Oak Park boys’ basketball team on a roll

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers PRACTICE HARD, PLAY HARD—Oak Park senior forward Sean Bryan, left, tries to cut off fellow senior forward Nick Noyer, who heads towards the basket during Tuesday’s practice session. The Eagles entered last night’s game at Carpinteria with a 17-5 overall record and a 3-0 mark in the Tri-Valley League. OPHS has a balanced offensive attack led by three players—Jason Fahn, Noyer and Brian Lantos—that are averaging more than 10 points per game. Having surpassed last year’s regular-season win total with a 68-47 pasting of Buena on the road Saturday, the Oak Park boys’ basketball team (17-5, 30) now turns its attention towards capturing the program’s fifth consecutive Tri-Valley League championship.

Beginning last night against Carpinteria, the Eagles play their final five league games over the course of 17 days.

OPHS head coach Ed Chevalier knows it will be a vital stretch for his team as they prepare for the CIF-SS Division IIIA playoffs.

“I’m glad we’re going to have over two weeks to play those games,” Chevalier said. “That’ll give us a chance to pace ourselves and prepare for the (postseason).”

After coming out on the short end of a 47-44 score at San Marcos last Friday, Oak Park rebounded in a big way against Buena the following night.

Senior forward Nick Noyer led the Eagles with 18 points, while senior forward Brian Lantos chipped in with 15 points and seven rebounds.

“It’s a huge win,” Noyer said. “To lose two games in a row might bring our confidence down a little bit and we want to keep the confidence up and keep pushing for league.”

Junior center Kareem Maddox also played a tremendous role in the Oak Park victory.

The 6-foot-6 Maddox scored 14 points, grabbed five rebounds and logged six blocked shots on the night. His thunder dunk midway through the fourth quarter gave OPHS its 61st point and put an emphatic stamp on the win.

“It felt real good,” Maddox said of the dunk. “Their crowd’s real loud, so that kind of shut them up.”

Maddox is averaging 3.3 blocks per game, and also leads the team in rebounding (132) and is fourth in scoring (9.8 points per game).

Despite being on the road, Oak Park had a large contingent of boisterous fans in its student section.

The Eagles’ leading scorer, senior forward Jason Fahn (11.1 ppg), said the Oak Park crowds have been tremendous all year, adding that their support often energizes the team.

“Last year, what helped us through the playoffs was our crowd,” Fahn said. “And if they can continue to be as loud they were last year, that’s really going to help us.”

The Eagles have yet to lose back-to-back games this season.

Oak Park’s five losses on the year have come by a combined 20 points. The team’s losses include a pair of two-point defeats to go with a one-point loss and a threepoint setback.

OPHS is currently ranked No. 6 in the Division IIIA coaches poll.

Fahn said none of those numbers will matter down the stretch, as teams such as Fillmore, Bishop Diego and St. Bonaventure will be looking to knock the Eagles out of the TriValley’s top spot.

“Every team in our league is after us,” Fahn said. “We have a target on our backs, for sure. So we just have to take it to them first.”

After advancing to the CIF championship game a year ago— where they lost to HarvardWestlake, 67-52—the Eagles are eager to make a return trip to the title game this season.

In order to do so, Maddox said, OPHS must continue to work hard in practice and improve with each passing day. Resting on their accomplishments would be detrimental, he said.

“We want to get a first-round bye so we can get some extra practice time in and continue to build our confidence,” Maddox said. “The more practice time we get before our first CIF game, the better we can do. But we have to get by all of our league rivals first.”