La Verne Lutheran Trojans Still Have That Championship Swagger

The Trojans were a hornet's nest of activity on offense and defense.

Before a packed house in their home gym, the La Verne Lutheran Trojans went on a 16-1 run to start the second half and then breezed to 65-43 win over the View Park Knights, paced by C.J. Cooper’s 23 points and Grant Jerrett’s 21 points. Windward hero Bruce English’s last-second, game-saving heroics weren’t needed on this night.

After being held to just 10 points in the second quarter, a period in which the underdog Knights actually outscored the Trojans 13-10, La Verne Lutheran found its rhythm and Cooper found the zone, personally knocking down 13 points and bringing the crowd to its feet with spinning layups, a pull-up jumper, a three-point bomb and a steal and assist to Jerrett.

“C.J. turned it up,” La Verne Coach Eric Cooper said seconds after the game. “That’s what we needed. All year long, he’s stepped up. In our championship game, he carried us the whole first half. He’s been doing it all year long. He’s been the MVP of our league three years in a row. That’s what he does.”

La Verne Lutheran, the newly crowned Division 5AA championship, started fast, scoring the first 6 points of the game and closed the quarter, leading 20-11. The Knights had no answer for Jerrett, who dominated the paint and finished the quarter with 8 points.

Here pictured before the game, Coach Cooper appeared even more relaxed and confident after the Trojans' 22-point victory over View Park.

After the Trojans went up by 13 points, 26-13, the Knights started carving into that lead on back-to-baskets by junior forward Joshua Jacobs and sophomore point guard Brendyn Taylor. After a layup by Cooper and single free throws by Eric Cooper and English, the Knights’ Sheldon Wright knocked down a 3-pointer and cashed a pair of free throws to trail at the half, 30-24. That 6-point margin was too close for Coach Cooper.

“I tore into them at half time,” Cooper said. “I told them to start playing. That was the adjustment. They had to go out, focus and play hard. They weren’t focused in the second quarter. We got up easily, kind of early, and then they started playing lackadaisically, doing tricks and stuff. They’re kids.

“It just has to be business all the time.”

Jerrett is one of those players becoming more businesslike with each game.

“He’s very good,” Cooper said. “He just has to learn what he can and can’t do at different competition levels. But you have to remember, he didn’t play last year, so he’s like a freshman this year. He’s learning still.”

If Jerrett’s still learning, that’s a scary thought because the sophomore will return next year alongside the Trojans’ other four starters, junior C.J. Cooper, freshman Eric Cooper, Jr., juniors English and Xavier Jones. And the bench is also deep, featuring outstanding freshmenJay Miller and Nick Colletta.

Coach Cooper’s Trojans hit the floor again this Thursday.