CHATSWORTH, Calif. — After the son of “Pulp Fiction” and “Mission Impossible” actor Ving Rhames landed a hard foul that ignited a game-ending melee Friday, Scottie Pippen walked out of Sierra Canyon’s packed gym with a smile, Kenyon Martin happily greeted others in the stands and Rhames joined dozens of onlookers spilling onto the court.
This is what high school basketball looks like for Christian Koloko.
The 7-foot Arizona basketball signee sat at the end of Sierra Canyon’s bench while officials sorted through the mess, having been taken out early because the Trailblazers no longer needed their starters in an 88-63 blowout win over Brentwood.
The game had 57.2 seconds left on the clock when Brentwood’s Freedom Rhames fouled a Sierra Canyon reserve, and the ensuing scuffle led to the ejection of five players and a decision to end the game early at that point.
Koloko left the Sierra Canyon locker room about 15 minutes after the game ended, saying he could not discuss the game or the incident. But in general, Koloko acknowledged that he’s not exactly playing for a conventional high school team.
A well-appointed private school in the northeast San Fernando Valley with a high school tuition of $36,500, Sierra Canyon not only has Scottie Pippen Jr. and Kenyon Martin Jr. on its varsity basketball roster but also Koloko and Top 30 guard Cassius Stanley.
People watch anytime they’re playing, whether the other team has sons of Hollywood stars or not.
“It’s a lot of attention but our team right now is used to that, so I’m good,” Koloko said. “I’m just a normal kid like everyone else.”
Besides, Koloko and the core of Sierra Canyon’s team are used to this sort of thing. Martin, Pippin and Koloko already played together last summer with five-star guard Boogie Ellis on the well-regarded Oakland Soldiers’ travel team.
As an international student who arrived from Cameroon in the summer of 2017, Koloko could not stay more than a year at the public Birmingham High School in Lake Balboa, where he was a teammate of UA freshman Devonaire Doutrive last season.
So the move to Sierra Canyon as a senior was a logical jump academically and athletically.
“It makes it easier for me because I played with KJ (Martin) and Scottie with the Oakland Soldiers,” Koloko said. “I think we’re having a very good season so far. I’m pretty excited.”
The Trailblazers are 23-2 heading into a game with Paraclete on Tuesday, their only losses to national power Montverde Academy, the first in a Christmastime Hawaii tournament and the second last week at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass.
That’s also part of Koloko’s high school experience: A lot of travel, including games in Hawaii and on the East Coast, much like the Wildcats have played this season. The Trailblazers have also traveled to tournaments in San Diego and Portland this season.
Last week, Sierra Canyon originally had home games scheduled for Wednesday and Friday after its Monday game in Springfield, then moved the Wednesday game until Saturday to give it more time to recover from the Hoophall event.
That still made things pretty hectic.
“It’s been a really tiring week,” Koloko said after Friday’s game. “We took the plane, came here, go to school, had practice Wednesday, had practice Thursday and a shootaround today. So, for sure, we kind of tired. We just have to do that. That’s what we are there for.”
While finishing up his high school work this year, Koloko said he’s working on all aspects of his game and, with only 195 pounds on his 7-foot frame, also spending time in the weight room.
Over 25 games, Koloko is averaging 7.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks, swatting away four Brentwood shots on Friday. Sierra Canyon coach Andre Chevalier said his ability to run the floor for his size and offensive rebounding also have been helpful.
“He’s been doing great for us this season,” Chevalier said. “He’s especially good for us on defense. He has defended some of the best big men in the country and he’s done a great job. We are working on developing his offensive skills, giving him better balance around the basket so he can finish and extending his range to the 3 point line and free-throw line.”
Koloko is rated No. 84 overall in the class of 2019 by 247 Sports but is a consensus 3-star recruit overall, with obvious rim-protecting ability but developing offensive skills and a slender frame.
As much as the Wildcats can use frontcourt help these days, Koloko is a lot about potential at this point.
“I love Christian Koloko,” UA coach Sean Miller said last weekend. “He’s got an amazing spirit about him. He’s got an incredible attitude. He’s a willing learner. There aren’t a lot of guys that size who run the way he runs. Playing for a really good high school coach and program and being given the opportunity to continue to improve this year is big for him.”
In a way, the noise around Koloko at Sierra Canyon is making it easier for that development to happen.
The Trailblazers have plenty of other talent to take pressure and eyeballs off him, while Koloko helps the team chemistry with his agreeable personality.
“He fits into the team great,” Chevalier said. “His personality is wonderful and the guys love him. He’s a personality and a presence on the floor, but he’s never a distraction. He’s very, very coachable and wants to get better, so that way he’s great.
Maybe that’s why, when all that craziness erupted on Friday, Koloko sat back in his seat, waited for the smoke to clear and then headed out of the gym unassumingly. Just another high school student in a down jacket heading home on a cool winter’s night.
Rim shots
- Rivals moved 6-11 UA commit Zeke Nnaji to a five-star rating, giving the Wildcats a third player in the top tier of the class of 2019, along with guards Nico Mannion and Josh Green. Nnaji is rated No. 30 by Rivals, No. 33 by 247 Sports and No. 47 by ESPN.
- Arizona’s two losses in Los Angeles dropped it to No. 68 in the NCAA’s NET ratings. The Wildcats are No. 47 in the Sagarin ratings and 68 in Kenpom.
- Washington’s Jaylen Nowell won his third Pac-12 Player of the Week award after averaging 19.5 points and shooting 61 percent during the Huskies’ sweep in Oregon.
