BASKETBALL : Hines Missed More Than Ride to Tournament

As College of the Canyons, minus starting forward Anthony Hines, came out for the third-place game of the Crown City basketball tournament at Pasadena, Coach Lee Smelser looked into the stands and saw Hines’ father.

“I saw him and he saw me,” Smelser said. “It seemed as if we were both saying, ‘Where’s Anthony?’ ”

Hines said his father dropped him off at Canyons at 5:30 p.m. Last Friday’s game was scheduled to start at 7 p.m. He had missed the bus.

“For as long as I can remember, we have always left school two hours before our games,” Smelser said.

Hines’ father returned to Canyons to retrieve his son, but they didn’t return in time for Canyons’ win over Mt. San Antonio.

“The tournament people were asking where he was,” Smelser said. “They wanted to put him on the all-tournament team.”

Instead, Canyons’ Ron Stapp, who scored 22 points after leaving the game briefly with a cut eye, was named to the all-tournament team.

Vincent Ray, who last season led College of the Canyons to the second round of the state playoffs by averaging more than 20 points a game, is making noise again--this time across the Pacific.

Ray, a 6-4 guard for Hawaii Hilo, is averaging 12.8 points and five rebounds a game as a starter. In seven games for Hilo (3-4), Ray has 15 assists.

At the Sports Arena on Saturday, fans will have a chance to see Boston Celtics Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish and Moorpark Raiders David Bussey, Tom Neumayr and Dave Inemer all on the same court.

Moorpark will play East Los Angeles in a preliminary game before the Celtics’ game against the Clippers. The preliminary game starts at 4 p.m., and $12 tickets are available for $10 through Coach Al Nordquist.

Information: (805) 529-2321.

Following the NCAA’s lead, community colleges implemented the three-point shot this season. College of the Canyons guard Kevin Honaker and his coach, Lee Smelser, couldn’t be happier.

Honaker has made 50 of 124 three-pointers in 14 games.

“He has the green light to shoot that thing,” Smelser said.