I witnessed something extraordinary on Saturday night after a crowd of more than 3,300 packed into the Santa Ana Mater Dei gym for the featured game of the Nike Extravaganza and saw Oak Hill Academy of Mouth of Wilson, Va., end Chino Hills’ 60-game win streak with a 96-91 come-from-behind victory.
Sophomore LaMelo Ball, the youngest player on the court at 15, came to the media room after losing for the first time in his high school career. He had done all he could to keep Chino Hills unbeaten, scoring 36 points, making seven three-pointers, driving, dishing and entertaining from start to finish.
And yet, with all the disappointment of his first defeat, he was both defiant and resilient. He answered every question with a maturity Cam Newton might have learned from.
Asked about the Huskies’ success over the last two seasons, he said, “It’s a tough way to play. Nobody really knew how to stop it. But we just lost today and got to come back.”
By 12:58 a.m., he tweeted about it.
That’s the way his brother, Lonzo, UCLA’s top freshman, was last season when he made just two of 21 shots and Chino Hills barely defeated Torrance Bishop Montgomery, 71-67, during its 35-0 season. Winning was more important than his individual performance.
Brother LiAngelo was more upset than LaMelo even though an ankle injury early in the third quarter left him limping and probably affected his shot.
