The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
The roster may change from year to year for the Lakewood basketball team, but the standard stays the same.
The Lancers are entering a transition year after graduating a deep class of seniors, and they’ll have practically an entirely new starting roster when the season starts. But even with new players and moving pieces, the goal for Lakewood coach Duane Cooper remains the same.
“We want to win the Moore League,” he said simply. “That goal isn’t going to change.”
Lakewood only has a handful of returning seniors this year, but that experience will be key in leading a relatively young group. One of those leaders is senior captain Diquin Minor, a six-foot guard who has stepped up as a vocal presence.
“I’m just trying to take my experience from the last few years and help lead the team in a good way,” Minor said. “It doesn’t matter what team we’re playing, we just have to go. We have to play Lakewood basketball. I’m trying to be an example and we just gotta play our game and be humble.”
When it comes to the team’s standard, Minor says he actually doesn’t want it to stay the same this year.
“I don’t want to keep it the same, I want it to be higher than it is,” he said. “At the end of the season I want people to know that we came out here to set the tone. If everybody can be in the right mindset then I don’t think it’ll be a problem.”
Fellow senior Travis Pope will also add experience and the pair will be surrounded by a large group of junior talent, giving Lakewood a versatile mix of players across both the frontcourt and backcourt. Juniors Kalin Poullard, Samuel Smith, Carson Gomes and Chase McClain will all be involved, along with fellow junior Julian Marshal, who brings the most height to a relatively small group at 6-foot-4.
With that lack of height, Cooper says it’ll be key to have a collective effort on the court, especially when it comes to rebounding.
“We just always have to box out,” Cooper said. “We can’t expect one person to do it, it has to be a cumulative thing. Everyone has to be boxing out and we can’t take shortcuts with anything because we’re small.”
The Lancers will also have sophomore Jarius Tiupita in the rotation, along with a pair of football players joining the team in seniors Kai Boikanyo and Tiwan Jones. Jones was a captain on the football team and the Moore League Defensive Player of the Year, and Cooper expects him to be a leader and translate that defensive presence to the basketball court.
“Tiwan is a great defender and he wants to be the one to guard the best guy on the other team everytime,” he said of Jones. “He played basketball as a freshman.”
Lakewood finished 7-5 last year in the Moore League in third place, before falling in the first round of the CIF-SS Division 2AA playoffs. The Lancers have had a pair of 10-win seasons in the last four years in 2022 and 2024, finishing in second place in the league both times. It’s been over a decade since Lakewood won the Moore League.
Cooper says he formed a non-league schedule to help the Lancers get prepared for their league schedule, including a pair of matchups against Mira Costa. Lakewood will open its league schedule against Jordan on Dec. 12.
