Three Area Players Earn Southern Section Honors

Three South Bay players--Stais Boseman of Morningside High, Akeli Jackson of Serra and Jimmy Williamson of South Torrance--have been named to the first-ever All-Southern Section basketball team by the Amateur Athletic Foundation-First Interstate Bank board of athletics.

Players from each of the section’s five divisions were eligible for the elite 10-player squad. In the past, players were honored only within their own divisions.

The team boasts five players who were division players of the year, including Boseman and Jackson. Boseman, a 6-foot-4 swingman, was Division III player of the year for the second consecutive season, and Jackson, a 6-8 center, was Division IV player of the year.

Other player-of-the-year honorees named to the team were Artesia forward Charles O’Bannon and Muir point guard Jacque Vaughn (Division II co-players of the year) and Mater Dei forward Miles Simon (Division I player of year).

Rounding out the team were guards Edward Gray of J.W. North of Riverside, Adam Jacobson of Crescenta Valley and Cameron Murray of Glendora, and forward Monte Marcaccini of Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks. The players are all seniors except Murray and Simon, who are juniors.

Boseman, a three-time all-section selection, averaged 17.9 points and 7.1 rebounds to lead Morningside (29-6) to the Ocean League title, the Division III-AA title, the Southern regional title and its second consecutive berth in the State Division III final. The Monarchs were beaten by Palo Alto, 79-59. Boseman has signed a letter of intent with USC.

Jackson, a Cal State Long Beach recruit, averaged 23.2 points, 14 rebounds and four blocked shots a game to lead Serra (26-7) to the Camino Real League title, the Division IV-A title, the Southern regional title and the school’s first state championship.

The 5-10 Williamson was the catalyst behind South Torrance’s best season ever. The slender point guard averaged 19.5 points and an area-leading 10.3 assists, helping South (28-4) win the Pioneer League title and finish second to Morningside for the Division III-AA and Southern regional titles. He is being recruited by several Division I schools, including USC, Loyola Marymount and Fresno State.

Peninsula forward Matt Acres, a 6-7 senior who averaged 16.8 points and helped the Panthers (20-8) reach the Division I-AA quarterfinals, was the only area player named to the All-Division I squad. Acres was a second-team pick.