"Quentin Boston has a special feeling about his San Juan High School boys basketball team.

The Spartans have height, speed and athleticsm - all attributes Boston believes can take them very deep into the postseason.
' I think we have all the components to win a championship,' he said.

And Boston, a 6-foot-1 senior guard, knows a thing or two about quality basketball, having played at Murrah High in Jackson, Miss., last season, when the Mustangs ended the year ranked 15th in the Fox Fab 50 poll.

Boston, whose father, Dan Mooney, played professional basketball in Europe for more than a decade, said he is confident he can help San Juan because of his pedigree.

'I think I bring a lot of knowledge and leadership,' said Boston, who lives in Rio Linda. 'Even though I'm new to the team, I tell people where to be at times, and I'm probably the most vocal guy on the court.'

'I think I'm a leader-type of guy, and I know the game. I want to go as far as I can take my team.'

Boston leads the team in scoring with a 19.0 average and scored an area-high 44 points in the Spartans' 88-85 double-overtime agains Capital Christian in the Viking Classic tournament Dec 15 at Victory Christian

While Boston thinks this years' San Juan team can rival the Adrian Hillman-led teams of the early 1990s, coach Erich Wohlenberg said he isn't ready to put his team in that category.

Yes, the Spartans may be 9-0 - before the Kendall Arnett tourmnament that started Thursday (Dec 27) and ended Saturday - and off to the best start in Wohlenberg's five years as head coach. But the Mark Lee-coached San Juan teams of 1990-1993 won 80 of 97 games and capped the run with a section title in 1993.

'Those teams were so great,' said Wohlenberg, who was Lee's assistant at the time, 'We had three guys in the lineup that were 6-7 or taller, and the whole starting lineup averaged in double digits. 'I don't see how this team could ever be compared to them.'

Because of the immense talent of those teams, Wohlenberg is setting more modest goals.

'If we're in a position to contend for the league title, we'll be happy.' he said, 'League play will be very competitive.'

Although this year's team has the potential to be Wohlenberg's best - San Juan went 17-ll last year and made the playoffs for the first time under his reign - inexperience is the biggest factor that could impede the Spartans.

Boston and 6-5 senior post Merckx Feenstra are transfers, and 6-7 senior Jaman Colberty did not play last year because he was ineligible. Of the core players in the rotation, only wing Ronald Motley saw extensive playing time in 2000-2001,

The only playing time these Spartans had together was during summer-leage competition.

'It's like compressing two seasons into one,' Wohlenberg said. 'Merckx and Jaman played little or not at all last year. So to get ready for league, it's like we're playing their junior seasons in December.'

Colbert who said his grade-point average was far below the required 2.0 for almost his entire junior year, has committed himself to the classroom this year. He said he is maintaining a 2.8 GPA this year.

'(Last season), there were plenty of nights I felt like it was my fault when they lost, that I was letting the team down because I was ineligible,' said Colbert, who is averaging 12.8 points and eight rebounds per game. 'This year my main focus has been grades. Now I just need to keep them up.'

Colbert scored a season-high 25 points in San Juan's 65-55 victory against Del Campo on Dec 19.

Motley, who is Colbert's cousin, said he is happy to have the raw but talented big man on the roster.

'He helps us a lot on offense and defense,' said Motley, the team's second-leading scorer at 16.1 points per game. 'He changes a lot of shots and runs the floor as well as our guards.'

The Spartans have jelled so quickly that they were able to present Wohlenberg with two early Christmas presents: In addition to winning the Viking Classis - in which Boston was named most valuable player and Motley and Colbert were named to the all-tournament team - San Juan won the Live Oak tournament Dec 6-8.

The Spartans had not won a tournament since 1992.

But the championships did not come without some anxious mements. San Juan nearly blew a large lead against Golden Empire League-rival Encina in the Live Oak final.

The Spartans entered the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead, but the Bulldogs hit one of two free throws with 14 seconds remaining to give San Juan a 60-59 victory.

'If that game had gone two minutes longer, Encina would have won by six,' Wohlenberg said.

The Spartans also struggled against a Capital Christian team that features 6-6 senior forwards Chris Thornton and Joseph Mitchell. The Cougars held a 37-29 lead at halftime and were ahead 67-62 with 40 seconds to go, but the Spartans rallied and tied it when Motley hit a three-pointer at the buzzer, Capital Christian point guard Solomon Mercado hit a buzzer-beating three pointer to force the second overtime.

'My hair is getting white,' Wohlenberg said, 'When he hit that shot I just sat down. But our guys responded well. They ran over to the sidelines, said 'OK, let's do this,' and we won the game.'

Although the Spartans are undefeated, they have struggled against teams that are similar in athletic ability like Encina and Foothill, who San Juan faced in the opener of the Kendall Arnett tournament at Placer High School on Thursday.

'We've got to get better at handling full-court pressure, and that's what they're best at,' Wohlenberg said.

To get his team to take advantage of its strengths, Wohlenberg has tried to get his players to take their time each time up the floor.

'A 10-second possession for us right now is really long,' he said. 'The ball is getting to a scorer's hand very fast, and you can't tell a scorer not to score or he'll become hesitant. But if we don't make teams defend us, they will have more energy on the offensive end.

'Running and taking bad shots is going to lose us a game against good teams. If we want to contend for the league title, we have to go to the next level. We're not going to be able to rely on athleticism.'

The Spartans have been lucky so far, but the coach knows his team is just a break or two away from leaving the ranks of the unbeaten.

'We are so ripe to get beat right now,' Wohlenberg said, 'If we don't get better at running our offense, we're going to be in serious trouble.'

And whether the Spartans keep winning or go into a funk, Wohlenberg will still feel pressure.

'Nine-0 is a as stressful as 0-9,' he said."

Robert S. Johnson can be reached at (916) 348-2743 or rjohnson@sacbee.com