Three L.A. players get double-doubles in 33-point win
Trayvon Lathan poured in a game-high 30 points with 13 rebounds Friday night at Calabasas High, leading the Los Angeles Lighting to a 156-123 pro basketball victory over the USA All-Stars.
The Lightning (7-2) missed their all-time scoring record by four points while setting team marks for rebounds (76) and assists (45) in the IBL game, which was a benefit for the Calabasas athletic department. L.A. shot 53.8 percent and dominated the boards, 76-51.
Lathan, a 6-8 guard, hit 13-of-19 from the field, boosting his season shooting percentage to .677. Toby Bailey and Billy Knight, a pair of ex-UCLA standouts who just returned from playing pro ball overseas, also had double-doubles. Bailey finished with 16 points, a career-high 14 rebounds and five assists while Knight had 11 points and 10 boards.
Fred Vinson tossed in 7-18 from 3-point land on his way to 25 points, Travis Pinick (17 points, nine rebounds) narrowly missed a double-double and Bryon Russell added 16 points on a night when eight L.A. players reached double figures.
Kamran Sufi collected 13 assists and three steals.
Eric Palm topped the All-Stars with 26 points.
Ja'Shon Hampton had 13 points and eight rebounds in his Lightning debut while Juaquin Hawkins tallied 14 points, six rebounds and four steals.
Hawkins had all 14 of his points in the first quarter and Vinson added four 3-pointers as the Lightning built a 47-29 lead.
The All-Stars pulled within 14 points (121-107) with 8:10 to play before the Lightning put the game away with a 22-4 run. Lathan had eight points during the surge.
The same teams will meet on Saturday (7:30 p.m.) and Sunday (7 p.m.) at Cal Lutheran in Thousand Oaks.
