PLAYOFF PROFILES : Harper’s Play Measures Up

Carloes Harper is like a measuring stick to the Canoga Park High boys’ basketball team: The bigger the game, the better he plays.

That’s the impression being left by Harper, who has scored 74 points in the Hunters’ first two playoff games.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound swingman who averaged 23.6 points during the regular season, scored 33 points in a first-round City Section 3-A Division playoff victory over Bell. In the quarterfinals against Granada Hills, he recorded a career-high 41 points.

If this is a trend, expect a game in the 50s for Harper at 8 tonight when No. 4-seeded Canoga Park (21-4) meets Huntington Park in a semifinal at Cal State Los Angeles.

“He basically put us on his shoulders and carried us [Wednesday against Granada Hills],” said Canoga Park Coach Ralph Turner, who had three starters in foul trouble in the first half.

“His intensity level is way up and it shows on the court. He’s a smooth player out there but now he’s playing hard. And there’s a difference there.”

And there’s just one reason for it, Harper claims.

“I want to win the City [championship] real bad,” he said.

Although just a junior, Harper was not exactly an unknown heading into the season. As a sophomore, he owned the fifth-best rebounding average (13.0) in the region, but was scoring fewer than 10 points a game.

A year later, he brings the complete package to each game. Harper, who transferred from Antelope Valley High after his freshman season, is the fourth-leading scorer and rebounder among area City players.

Harper admits he’s surprised he has performed even better in the playoffs than during the regular season.

“I didn’t know I was gonna do better than I [had been doing],” he said.

Harper began turning heads in late December, when Canoga Park moved through the Hart tournament like a hunter stalking its prey--and Harper was the team’s sharpshooter. He averaged 28.5 points and was named the tournament’s most valuable player.

Two more victories and Harper might add City 3-A player of the year honors to his impressive resume.