Rams look for place in basketball hierarchy

Tim Graham

Tuesday, Dec. 10, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

In the early talk of which team will win the Southern AAAA Sunrise Division boys' basketball title this season, it's been hard for Rancho to get a word in edgewise.

Most people hear Las Vegas, which won the division last year and has looked impressive again thus far. Then voices cry Valley, which touts Nevada's toughest backcourt tandem in LaRontae Johnson and Jevon Banks.

But what about the Rams? Do they deserve to be mentioned in the same breath?

Head coach Tony Hopkins thinks so, and he hopes senior sharpshooter Arthur Ireland will back him up on it, including tonight when Rancho hosts Bonanza in an inter-division game at 6:30.

"I'd have to say Las Vegas is going to be awfully tough, and Valley has two of the best players in the state," Hopkins said. "But Arthur offers us something."

Ireland may be one of the most versatile players in the city. As a shooting guard, he can be devastating from long range. But at 6-foot-2, he can battle underneath against the best of them.

"He's such a versatile player, and the fact that he plays two-guard for us makes us that much better," Hopkins said. "He does so many things that allow us to have success."

"He can post up, and when he posts up, he posts up. With the smaller guards defending him, he has his way in that area. Then, if there's a bigger man on him, he shoots the ball well from the perimeter."

As a forward, Ireland averaged 19.6 points and 6.1 rebounds last season after transferring back to Rancho from Eisenhower High in Los Angeles. Those numbers made him a first-team All-Sunrise selection.

But Ireland isn't the only player the Rams are counting on.

Big rebounder DeJuan Peterson is back for his senior season. The 6-4 forward averaged nine points and 10.2 boards last season.

"I wouldn't trade those two guys for anybody in the league," Hopkins said of Ireland and Peterson, just minutes after praising Valley's Johnson and Banks. "They play hard."

They also play with the most experience. The rest of Rancho's starting lineup consists of juniors.

Center DeWayne Rogers averaged six points last season as a part-time starter. Forward Charles Holmes averaged three points off the bench. Point guard Darnell Harris, a natural off-guard, played junior varsity last year, but is considered one of the Rams' better shooters.

Hopkins is counting on the non-division schedule to help his team find itself.

"This is the preseason right now," he said. "We'll just iron out some kinks. We won't see Bonanza again this season unless we see them in the playoffs, so we're just working on finding our stride. Everybody's pretty much rolling into preseason that way.

"Ultimately, everyone's working to get their team ready for conference play, developing a bench, making sure their starters are giving them timing and execution.

"When it comes into the conference season, we'll have all those questions answered."

In other games involving boys AAAA schools, Boulder City is at Silverado; Clark visits Valley; Durango heads to Basic; Cheyenne goes to Eldorado; Cimarron-Memorial plays at Green Valley; and Western travels to Chaparral.

All those games tip off at 6:30 p.m., while Bishop Gorman visits Vo-Tech at 7 p.m.

In girls action, Silverado invades Boulder City; Valley visits Clark; Rancho heads to Bonanza; Basic travels to Durango; Green Valley plays at Cimarron; Chaparral goes to Western; and Vo-Tech visits Bishop Gorman.

With the exception of Eldorado at Cheyenne tipping off at 7:30 p.m., the rest of the girls games start at 6:30 p.m.