Mt. Miguel Fall Classic: Second Five
Mount Miguel Head Coach Jay Rowlett annually provides San Diego basketball fans a fitting completion to the fall calendar the eponymous Fall Class.
The tournament, largely attended by city and South county teams, has historically given us a barometer of the teams’ trajectories on the eve of the regular season.
This installment proved no different, as Mission Bay – without star guard Boogie Ellis and head coach Marshawn Cherry – defeated the hosts 47-37 to claim their second consecutive championship.
We look at some of the top performers in a series of reports. Up next, the “Second Five” performers.
Mt Miguel Fall Classic: Second Five
Kyle Paranada, 2019 G, Montgomery
The 5-7 scoring guard lived up to his reputation as a fearless scorer all weekend. Despite being small in stature, Paranada scores it from all three levels, and has maximum confidence.
Rahin Williams, 2019 G, Montgomery
Williams is making the most of his fifth year of eligibility thus far, relentlessly attacking the basket for the third-place Aztecs. In one stretch of the semifinals loss to Mission Bay, Williams would inbound the ball and take it aggressively to the basket and drew fouls, prompting Mission Bay coaches to call timeout to chide their guards. He sometimes plays too fast (needs to change speeds better) but he’s a talent.
Dimitrius Dudley, 2022 G, San Ysidro
Dudley’s strong fall campaign concluded with a 39-point effort against Mt. Miguel in a semifinals loss, but up until that point, the long, 6-2 scoring guard was attacking the basket and scoring efficiently off the bounce and from mid-range. When he’s hitting threes, as he was in a blowout over Valhalla, he’s a difficult cover. Tough to believe he’s done all of this before playing an official high school game.
Kailen Rains, 2020 G, San Ysidro
The 6-3.5 shooting guard keeps adding facets to his offensive repertoire. This weekend, he showed he could attack the basket and both score and facilitate off the bounce. A long, wiry player with a quick release from deep, Rains looks the part of a college combo guard. Increasing his assertiveness and effort on defense will help determine what level that is.
AJ Burgin, 2021 G, San Diego
Burgin had three big games to help lead his team to a 2-2 finish and a win over Valhalla in the 7th place game. Against Escondido, the 6-2 sophomore scored efficiently from three levels against double teams. Playing the point, he also made solid reads for teammates off the bounce. An underrated rebounder for a guard, Burgin notched 15 boards in the win over Valhalla.