Basketball Court

In basketball, arguing a call doesn?t usually land you in jail. But that?s what happened to Nevious Osborne at a Costa Mesa 24 Hour Fitness early Tuesday, police said, when a disagreement over some calls during a basketball game ended with damage to his opponent?s car. Osborne, 28, of Huntington Beach argued with Michael Davis, 26, of Corona, about their game, which Osborne lost, about 12:15 a.m., police said. Officers arrested Osborne on suspicion of felony vandalism after Davis?

Construction is underway for the 14-acre Coastal Peak Park located at the end of Ridge Park Road in Newport Coast.  The park will include two baseball fields, three soccer fields, a basketball court, tot lot and picnic area.   On site parking for 40 vehicles will also be provided.  "Coastal Peak Park will provide a signfiicant enhancement of our city facilities for both soccer and baseball.  It will be particularly well used by residents of the Newport Coast.  The city is committed as part of the new General Plan to provide active sports parks throughout the city", said Councilman Keith Curry.

As a 6-foot-4 center, the basketball court was a jungle for Newport Harbor High's Lee Haven, who played like a lion and ruled the Sunset League in the Woodstock era. Haven, who switched to guard as a collegiate player and became an All-Big 8 Conference performer for the University of Colorado, was a force in the middle at a time when Newport Harbor played (and defeated) the biggest and baddest teams around. "I was always pretty intense, and believed that was the way you won basketball games," said Haven, who was drafted by the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers and ABA's San Diego Conquistadors out of college, but opted to play professionally in Europe for one year and in the Philippines for two more, before settling down with his high school sweetheart, the former Martha Gregory.

Craig McKennon plays point guard for the Newport Harbor Sailors in what essentially is the sunset year of his high school life. But over Thanksgiving break he and the rest of the Sailors focused on something much more important than their jump shots: The hoops squad delivered a duffel bag's worth of pencils to orphans living in Ponce, Puerto Rico and a pediatric cancer center in San Juan. The team had been participating in the Puerto Rican Island Jam tournament. And even though they lost three of their four games, McKennon said the experience of helping the children in need far outweighed any accomplishments on the basketball court.

maleathleteofweekEstancia High's Blake Pinto is not related to Carlos Pinto, but there are some similarities on the basketball court.In recent years, the Estancia High boys' basketball program has been synonymous with the last name Pinto. Carlos Pinto was the team's go-to guy for four seasons. Last year, the 6-foot-4 guard was an All-CIF Division III-A first-team selection, led the Eagles to their first Golden West League title since 1997 and the CIF Southern Section Division III-A semifinals, and was the Daily Pilot's Player of the Year.

Amara Aguilar It's all about the practice for UC Irvine women's basketball player Cindy Oparah. Not basketball practice, a medical practice. Oparah, a senior forward who leads the Anteaters in scoring with an average of 15.4 points per game and rebounds with 9.7 per game, hopes to take a shot at becoming a doctor after finishing her run at UCI and then medical school. The Daily Pilot College Athlete of the Month for January was influenced in high school to take the path she is on now. It was at that time that she got serious about basketball.

Growing up the only child of a single mom who earned her college degree when he was 11, Marcus McIntosh was raised on overcoming struggle. But struggle was, for the most part, something he could leave behind, merely by stepping onto a basketball court. A decorated high school player in Aurora, Colo., McIntosh had verbally committed to attend Miami of Florida on a basketball scholarship after his senior season. But when Hurricanes Coach Leonard Hamilton left to guide the Washington Wizards, McIntosh was suddenly left blowing in the South Florida breeze.

Barry Faulkner Evita Castillo's smile is deceiving. Though a buoyant personality often bubbles to the surface on the girls basketball court, the Newport Harbor High junior is grinding inside, striving to be the best she can be, driving and diving with relentless zeal to shake the feeling that started it all more than a decade ago. "I think my aggressiveness comes from being so competitive," said the 5-foot-10 forward,...

Steve Virgen Christmastime comes whenever Chris Adorno, a 13-year-old Ensign Intermediate School basketball player, sees a dribble drive lead to a layup, a swish from a three-point bomb or a slam dunk. When he watches the eighth-grade Seabees play, his eyes open wide and he flinches as he waits for his chance to show his stuff. And, when he actually plays on the basketball court, for Adorno, it's like heaven. His love for the game mirrors his zeal for life.

Craig McKennon plays point guard for the Newport Harbor Sailors in what essentially is the sunset year of his high school life. But over Thanksgiving break he and the rest of the Sailors focused on something much more important than their jump shots: The hoops squad delivered a duffel bag's worth of pencils to orphans living in Ponce, Puerto Rico and a pediatric cancer center in San Juan. The team had been participating in the Puerto Rican Island Jam tournament. And even though they lost three of their four games, McKennon said the experience of helping the children in need far outweighed any accomplishments on the basketball court.

It was a scene that made people stop and stare. Some parked their cars and snapped a quick picture. Others, like one man on a motorcycle, pulled up to the curb alone in a quiet, personal moment and just stared for a couple of minutes before leaving. No one who passed by 15th Street on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach on Wednesday missed the 80-foot American flag flapping in the wind above the American Legion Yacht Club Post No. 291. “It’s awesome!” said Robin Thoraldson of Orange, who passed the flag as she returned kayaking equipment.

The Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday night gave the green light to a Santa Ana-based adult basketball league to rent its municipal gym on Sundays for league games. The Parks and Recreation Commission previously voted to allow Rigoberto Bautista, founder of Aztec Basketball League, to use the court at the Downtown Recreation Center, displacing an average of 22 people who come for drop-in adult basketball and volleyball games. Councilman Eric Bever appealed the Parks Commission’s decision and voted against allowing the league in but could not find any allies on the council, which approved the contract, 4 to 1. Councilwoman Katrina Foley implied that Bever opposed the league only because it was primarily made up of Latino players.

If it had been any other night, he’d probably be dead. If he had decided to join another team, he could be dead. If even one thing had been different about Tuesday, he might not be here for his wife and kids. But like friend Craig Covey said, “The moons, planets and the stars, everything was in alignment.” It’s one of those stories you just can’t make up. Tuesday night, Covey, an Orange County Fire Authority captain, was playing basketball with his team in a recreation league at the West Newport Gym off 15th Street near Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian.

Construction is underway for the 14-acre Coastal Peak Park located at the end of Ridge Park Road in Newport Coast.  The park will include two baseball fields, three soccer fields, a basketball court, tot lot and picnic area.   On site parking for 40 vehicles will also be provided.  "Coastal Peak Park will provide a signfiicant enhancement of our city facilities for both soccer and baseball.  It will be particularly well used by residents of the Newport Coast.  The city is committed as part of the new General Plan to provide active sports parks throughout the city", said Councilman Keith Curry.

Newport Beach police and firefighters will finally see who is best when they compete in their third competition benefiting cancer research later this week. They’ll exchange their cuffs, helmets and uniforms for shorts and jerseys Friday in a charity basketball game at Newport Coast Community Center. It’s the third time the two departments have squared off, and both are looking to get the ultimate bragging rights. Firefighters won the 5k relay race in Corona del Mar and the police department took two out of three in flag football in August.

The two stand out in any crowd in the Back Bay. But for two 6-foot-9 centers, Kyle Caldwell and Stefan Kaluz haven’t spotted each other outside of the high school basketball court. How could they have missed each other around town the last four years? “I just never see him,” Caldwell said. “He doesn’t play pick-up basketball,” Kaluz said. Only a handful of times have they met on the court, Caldwell playing for Newport Harbor and Kaluz for Corona del Mar in the annual Battle of the Bay. Recently, the two seniors met on 32nd Street, near the sand in Newport Beach.

In basketball, arguing a call doesn?t usually land you in jail. But that?s what happened to Nevious Osborne at a Costa Mesa 24 Hour Fitness early Tuesday, police said, when a disagreement over some calls during a basketball game ended with damage to his opponent?s car. Osborne, 28, of Huntington Beach argued with Michael Davis, 26, of Corona, about their game, which Osborne lost, about 12:15 a.m., police said. Officers arrested Osborne on suspicion of felony vandalism after Davis?