southern Section Open Division girls, Santa Margarita, Oaks Christian, Mater Dei and Redondo Union have advanced.

In Southern Section Division 1 girls, Mission League rivals Harvard-Westlake and Sherman Oaks Notre Dame will face off in Wednesday’s quarterfinals at Harvard-Westlake.

Competitive equity playoffs

The CIF governs high school sports in California.

(CIF)

There’s still coaches unhappy with the Southern Section competitive equity playoff system using computer algorithms to place teams in divisions.

The Southern Section says no system is perfect, but it’s clear the system used for basketball is flawed. How in the name of sanity (just go ask coaches) was Mater Dei placed in Division 2? They were in Division 1 all season until taking a free fall from Jan. 27 until the time the next rankings were released during seeding announcements. They happened to need an at-large berth to qualify for the playoffs and wouldn’t have earned one in Division 1, causing conspiracy theories. I don’t believe there was a conspiracy, just that the computer system got it badly wrong. Mater Dei has won its first two Division 2 playoff games by scores of 83-63 and 85-59. And look for more to come because they are a Division 1 team.

Here’s a look at the concerns.

Notes . . .

St. John Bosco has already won the transfer portal in high school football with the announcement that standout sophomore offensive tackle Elisha Mueller of Servite has arrived at the Bellflower school. Leuzinger sophomore quarterback Russell Sekona has transferred to Mater Dei. Leuzinger sophomore defensive back Pakipole Moala has transferred to Santa Margarita. Here’s the transfer portal list. . . .

Russell White has stepped down after 10 years coaching eight-man football at Flintridge Prep. He’d like to try 11-man football. White led Crespi to a Division 1 football title in 1986 playing running back and went on to star at Cal before being drafted by the Rams. . . .

Rick Garretson is the new football coach at Servite. He’s a 1974 graduate of Servite, was once a long-serving assistant coach and served as head coach at Chandler in Arizona from 2019-2024. Here’s the report.

Kicker Jacob Kreinbring of Loyola has committed to Stonybrook. . . .

Football coach James Stewart of La Quinta has resigned. Lucas Alexander will be the new coach. . . .

Randy Luna is the new football coach at Canoga Park. . . .

Fred Gambrell has resigned after two years as head football coach at Sunny Hills. . . .

Junior receiver Eli Woodard of Chaparral has committed to USC. . . .

Golfer Charlie Woods, the teenage son of Tiger Woods, has committed to Florida State as part of the class of 2027. . . .

Two top high school baseball tournaments for this spring have been finalized. The Boras Classic will begin April 7 at Mater Dei and JSerra. The National Classic also will be held in Orange County starting March. 30. Here’s the link.

St. John Bosco twins Ethan and Justin Coach, standout linebackers, have committed to Washington. . . .

Henry Polanco is the new girls flag football coach at Schurr. . . .

Kiyoshi Harris is the new football coach at JW North. . . .

Benjamin Siff, an assistant baseball coach at St. Margaret’s since 2016, has been named the head coach effective at the end of the 2026 season. Long-time coach Scott Wallis is leaving out of Orange County at the end of this season. . . .

Richard Masson has announced his retirement from coaching basketball. What a journey he’s had coaching boys and girls after winning more than 700 games. He was boys coach at L.A. Jordan for seven years, Carson boys coach for 22 years, Rolling Hills Prep girls coach for seven years, Carson girls coach for four years. He’s won championships and coached lots of great players. “Blessed to have had great players, assistant coaches and support system,” he said.

From the archives: LaMelo Ball

Chino Hills guard LaMelo Ball pulls up for a shot over Mater Dei’s Michael Wang and Matthew Weyand (21) in 2017.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

It’s been nine years since LaMelo Ball scored 92 points as a 15-year-old sophomore for Chino Hills in a 146-123 win over Los Osos in February of 2017, so why not look back.

The big debate was whether it was an accomplishment that should be celebrated or criticized.

“As a coach, if I see a player doing well, who am I to stop his shine?” Stephan Gilling, Chino Hills’ first-year coach, said in 2017.

“About the third quarter, my dad said, ‘Keep shooting,’” LaMelo said during a radio interview on KLAC-AM (570). “If I knew I was going to score that much, I would have shot more in the first half.”

Here’s a story looking back at that game.

Recommendations

From the Seattle Times, a story on former NBA guard Jamal Crawford coaching his son in high school.

From the Tennessee Bar Assn., a story on how the state is moving to loosening transfer rules with one free sports transfer.

From the Pleasantonweekly, a story from last December from a high school sportswriter detailing his frustration with the transfer issues in California high school sports.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on how Brentwood School’s athletic facilities are facing a challenge from the Veterans Administration.

Fram Angelusnews, a story on the turnaround at St. Bernard.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

Gogglebox returned for another instalment but one cast member was nowhere to be seen

A beloved Gogglebox star was nowhere to be seen during the latest instalment and their family quickly explained why.

The long-running Channel 4 show returned to screens on Friday evening (February 13) for another episode. Back sharing their thoughts on the latest bits of telly were favourites like Pete and Sophie Sandiford and Ellie and Izzi Warner.

The Plummer brothers, Tremaine, Twaine, and Tristan, – who joined the programme in 2016 – returned too. But instead of the three of them, it was just Tremaine and Tristan sitting on the sofa.

On Instagram before the episode aired, the brothers explained why Twaine was missing. In the clip, they said: “It’s just the two T’s today as Twaine left us to go on holiday. So we’ve got a new member of the team now,” before picking up their adorable dog.

The post was captioned: “Meet the new member of the team… @trissy101 @trem_vi Brand new #Gogglebox tonight at 9pm on @channel4.”

Fans quickly flooded the comments section with support, and even Twaine replied and said: “Wish I was there,” along with sad face emojis. Someone else wrote: “Enjoy the holiday you are missed tonight.”

Another fan commented: “Happy Friday looking forward to watching you tonight. Hope he’s gone somewhere that’s sunny and dry.” A third follower declared: “He’s another good-looking Plummer I’m glad you’re back with us we don’t see enough of you guys.”

The Plummer brothers made their Gogglebox debut 10 years ago – and it didn’t take them long to become firm favourites with viewers.

Over the years, the brothers – who live in Bristol – have had fans in stitches thanks to their witty banter and one-liners and comical takes on the telly highlights.

Away from the TV show though, Tremaine – who is the eldest of the three siblings – presents a breakfast radio show on Bristol’s Ujima FM. Tristan has enjoyed a professional footballing career from 2007 too as well as other brother Twaine.

**For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new ** Everything Gossip ** website**

Meanwhile Gogglebox welcomed several new faces to its cast last year, like Jake and Calum from Glasgow and the Gordon family from Surrey.

Other new stars included the likes of married couple Andrew and Alfie from the Cotswolds and mother-and-daughter-in-law team Sara and Lara from Yorkshire.

Gogglebox airs every Friday at 9pm on Channel 4.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. Playoff pairings have been announced for high school basketball. There’s only one unbeaten team left and what an intriguing story.

Unbeaten Elsinore stands alone

There’s only one unbeaten team in the Southern Section basketball playoffs. And what an intriguing story regarding 28-0 Elsinore.

Back in 1974, when Elsinore when 27-0 until losing at the L.A. Sports Arena in the Division 1-A final, Peter Rettinger rode to the game as a middle school student on the rooter bus and Rick Wolter played in the game as a sophomore.

They’ve been co-head coaches at Elsinore for 32 years. This season, they have a top junior guard in Kamrynn Nathan, averaging 25.2 points. “He’s fun to watch because he’s really creative,” Rettinger said.

Elsinore won the Mountain Pass League and has wins over Chino Hills, Murrieta Valley and Murrieta Mesa. Elsinore was placed in the Division 2 playoffs and opens at home Wednesday against Sonora.

Much has changed since Rettinger was a student at Elsinore, which used to be the only high school in the “Valley” from Corona to Temecula. Now there’s two new high schools in Elsinore, three in Temecula and three in Murrieta.

Wolter retired from teaching and Rettinger is still teaching.

“We’ve always had a positive experience,” Rettinger said. “The parents realized we are the product of the valley and tried to do the best we can with whatever we team have.”

They’re a true neighborhood team supported by loyal neighborhood families.

Boys basketball

The Southern Section playoff pairings released Saturday includes Sierra Canyon as the No. 1 seed for the Open Division. There are 12 teams and four divisions for pool play. Here’s a look.

Here are the Southern Section pairings.

Kaiden Bailey of Santa Margarita had zero points against St. John Bosco but contributed eight assists.

(Dylan Stewart / 1550 Sports)

The McDonald’s All-America Game revealed its rosters for the boys and girls games. Here’s the report.

Santa Margarita won the first Trinity League tournament with a 57-56 win over St. John Bosco. Here’s the report.

St. Bernard won the Del Rey League title behind junior guard Brandon Granger. Here’s the report.

Thousand Oaks’ Dylan McCord has had a great senior year shooting threes. He had 43 points and 10 threes in a win over Newbury Park. Here’s a report.

Palisades won its first Western League title in 30 years and gained the No. 1 seed for the City Section Open Division playoffs. Here’s the City playoff seedings.

Sun Valley Poly coach Joe Wyatt guided his team to a 12-0 record in the East Valley League and 28 consecutive league wins. Here’s the report.

The Times’ final regular season top 25 basketball rankings.

Girls basketball

Sophomore forward Kiara Wakabi helped Birmingham win its 32nd West League game in a row.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Birmingham won the West Valley League title in a close game over Granada Hills and is seeded No. 2 for the City Section Open Division playoffs behind Westchester. Here’s a look at the Patriots’ win over Granada Hills.

Andrea Antonio, a freshman at Hamilton, scored 54 points in her team’s 85-83 overtime win over Palisades.

The Southern Section Open Division pairings were released, and the top three seeds are Ontario Christian, Etiwanda and Sierra Canyon.

Bow ties for Reggie

Reggie Morris Jr., in 2013. He has a collection of bow ties he brings out for the playoffs.

(Nick Koza)

It’s time to break out the bow ties for Reggie Morris Jr., the head basketball coach at Redondo Union. He has won Southern Section titles coaching at Redondo, Leuzinger and St. Bernard. He won a City title at Fairfax.

Here’s what Morris has to say about preparing to challenge Sierra Canyon and others in the Open Division playoffs.

Super Bowl connections

Patriots special teams player Brenden Schooler during his high school days at Mission Viejo.

(Los Angeles Times)

Southern California was well represented in Sunday’s Super Bowl, with former local high school players on the rosters of the Seahawks and Patriots.

Here’s a look at the path those players took and why they made it, according to their high school coaches.

During Super Bowl week, the two NFL rookies of the year announced were from Southern California. Receiver Tetairoa McMillan from Servite and the Carolina Panthers and linebacker Carson Schwesinger from Oaks Christian, UCLA and the Cleveland Browns.

Wrestling

The City Section boys and girls wrestling championships will be held Saturday night at Roybal. Admission is $12. There’s a $5 parking charge.

The Southern Section individual championships will have six divisional finals Friday and Saturday at Westminster, Fountain Valley, Canyon Springs, Great Oak, Moorpark and Glenn. It will help determine qualifiers for the Masters Meet at Sonora on Feb. 20. Admission is $14.

Redondo Union won its first Southern Section Division 6 boys wrestling championship. El Modena won Division 5. Corona took Division 4. South Torrance took Division 3. Temecula Valley won Division 2. St. John Bosco won Division 1.

Santa Ana won the Diviison 1 girls title. Chaparral won Division 2. Oxnard Pacifica took Division 3. Sonora won Division 4.

Soccer

Palos Verdes is seeded No. 1 for the Open Division boys competition. Mater Dei is seeded No. 2.

Here’s the boys pairings.

Santa Margarita is seeded No. 1 in Open Division girls.

Here’s the Southern Section girls pairings.

The City Section playoff pairings will be announced Monday.

Notes . . .

Orange Lutheran coach Rod Sherman.

(Nick Koza)

There will be three new head football coaches in the Trinity League this fall after Orange Lutheran announced that Rod Sherman was no longer the football coach and Chris Reinert resigned at Servite. JSerra hired Hardy Nickerson as its new coach. Here’s the report on Sherman’s departure. Here’s the report on Reinert’s departure and the many changes happening in the nation’s toughest football league. . . .

The National Federation of State High School Assn. football rules committee has clarified and strengthened a rule that prohibits slapping the head of any player on offense or defense. Here are the rule changes for 2026. . . .

Noah Thayer, who was one of the best kickers in the Southland until suffering an injury at JSerra, has committed to Cal Poly. . . .

Junior receiver Michael Farinas of Chaparral has committed to UCLA. . . .

Junior linebacker Mike Davis Jr. of Mater Dei has committed to UCLA. . . .

Jaslene Massey of Aliso Niguel had the seventh-best girls shot put effort in state history at the winter championships at Arcadia High with a mark of 52-10 1/4,

Junior receiver Tycen Johnson of Chaparral has committed to Arizona State. . . .

Sophomore all-league linebacker Allen Kennett V has transferred from Servite to Santa Margarita. . . .

Spud O’Neil, the baseball coach at Lakewood since 1984, has announced 2026 will be his final season. He has 970 victories over 52 seasons that includes stints at St. Anthony and Colton. . . .

The Coliseum League is getting a change for football in the fall. Moving out are Dymally and Fremont, which will be switching to the Metro and Exposition leagues. Moving in is Marquez, which will join Crenshaw, Dorsey, King/Drew and Washington Prep. . . .

Lorenzo Hernandez, who was football coach at Garfield from 1999 through 2024, is the leading candidate to become head coach at Whittier, which has Garfield’s former principal. Hernandez served as athletic director at Garfield since the fall. He’d be taking over a program that is headed to a new league if they select him. . . .

Eddie Ficklin has resigned as football coach at Cantwell Sacred-Heart. . . .

Matt Casey is the new football coach at Arlington. . . .

Eric Carnohan is the new director of aquatics at Servite. . . .

Chace Holley from Bay League champion Redondo Union has committed to Pepperdine.

From the archives: Robert Garcia

Former San Fernando football coach Robert Garcia is now an assistant coach at Bishop Alemany.

(Robert Garcia)

Former San Fernando football coach Robert Garcia has joined Dennis Keyes’ staff as an assistant coach at Bishop Alemany.

He was head coach at San Fernando from 2011 until the summer of 2021, winning two City Section Division II titles and a Division I title. He left to run a family restaurant business. He has helped coach with Keyes before since both have sons playing youth football.

Here’s a 2012 interview after winning a City title.

Here’s a story from 2018 when the Rams recognized San Fernando.

Recommendations

From the Daily Breeze, a story on new Bishop Montgomery coach Oscar McBride.

From The562.org, a story on Lakewood baseball coach Spud O’Neil announcing this will be his final season after 52 years coaching baseball.

From the Oklahoman, a story on the governor supporting open transfers in high school sports.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

Did you get this newsletter forwarded to you? To sign up and get it in your inbox, click here.

Police in the Australian city of Sydney have used pepper spray against pro-Palestine protesters who have rallied against a visit by Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

A journalist with the AFP news agency witnessed police arresting at least 15 demonstrators during the confrontation on Monday. Media members covering the event were also affected by pepper spray.

Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Sydney’s business district with more protests planned across the country on Monday night.

In Melbourne’s city centre, simultaneous protests took place with participants demanding an end to Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory. About 5,000 protesters gathered outside downtown Flinders Street Railway Station before marching several blocks to the State Library, blocking evening peak-hour traffic, according to police.

The protests continued despite Palestine Action Group organisers losing a court challenge of a police order barring them from marching from the Town Hall in Sydney to the New South Wales Parliament.

A 20-year-old woman was arrested after allegedly burning two flags and causing fire damage to a tram stop. Police released her but said she was expected to face wilful damage charges.

Activists said Herzog, whom a United Nations commission of inquiry has found to be responsible for inciting genocide against Palestinians, should not be immune to protests.

“President Herzog has unleashed immense suffering on Palestinians in Gaza for over two years – brazenly and with total impunity,” Amnesty International’s Australia chapter said. “Welcoming President Herzog as an official guest undermines Australia’s commitment to accountability and justice. We cannot remain silent.”

Herzog characterised the protests as mostly attempts to “undermine and delegitimise” Israel’s right to exist.

Earlier, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had called for respectful behaviour during Herzog’s visit, noting he would join the president to meet families of the victims of the December Bondi Beach mass shooting.

New South Wales authorities implemented recently expanded police powers under new protest management legislation. Protesters’ legal challenge to these measures was rejected by the state’s Supreme Court shortly before the demonstrations began.

Herzog had earlier laid a wreath in the rain at Bondi Pavilion to honour victims of the attack that killed 15 people during a Hanukkah celebration.

The Israeli president began his four-day Australian visit there. He also met with survivors and victims’ families.

“This was also an attack ‌on all Australians,” Herzog said at the site. “They attacked the values that our democracies treasure, the sanctity of human life, the freedom of religion, tolerance, dignity and respect.”

“I’m here to express solidarity, friendship and love,” he added.

SAN FRANCISCO — As California struggles with homelessness and healthcare cuts, some activists are taking on an unexpected cause: fighting for billionaires.

About a dozen people took part in the “March for Billionaires” on Saturday morning in San Francisco to raise awareness about the plight of the ultrarich. Although some assumed the event was satire, organizer Derik Kauffman said it was a sincere protest against a potential new tax on the state’s wealthiest residents.

“We must not judge billionaires as a class but by their individual merits,” he said, speaking outside the San Francisco Civic Center. “There are good billionaires and bad billionaires, just like there are good people and bad people. California is extraordinarily lucky that this is where people come to start companies and build fortunes and we should do our best to keep it that way.”

The Billionaire Tax Act is a proposed state ballot initiative that would levy a one-time, 5% tax on the state’s billionaires to help offset recent federal cuts that have affected healthcare and food-assistance programs. The tax would apply to their overall net worth but would exclude pensions, real estate and retirement accounts.

Supporters say it would benefit the majority of the state’s residents and help ensure billionaires pay their fair share. Opponents — including Gov. Gavin Newsom — argue it will cause billionaires and the businesses they own to flee the state, taking jobs and tax dollars with them.

Kauffman echoed those concerns Saturday and said everyone should want billionaires to remain in California.

“This tax will drive billionaires out; it already has,” he said. “The founders of Google — they left the state and they are taking their money with them.”

Google is still headquartered in California, but other companies tied to Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin recently lef the state, including T-Rex Holdings, which moved from Palo Alto to Reno last year.

San Francisco Jan. 7, 2026 Two counter-protesters mockingly impersonated billionaires by playing characters they dubbed “Oli Garch” and “Trilly O’Naire.”

(Katie King / Los Angeles Times)

The event attracted a few dozen humorous counterprotesters.

Razelle Swimmer carried around a puppet of the Swedish Chef from the Muppets, brandishing knives and wearing an apron that said “Eat the Rich.” Swimmer told The Times she doesn’t believe billionaires need more protections.

“If they aren’t willing to pay more taxes, then I don’t really care if they leave,” she said.

Other counterprotesters mockingly impersonated billionaires by donning crowns or top hats. A man and woman, playing characters called Oli Garch and Trilly O’Naire, said they worried what would happen if the tax passed.

“There is a small chance that my helicopter won’t be able to have a sauna in it just because apparently some kids want dental work or something,” said the woman, as she adjusted her tiara.

At one point, a man wearing a gold crown and carrying a sign that said “Let them eat cake” ran through the crowd shouting, “Keep the poors away from me.”

The Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, the main backer of the tax proposal, needs to collect about 875,000 signatures by June 24 in order to get the measure on the November ballot.

The Legislative Analyst’s Office, which offers guidance to the Legislature about budgetary issues, has cautioned that the tax might lead to only short-term benefits.

“It is likely that some billionaires decide to leave California,” the agency stated in a recent analysis. “The income taxes they currently pay to the state would go away with their departure. The reduction in state revenues from these kinds of responses could be hundreds of millions of dollars or more per year.”

California has roughly 200 billionaires, the most of any state. Their collective wealth was $2.2 trillion in October, up from $300 billion in 2011, according to a December report from law and economics professors at UC Berkeley, UC Davis and the University of Missouri.

The researchers concluded that billionaires in the United States pay less in taxes, relative to income, than the average American.

“It is estimated that, including all taxes at all levels of government, billionaires paid only 24% of their true economic income in taxes in years 2018-20 while the U.S.-wide average was 30%,” the report states.

Caracas, February 4, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – Chavista supporters filled the streets of Caracas on Tuesday to demand the release of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady and Deputy Cilia Flores.

The rally marked one month from their kidnapping on January 3 as part of a US military attack against Venezuela.

“We, as an organized people, are making a call to the international community. We work every day to build a country with sovereignty and we will maintain our demand. We will continue protesting,” activist Jonas Reyes told reporters. He also paid tribute to the Venezuelan and Cuban civilians and military personnel killed during the bombing.

Venezuelan government leaders also announced plans to mobilize on February 14, Valentine’s Day, to celebrate what they described as “the profound love of Maduro and Cilia,” as well as on February 27 and 28 to commemorate the 1989 popular uprising known as El Caracazo.

On Tuesday evening, Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, said that over the past 30 days Venezuela has “transformed and matured” the impact of US aggression into “tranquility,” while promoting national dialogue.

“It is a great victory for the people that there is stability,” Rodríguez told media, adding that “there is a national outcry” for the freedom of Maduro and Flores. She spoke from the Miraflores Palace alongside National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.

The pair’s kidnapping took place amid a US attack involving 150 aircraft, including electronic warfare jets, bombers, assault helicopters, and drones invading Venezuelan airspace.

On January 5, Maduro and Flores were arraigned in New York on charges including drug trafficking conspiracy. Both pleaded not guilty, and Maduro stated before judge Alvin Hellerstein that he is “a prisoner of war.”

The next court hearing, originally scheduled for March 17, was postponed until March 26 following a request from the US Justice Department.

US prosecutors argued that the extension would allow “the ends of justice to outweigh the interests of the public and the defendants in a speedy trial.”

February 3 also saw US-bases solidarity gather outside the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn where Maduro and Flores are being held.

In slogans and posters, activists described the Venezuelan president and first lady as “victims of kidnapping” and demanded that the US government cease its “political persecution.”

“They are innocent of all charges. The guilty parties are the same ones who have been violating the sovereignty of Venezuela and so many countries of Our America,” activist and academic Danny Shaw told reporters. “This has nothing to do with a war on drugs. We have suffered from fentanyl and heroin, and that has nothing to do with Venezuela, much less with its president.”

Shaw vowed that solidarity movements would continue to rally and expressed confidence in the legal efforts of Maduro and Flores’ defense teams.

A separate demonstration in solidarity with the Venezuelan people and denouncing US aggression also took place in New York’s Times Square and some 60 cities around the world.

For her part, Acting President Delcy Rodríguez said she has held direct phone conversations with US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, which she said were guided by “interpersonal respect.”

Rodríguez has defended a fast diplomatic rapprochement with the Trump administration, arguing that the two nations can solve “differences” through diplomacy.

Washington’s new chargé d’affaires, Laura Dogu, is already in Venezuela and visited the presidential palace on Monday, February 2.

Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Caracas.

Maja T was part of a group that attacked participants at Budapest’s ‘Day of Honour’, a major neo-Nazi event.

A Hungarian court has jailed a German anti-fascist activist for eight years for attacking participants at a far-right rally in Budapest.

Maja T, 25, was sentenced on Wednesday after being convicted of involvement in violence ahead of the annual “Day of Honour” commemoration in Budapest. The event is one of the biggest neo-Nazi rallies in Europe.

The defendant was accused of attempted aggravated bodily harm causing life-threatening injuries and assault committed as part of a criminal organisation.

“We all know what verdict the prime minister of this country wants,” Maja T told the court before the guilty verdict was given.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has previously designated anti-fascist groups linked to the attacks as “terrorist” organisations.

Orban’s spokesman, Zoltan Kovacs, welcomed the sentence in a message on X, branding Maja T an “antifa terrorist” – a reference to the left-wing protest movement.

Maja T was extradited from Germany to Hungary in December 2024. Supporters of the activist have criticised detention conditions, as well as the chances for a fair trial in Hungary.

Last year, Germany’s Constitutional Court ruled that the extradition was unlawful because it could not be guaranteed that the defendant would not be subject to inhumane or degrading treatment in Hungarian custody.

Maja T’s father, Wolfram Jarosch, said the sentence confirmed his “fears” before the hearing. “This was a political show trial,” he said in a statement.

The conviction can be appealed.

Far-right protest

Prosecutors said Maja T was one of 19 members of a multinational far-left group that travelled to Hungary and attacked nine people, including German and Polish citizens, whom they identified as far-right extremists. Victims of the attack suffered broken bones and head injuries.

The annual rally in the Hungarian capital marks the failed attempt by Nazi and allied Hungarian soldiers to break out of Budapest during the Red Army’s siege of the city in 1945.

A number of people accused of participating in the 2023 “Day of Honour” attacks have been tried in Hungary and Germany. One woman received a five-year prison sentence in Germany.

Italy and France have refused to surrender two suspects to Hungary, with courts in both countries citing the risk of “inhumane treatment” in prison.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. It’s the final week of regular-season high school basketball before playoff pairings are announced Saturday.

Who’s hot?

With basketball playoff pairings coming Saturday, there has been few changes at the top for boys or girls.

Sierra Canyon (21-1) and Redondo Union (24-3) have stayed No. 1 and No. 2 for weeks. Sierra Canyon still likely has two challenging games left in the Mission League tournament Monday and Wednesday, but both would be at home. Redondo Union faces rival Mira Costa for a second time Tuesday at Mira Costa.

Kaleena Smith of Ontario Christian.

(Nick Koza)

In girls, Ontario Christian (26-1) closes out the regular season on Tuesday at Rancho Christian. Sierra Canyon (24-2) has never lost in the Mission League and came away Saturday with a win over a very good Oak Park team. Etiwanda (26-2), the defending state champion, continues to be the danger for Ontario Christian and Sierra Canyon.

Rising teams in boys basketball: Village Christian had an 11-game winning streak snapped but remains dangerous. Corona del Mar (26-1) has a final game left against Newport Harbor and can be a top seed in Southern Section Division 1. Damien has been surging with a 26-4 record. Palisades (14-11) is on a six-game winning streak and the heavy favorite to win the City Section Open Division title. The Dolphins might might be a surprise team in state playoffs depending on what division they are placed.

Rising teams in girls basketball: Sage Hill (23-4), despite a coaching change in the middle of the season, will be an Open Division team and has Texas-bound Amalia Holquin in top form. Brentwood won the Gold Coast League title. Mater Dei, despite losing its best player to injury, has won the Trinity League title.

Boys basketball

Brentwood’s Ethan Hill.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Brentwood (24-3) is tied for first place in the Gold Coast League with Crossroads going into the final week of the regular season.

Orange Lutheran pulled off the biggest upsets of the week, knocking off St. John Bosco. The Trinity League tournament begins Monday. Orange Lutheran coach Nate Klitzing, despite having little size on his team, has done a remarkable job getting his team close to a playoff spot.

The Mission League tournament continues Monday with Loyola at Sierra Canyon and Crespi at Sherman Oaks Notre Dame. The winners play Wednesday. All four teams have earned automatic playoff berths. Loyola first-year coach Cam Joyce got his team into the playoffs with a must-win against St. Francis on Saturday. Otherwise, the Cubs’ record would have been below .500.

Heritage Christian knocked off Village Christian 74-71 with two freshmen and three sophomores in the starting lineup.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

A young Heritage Christian team is getting dangerous and upset Village Christian. Here’s the report.

Cleveland is headed to the West Valley League championship. San Pedro hosts Narbonne on Friday to decide the Marine League championship.

The Toyota Arena in Ontario will host the Southern Section Open Division finals Feb. 27 or Feb. 28.

Ed Waters of Crenshaw earned his 300th coaching victory.

Here’s this week’s top 25 rankings by The Times.

Girls basketball

Ventura upset Mater Dei on Saturday to add some interest in the Southern Section girls pairings.

Sierra Canyon is the new school for standout guard Hamiley Arenas, the sister of Alijah Arenas. She averaged 23.3 points for Sherman Oaks Notre Dame as a freshman. She hasn’t played for the Knights this season after a stress fracture injury and hasn’t been medically cleared to return. She attended Sierra Canyon in middle school.

The Trailblazers are 24-2 and routed Oak Park behind Jerzy Robinson, who scored 29 points.

Amalia Holguin of Sage Hill turned in a 64-point performance on senior night against Laguna Beach.

Birmingham (22-3) plays Granada Hills (18-7) on Monday at Granada Hills to decide the West Valley League championship.

Palisades played its first home basketball game since the Palisades fire in January of 2025. Here’s the report.

Here’s last week’s top 20 SoCal rankings.

Turnaround story

First-year coach DeAndre Cole (right) and guard Jaden McDonald have helped lead a turnaround at Compton Centennial.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Compton Centennial has gone from 1-23 to 12-12 under first-year basketball coach DeAndre Cole.

The school that produced Arron Afflalo has quite a story to tell.

Here’s the report.

Baseball

When the baseball season begins next month, three of the top senior pitchers will come from the Bay League in Garrett Jacobs (left) of Mira Costa, Robby Zimmerman of Redondo Union and Kai Van Scoyoc of Palos Verdes.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

The Bay League held a media day last week, and it’s clear the league has three of the top senior pitchers for the coming season in Garrett Jacobs, Robby Zimmerman and Kai Van Scoyoc. Two are UCLA commits, the other a USC commit.

Here’s a report.

There will be few teams in Southern California with more pitchers who can throw with high velocity than Sherman Oaks Notre Dame. The Knights have two closers in sophomore Dru Wilson and senior Malakye Matsumoto, who throw in the 90s. The starting pitching is also pretty good with Beckett Berg, A.J. LaSorta, JuJu Diaz-Jones and Peter Jackson. Have no sympathy for the Knights if they have to play a doubleheader with their pitching depth.

Former Sherman Oaks Notre Dame pitcher Hunter Greene returned to his alma mater to present two scholarships to students. Here’s the report.

Notes. . . .

Palisades football coach Dylen Smith is the NFL Don Shula coach of the year.

(Steve Galluzzo)

Palisades football coach Dylen Smith has been named one of two high school football coaches of the year and winner of the NFL Don Shula High School Coaching Award. He guided the Dolphins to 10 consecutive wins in the wake of the Palisades fire. . . . .

There’s growing speculation that Orange Lutheran will announce that football coach Rod Sherman and the school are parting ways. He has been head coach since 2021 and his team eliminated top-seeded St. John Bosco in the Division 1 playoffs last season. Sherman said last week that he was still coach. School officials have declined comment. . . .

South East has an opening for football coach. The athletic director is seeking applicants at: drc0906@lausd.net.

Austin Montoya is the new football coach at St. Paul. He was head coach at Schurr last season. . . .

Dave Ramos is returning as football coach at Schurr. . . .

Oscar McBride is the new football coach at Bishop Montgomery. He’s a former head coach at Murrieta Mesa. He takes over a program that forfeited its season after numerous players were declared ineligible by the Southern Section. . . .

Tommy Chaffins has announced his retirement after 31 years as girls volleyball coach and boys volleyball coach at Redondo Union. . . .

Pedro Mattiazo, a water polo athlete at Santa Margarita, has committed to Long Beach State. . . .

The Southern Section has begun looking for a new location to house its office. It’s currently located in Los Alamitos. . . .

Here’s the Southern Section girls water polo pairings. . . .

Former Warren and Cathedral football coach Kevin Pearson has been hired as the offensive coordinator at Long Beach Poly. He has worked for some outstanding quarterbacks through the years, including Heisman Trophy winner Bryce Young. . . .

Frankie Valdez is the new girls volleyball coach at Viewpoint. . . .

Mater Dei is seeded No. 1 for the Southern Section girls water polo playoffs. Here are the pairings. . . .

Aaron Castillo is the new flag football coach at Mater Dei. . . .

The high school football transfer portal continues to be busy. . . .

Former Franklin High baseball coach Rick Campbell has died. He took his team to three appearances at Dodger Stadium in City finals, winning twice. . . .

Birmingham won City Section wrestling dual meet championships for boys and girls on Saturday. . . .

One of the best freshman girls soccer players has been St. Genevieve’s Mia Rizo. Here’s the report. . . .

The Chen brothers, JT (left), a sophomore, and Ollie, a freshman, have helped Harvard-Westlake clinch the Mission League boys soccer title.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Harvard-Westlake clinched its third Mission League soccer title in four years and Cathedral won the Del Rey League. Here’s the report. . . .

South East is looking like a City Section soccer title contender. Here’s the report.

From the archives: George Holani

Boise State RB George Holani runs into the secondary at the 2023 L.A. Bowl.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

Former St. John Bosco running back George Holani is going to the Super Bowl as a back-up running back for the Seattle Seahawks. He was a star for the Braves and at Boise State.

He had back-to-back years rushing for more than 1,000 yards for St. John Bosco before graduating in 2019.

Here’s a story detailing Holani’s background that he’s one of 10 siblings in his family.

Recommendations

From ESPN.com, a story on a survey asking youth coaches why they quit.

From the Washington Post, a story on a high school basketball coach in Maryland in his 39th season.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on the positive reception high school coaches have for new UCLA football coach Bob Chesney.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

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Sebastian Aho scored early in overtime to lead the Carolina Hurricanes to a 3-2 win over the Kings on Sunday.

Brandon Bussi made 11 saves to continue his dominant rookie season, while Jordan Staal and Alexander Nikishin also scored for the Hurricanes, who have earned at least a point in eight straight games (6-0-2).

Samuel Helenius and Quinton Byfield scored for the Kings and Anton Forsberg made 31 saves. The Kings wrapped up their road trip with a 3-1-1 record with one game (last Monday at Columbus) postponed because of severe winter weather.

A winter storm dumped snow all around North Carolina but Raleigh was mostly spared, which made it easier for about 14,000 fans to make it to the arena for the afternoon start.

A day after squandering a three-goal lead in a 4-3 overtime loss at Washington, Aho made sure the Hurricanes didn’t blow a 2-0 lead against the Kings. He beat Forsberg 1:25 into the overtime period after the Kings’ goalie had made two tough saves on Seth Jarvis.

Bussi, a 27-year-old rookie claimed off waivers four days before the season started, continues to be a revelation. He has won 21 of his 25 starts (21-3-1) to help the Hurricanes to first place in the Metropolitan Division.

Nikishin put the Hurricanes up 2-0 with 7:03 to play in the third period. Helenius responded 24 seconds later to cut the lead to 2-1. Byfield finished a beautiful pass from Adrian Kempe with 3:11 left in regulation to tie the game at 2-2.

Staal tipped in Andrei Svechnikov’s pass for his third power-play goal of the season at 6:25 of the first period. Staal has matched last year’s scoring output with 13 goals but in 23 fewer games.

Up next for the Kings: vs. Seattle at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell pushed back against political pressure on the US central bank on Wednesday and defended its independence, urging the next chair to “stay out of elected politics”. Markets, however, appeared unconvinced, accelerating a sell-off in the dollar as gold and silver hit fresh record highs.

“Don’t get pulled into elected politics. Don’t do it,” Powell told reporters.

The reaction followed the Federal Reserve’s latest decision to leave interest rates unchanged in a range between 3.5% and 3.75%.

Asked whether the Fed was drawing any macroeconomic signal from the explosive rally in precious metals, Powell played down its significance.

“We don’t take much message macroeconomically,” Powell said. “The argument that we are losing credibility is simply not the case. If you look at where inflation expectations are, our credibility is right where it needs to be.”

He highlighted that the Fed does not “get spun up over particular asset price changes”, although it continues to monitor markets closely.

Markets react

The market reaction sharply contradicted Powell’s message.

Gold jumped to $5,500 per ounce, setting a new all-time high, while silver climbed above $117 per ounce.

Gold is now up over 20% this month, on track for its strongest monthly performance since January 1980.

Silver’s gains have been even more dramatic, with prices already up around 55% this month — the strongest monthly rise on record.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of major currencies, fell to levels last seen four years ago.

“The next couple of days will show whether investors have concluded that the dollar needs to go lower and that today’s bounce is a selling opportunity,” said James Knightley, chief economist at ING.

The dollar is now more than 10% below its 2025 highs, weighed down by persistent macro headwinds, including global central bank diversification away from US assets, widening fiscal deficits, recurring questions over Fed independence, and expectations of further policy easing.

‘Is gold the new bitcoin?’

Veteran Wall Street economist Ed Yardeni linked the rally to politics, suggesting its sustained popularity could make “gold the new bitcoin”.

Yardeni argued that US President Donald Trump, a vocal supporter of cryptocurrencies, appears to be inadvertently fuelling the rise in gold prices.

On Tuesday, Trump said “the dollar is doing great” when asked whether the currency had fallen too much, signalling he is comfortable with a weaker greenback.

“A weaker dollar may put upward pressure on US inflation, which would also boost the price of gold,” Yardeni said.

Commodities surge beyond gold and silver

The rally has spread across the broader commodities market.

Platinum climbed above $2,900 per ounce for the first time on record this week and is already up 33% this month. Palladium, which benefits from stronger industrial demand, rose to a four-year high and is up more than 22% year to date.

Copper also surged, hitting a record $6.30 per pound on Thursday.

Across commodity markets, investors are increasingly positioning for prolonged dollar weakness, amid perceptions that US institutions are willing to tolerate — or quietly accept — the shift.

Euro stronger, equities mixed

In Europe, the euro traded near $1.1950, edging lower after briefly breaking above $1.20 earlier in the week following Trump’s comments.

The single currency has now risen for three consecutive months against the dollar and is up around 15% year on year.

European equities were mixed. France’s CAC 40 and Italy’s FTSE MIB gained around 0.5%, while Germany’s DAX fell over 1%.

Frankfurt’s losses were led by SAP, which slid 16% — its biggest one-day drop since October 2020 — after weaker-than-expected cloud sales and a cut to 2026 revenue guidance outweighed in-line fourth-quarter results.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. I’m Eric Sondheimer. It was a historic weekend for coach Harvey Kitani, who became only the third high school basketball coach in state history to reach 1,000 wins.

Kitani memories

Harvey Kitani is surrounded by his players after earning his 1,000th career victory on Friday night at Mater Dei in Rolling Hills Prep’s 60-45 win over Bishop Gorman.

(Nick Koza)

Harvey Kitani joined Gary McKnight of Mater Dei and Mike LeDuc of Damien as the only high school basketball coaches to reach 1,000 wins. Kitani got his 1,000th career win coaching Rolling Hills Prep to victory on Friday against Bishop Gorman.

Many of his victories came during a 35-year stay as head coach at Fairfax. Let me offer some of the most memorable moments covering him since 1979.

No. 1 is when his star player, Sean Higgins, called a news conference in 1987 to announce his college choice. He signed with UCLA. But Higgins didn’t show up to the news conference. Sitting in the principal’s office and waiting and waiting for Higgins to arrive was so strange. Then word came that Higgins was pressured to sign with UCLA by his stepfather. He ended up getting released from his letter of intent and enrolling at Michigan.

Kitani’s best team was that 1987 season winning the City 4-A title and was unbeaten until the state tournament. Higgins, Chris Mills and JD Green were the standout players. Kitani would win a 3-A title and two more upper division titles.

The Fairfax vs. Westchester rivalry became one of the best in the Southland. Westchester coach Ed Azzam, who is the City record holder for most career wins, always got along with Kitani, who hired Azzam to teach middle school students when he retired. Their teams played for City titles against each other in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2015. Those were the days. Besides playing two league match-ups they’d face off again in the playoffs.

Kitani got to coach the Shipp brothers, Joe, Josh and Jerren. They ended up playing basketball for Cal, UCLA and Arizona. Josh helped Fairfax win a state title in 2004. He also coached center Renardo Sidney.

He retired from teaching in the Los Angeles Unified School District in 2016 and decided to accept the coaching position at Rolling Hills Prep, which is 15 minutes from his home and where two of his sons attended.

“If Fairfax was here, I’d still be at Fairfax,” he said.

He’s won four Southern Section titles. He truly has a body of work to admire.

“Unbelievable,” he said of staying in coaching for 46 years.

Boys basketball

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame’s NaVorro Bowman scored 26 points in a win over Harvard-Westlake on Saturday.

(Craig Weston)

NaVorro Bowman, a junior guard for Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, has thrust himself into consideration for Mission League MVP. He had 26 points Saturday in Notre Dame’s 71-66 win over Harvard-Westlake. The Knights are on the verge of finishing second in the regular season and clinching a playoff spot before the Mission League tournament begins Thursday.

Sierra Canyon, led by Brandon McCoy and Brannon Martinsen, a pair of former Trinity League all-stars, defeated Harvard-Westlake to lock up the No. 1 seed for the Mission League tournament. Here’s the report.

Former Notre Dame star Monte Marcaccini has returned to high school basketball as an assistant coach at Oaks Christian, where his son, James, is a promising freshman. Here’s the report.

Palisades, which hasn’t played a basketball game or any sporting event on its campus since the Palisades fire in January of 2025, will hold its first home basketball game Thursday against Fairfax at 6 p.m. Classes return to the campus Tuesday. Palisades (11-11) has emerged as the favorite to win the City Open Division basketball title.

L.A. Southwest College and Pasadena City College are expected to be the championship sites for the City Section basketball finals Feb. 27 and 28.

Cleveland won an important West Valley League game against rival Birmingham. Here’s the report.

The City Section’s top four teams have become real clear: Palisades, Cleveland, Birmingham and Washington Prep.

Second-year coach Leon Jacob has turned around the Angelou program. Here’s the report.

Here’s this week’s top 25 rankings by Times.

Girls basketball

Aryanna Reyes of Pioneer set a school record with a 52-point performance against Artesia.

Changes are coming in the Southern Section power rankings. No. 2 JSerra lost to Santa Margarita in a Trinity League game. Mater Dei upset highly regarded Bishop Gorman from Las Vegas. Etiwanda routed No. 5 Rancho Christian 104-73.

For some reason, the rankings always ignore Etiwanda in the early going even though the Eagles always contend for Southern Section and state titles. Sierra Canyon is 21-2 and headed for another unbeaten Mission League season. The Trailblazers have never lost a Mission League game.

Harvard-Westlake, led by freshman Lucia Khamenia, has moved into a tie for second place with Marlborough in the Mission League.

Ontario Christian remains No. 1 with a 25-1 record.

Reagan Enright from Rolling Hills Prep scored the 1,000th point of her career.

Westchester is 17-3 and 6-0 in the Western League behind the City Section’s best player, Savannah Myles, averaging 22.1 points. Here’s the report.

Wrestling

Abraham Datte of Monroe is the two-time City Section heavyweight wrestling champion and wants to be a paramedic.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Abraham Datte is a two-time City Section heavyweight wrestling champion from Monroe who wants to become a paramedic. He chose Monroe because of its Fire Academy. Here’s a profile.

The Southern Section Divisional championships are set for Feb. 13-14.

Here are the boys’ sites.

Central — Westminster High

Coastal — Fountain Valley High

Eastern — Canyon Springs High

Inland — Great Oak High

Northern — Moorpark High

Southern — Glenn High

Here are the girls’ sites.

Central — San Dimas High

Eastern — Roosevelt High

Northern — Adelanto High

Southern — Marina High

The Masters Meet is Feb. 20 for boys and Feb. 21 for girls.

The state championships are Feb. 26-28 at Dignity Health Arena in Bakersfield.

Soccer

South East (16-1-3) and El Camino Real (12-3-1, 5-0-1) are looking like the teams to beat in City Section boys soccer. El Camino Real plays at Birmingham on Wednesday.

Servite handed Mater Dei its first defeat 2-1 to move ahead of the Monarchs in the Trinity League standings.

Cathedral is 12-2-1 and 4-0-1 in the Del Rey League heading into a big match Friday at Bishop Amat.

In girls soccer, Santa Margarita is ranked No. 1 in the Southern Section power rankings and is 13-0-2.

Baseball

Chatsworth coach Marcus Alvarado has resigned.

(Nick Koza)

Marcus Alvarado, who coached Chatsworth to a 2022 City Section Open Division championship, said he resigned on Friday, saying he had lost his love for baseball after repeated complaints from parents. Here’s the report.

Gabe Cerna, the baseball coach at Sun Valley Poly since 2009, has been replaced by his assistant, Freddy Flores, who will be an interim coach. Cerna also was the school’s athletic director. Cerna is now teaching at Fulton Prep. He said the school decided to go in “a different direction.”

Harvard-Westlake has put the jerseys of nine former players who reached the major leagues on its outfield walls at O’Malley Family Field. They start in left field and go to center field. They might run out of room, but coach Jared Halpert said, “That’s a good problem to have.”

Pete Crow-Armstrong, Jack Flaherty, Nik Turley and Josh Satin were on hand on Saturday for a ceremony. Meanwhile, the baseball team played teams from Las Vegas, and No. 1 pitcher Justin Kirchner, a Yale commit, struck out 10 in four innings.

Notes . . .

There was an altercation Friday night at the conclusion of the Chatsworth at Taft girls’ basketball game involving the Chatsworth coach and a relative of one of his players. L.A. School Police are investigating. Here’s the report.

Oaks Christian has hired Rudy Carlton as its new football coach. He was an assistant coach at JSerra last season and has extensive college coaching experience from his days at Azusa Pacific. Former Oaks Christian standout Ron Pitts is becoming the general manager and the school is creating an advisory council of former NFL players. . . .

Matt Villasenor has resigned as football coach at Nogales to become head coach at Muir. . . .

Dujuawan Jones is the new football coach at San Marino. . . .

Former Corona del Mar and UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers has been hired to coach quarterbacks at Corona del Mar. . . .

A lawsuit targeting St. John Bosco football coach Jason Negro has misfired after a judge’s rulings. Here’s the report. . . .

Kevin Encinas is the new football coach at Nogales. . . .

The Southern Section Council will discuss a proposal Tuesday that would allow football at-large playoff berths for teams with a .300 or better overall record. It’s currently .500 or better. The aim is not to allow teams with 1-9 or 2-8 records. It’s a non-action item. . . .

Jaden Soong competes at the Southern California Golf Assn. Amateur Championship at Saticoy Club in Somis.

(Courtesy of SCGA)

Sophomore golfer Jaden Soong of St. Francis will try to qualify for the PGA’s Farmer’s Insurance Open on Monday in Mission Viejo. He needs to finish in the top four. He turns 16 on Monday. . . .

After only one season as coach, Doug Bledsoe said he has resigned as football coach at Narbonne. He took over the program after numerous rules violations resulted in a three-year postseason ban by the City Section and an exodus of players. Narbonne went 0-10. . . .

Garfield running back Ceasar Reyes set a school record with 420 yards rushing and four touchdowns in win over South Gate

(Nick Koza)

There was major transfer news in football, with two-time All-City running back Ceasar Reyes going from Garfield to Salesian. Here’s a link to The Times’ transfer portal keeping track of key players switching schools. . .

Shortstop Bobby Brooks from La Habra has committed to Sacramento State. . . .

Even though Morningside High has closed, former Morningside basketball star Stais Bozeman had his jersey retired Friday.

From the archives: Ryan Turell

Yeshiva’s Ryan Turell brings the ball up court against St. Joseph’s Anton Jansson.

(Joe Bednarsh / Yeshiva Athletics)

Former Valley Torah basketball star Ryan Turell is playing for Haifa in Israel’s second division pro basketball league. He entered this week averaging 13.3 points.

He became a standout college player at Yeshiva. He had one game in which he scored 51 points.

Here’s a story from 2021 in which he was being called the Jewish Jordan.

Here’s a story from 2024 about Turell trying to become the first Orthodox Jewish player in the NBA.

Recommendations

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on sophomore girls’ basketball star Tatianna Griffin from No. 1 Ontario Christian.

From AL.com, a story on Alabama creating separate playoff divisions for private and public schools.

From the Los Angeles Times, a story on former Harvard-Westlake soccer star Gisele Thompson.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time….

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

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