THE DEFENSE MINISTER

Devin Montgomery of Alemany High.

Russell Lakey of Harvard-Westlake.

Ryan Mollins of Loyola.

All hot-shot guards on Mission League boys’ basketball teams.

All capable of big scoring games.

All slowed considerably when they played against Chaminade and Chris Canoles.

Canoles, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound senior swingman, plays tenacious, physical, in-your-face defense.

Chaminade Coach Jeff Young, who will guide the Eagles against Corona del Mar (18-10) today at 9 a.m. in the Southern Section Division III-A title game at The Pond, notes that Montgomery was a combined 11 of 36 shooting in two league games against the Eagles.

He also points out that Lakey made 14 of 39 shots in two league losses to Chaminade.

Lakey, who averaged 16.6 points this season, was held to 14 in the Eagles’ 60-57 victory over Harvard-Westlake in a III-A semifinal on Feb. 26.

“Chris always draws our first assignment on defense,” Young said. “Whether it’s a guard or a forward, Chris gets the call.”

Montgomery said Canoles is a hard-working player who “tries to get in your head.”

Coach Greg Hilliard of Harvard-Westlake says Canoles is Chaminade’s best one-on-one defender.

“He does a great job,” Hilliard said. “His mind-set devotes his attention to defense and nothing else. He’s not distracted by the need to score, but also he brings some of that football mentality to the court.”

Canoles, a sure-handed wide receiver and hard-hitting free safety, takes great pride in his ability to play defense, though he often feels like the tortoise chasing the hare when he’s guarding fleet-footed guards.

“I don’t realize what’s happening during the game,” he said. “After the [second league game against Alemany], Coach said, ‘You know, Montgomery scored only seven points.’ And I said, ‘Really?’ I felt like he was kicking my butt.

“Those players are so good and they make such great plays. Lakey is so fast that he just makes you feel so stupid . . . It feels like I’m not doing my job when he goes by me, but it’s kind of a team effort where I try to channel [players] to the sidelines.”

The strategy seems to have worked. Chaminade opponents are averaging only 46 points and shooting 35%. Last season, they averaged 52 points and 39% shooting.

“As far as the team goes, I don’t think we have the same talent,” said Canoles, referring to last year’s Eagle squad that defeated Bishop Montgomery, 80-66, for the III-A title. “We have a go-to guy. Last year, we had five go-to guys. Cayce [Cook] and [Scott] Borchart are two outstanding players, but we don’t have the level of talent we had last year. It’s definitely not the same team. This year we know how to win and that’s what makes us a good team.”

Canoles is equally candid and modest when asked about his athletic talents.

Canoles, who is averaging 6.1 rebounds, considers it a privilege to play with teammates who “dedicate themselves to basketball the way I dedicate myself to football.”

He also acknowledges his offensive skills--he averages 4.6 points on 32.7% shooting--are lacking.

Canoles was a Times’ All-Valley second-team football selection last season after catching 66 passes for 999 yards and 13 touchdowns. But he failed to draw serious interest from programs such as Stanford and Washington, as he had hoped.

He will try to make Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s team as a nonscholarship player in the fall.

“I think I can play for a team like Stanford,” said Canoles, who has a 4.3 grade-point average. “But I was watching a recruiting show and they were talking about guys like [Long Beach Poly’s] Kareem Kelly and Sammie Parker. And they’re so fast and they’re so good that I can see where if I was a big-time college football program, I wouldn’t want someone like me who’s slower. I can see in that aspect where I’m not going to get recruited, but I feel I can play the game.”

Canoles took recruiting trips to Harvard, Yale and Fresno State, but didn’t feel entirely comfortable at any of them.

“I didn’t like Harvard,” he said. “I went back there and it seemed like the only people I could relate to were football players . . . It just never clicked when I was there.”

“And I didn’t want to go to a place that was so far away and I would just be interacting with football players.”

Canoles, an only child, said Fresno State offered him a full athletic scholarship, but he wasn’t thrilled with the campus and felt that the school’s academic standards were lacking.

Before he starts his college career, Canoles hopes to break the Chaminade record of 42-8 in the triple jump during track season.

But first there is a date with Corona del Mar.

The Sea Kings finished fourth in the six-team Sea View League with a 4-6 record.

But first-place Santa Margarita advanced to the Division II-A semifinals, second-place Newport Harbor was beaten in the II-AA quarterfinals and third-place Irvine lost to Oxnard in a I-AA playoff opener.

“It would mean a lot to win consecutive championships,” Canoles said. “Defending a title is one of the toughest things there is to do.

“Every game you’re out there with a bull’s-eye on your back. Every team wants to play their best game against you.”