Our official Moore League boys’ basketball preview is still a week or so away, but we wanted to make sure you knew how excited you should be for it—how about this? As we wrap up the first week of tournament play, six of seven Moore League teams have a winning record, and all six of those teams have either taken home top-three hardware, or will be playing for it tonight. Long Beach boys’ basketball teams are currently a combined 16-5, and outscoring their opponents by an average of 69-55. Here’s a quick rundown of where each team is (in no particular order).
Of course, come back in the coming days for more updates, as well as our full preview—we’ll be bringing you full coverage and highlight videos once the season kicks off!
Wilson (4-0): Took home the league’s first trophy yesterday by beating Troy 51-37 in the Cypress-Western Tournament championship. They’d previously beaten South East 76-57, Segerstrom 67-58, and Cypress 71-53.
Poly (3-0): Yesterday’s impressive 81-45 win over Fairfax puts them in tonight’s Redondo championship against Gardena Serra, who advanced with a narrow win over Compton (we were two points away from an all-Moore League title). They’ve already beaten Locke 75-26 and Palisades 61-49. Long Beach State commit Shelton Boykin is averaging an 18-7.
Cabrillo (3-0): Definitely the league’s biggest surprise so far, the Jags struggled last year but are off to a hot start, and will play in tonight’s La Quinta tournament championship thanks to a 57-45 win over Northwood. They’d previously notched wins of 54-20 over Century and 76-67 over Marina.
Jordan (2-1): The Panthers suffered an opening-round loss in the Cerritos/Gahr Varsity Tip-Off to hose Gahr, in a defense-less 97-86 affair. They’ve won their next two games, against Artesia (66-42) and Diamond Ranch (61-41) to advance to tonight’s third-place game.
Lakewood (2-1): Will play in tonight’s third-place game in the Buena Park tournament against La Habra. They got there by losing to Sonora, 50-48 in the opener, then beating El Modena 79-76, and Carter 71-31.
Compton (2-1): Thanks to that narrow 66-64 loss to Gardena Serra in the semis of the Redondo tourney, the Tarbabes will be playing for third place tonight against Fairfax. They’ve already beaten Harvard-Westlake 70-69 and Lynwood 90-78
Millikan (0-2): The Rams are the League’s only team with a losing record, in the Cerritos/Gahr Tip-Off, with a 78-70 loss to Cerritos, and a 70-69 defeat at the hands of King.