Four Sweet 16 players were on the same team in high school
Loyola Basketball Highlights Since Jamal Adams took over as head coach at Loyola (Los Angeles) in 2005, the Cubs have been among California's biggest winners when it comes to high school basketball.
The program is 226-77 during that span and Adams has received numerous Coach of the Year awards.
Yet Loyola wouldn't be at the top of the list if you were asked to identify the high school with the most former players in the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16.
Photo by David Hood
Welsh and Jackson-Cartwright
With Jacob Hazzard, Parker Jackson-Cartwright and Trey Mason at Arizona along with Thomas Welsh at UCLA, the Cubs can claim that distinction.
All four players were on Loyola's 2011-12 team that went 26-6 but had the misfortune of crossing paths with eventual state champion Mater Dei (Santa Ana) twice in the postseason.
Hazzard moved on from that team but Jackson-Cartwright, Mason and Welsh led the 2012-13 squad to a 25-8 mark. Loyola was ranked nationally entering that season's MaxPreps Holiday Classic but fell in the semifinals to the Harrison twins and Fort Bend Travis (Richmond, Texas).
MaxPreps.com's Mitch Stephens profiled the 5-foot-9 Jackson-Cartwright and 7-foot Welsh here during their run in Palm Springs.
"I know it sounds like hyperbole, but those are the two of the best human beings you could ever want to coach or be around," Adams told Stephens in December of 2012. "Smart, thoughtful, caring, hard-working. I think those traits that all translate to their play on the court."
Welsh, a 2014 McDonald's All-American, has appeared in 35 games and started three this season for UCLA, averaging 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. Jackson-Cartwright has seen time in 32 contests for the Wildcats and has dished out 58 assists while turning the ball over just 22 times.
Hazzard and Mason are walk-ons for the Wildcats but have combined to make 26 appearances this season.
Arizona meets Xavier on Thursday while UCLA attempts to take down Gonzaga in Sweet 16 action Friday.
2014-15 Arizona Wildcats High School Highlights
