NorCal basketball power shows it still has plenty of pop at Golden Gate Summer Shootout.

By Harold Abend, Special to CalHiSports.com

Before hitting the road next week for the NCAA Summer Certified Event viewing period, where we try uncovering California girls basketball players not on any of the major radar screens, we decided to stay close to home for the 14th Annual Golden Gate Summer Shootout

The June 27-28 event, managed by former Redwood of Larkspur Athletic Director Jim Halm and with proceeds benefiting his non-profit organization's Education Assistance Fund, found 24 boys teams and six girls teams competing at a combined five gyms throughout Marin County.

Teams from as far away Reno, Merced, Sacramento, Roseville and San Jose competed in the boys division, while all of the girls' teams were from the Redwood Empire with the exception of Albany.

With events spread out over so many venues and temperatures well into the 100s outside and just as hot if not hotter in the gyms, CalHiSports.com decided to focus on a few of the top Redwood Empire teams and players in action.

The result is the four games at three different gyms got coverage over the two days of the Shootout.

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By Mark Tennis & Harold Abend
Contributing: Paul Muyskens

Brian Barnes from Tesoro of Las Flores and Scott Swartz from McNair of Stockton both enjoyed historic football seasons coaching their teams last fall and both will be leading all-star teams later this summer.

Swartz, in fact, is knee-deep in coaching this week as he prepares the North team for Saturday's 36th annual Central California Lions All-Star Football Classic at the University of Pacific in Stockton. Barnes will get going later on as he will lead the South team on July 10 at Orange Coast College in the 50th Brea Lions Orange County North-South All-Star Football Game with the North being directed by his father, John, the longtime head coach at Los Alamitos.

With plenty of seniority, the elder Barnes doesn't have to worry in the current educational climate of budget cuts and financial tightening. Younger coaches like his son and Swartz, however, are in limbo despite the success they had last season.

Brian Barnes and his team at Tesoro went 13-1 and were on the verge of 14-0 before losing the lead in the fourth quarter and falling to Long Beach Poly in the CIF Southern Section Division I final. It was by far the most successful season in school history.

Barnes still recently received a termination notice regarding his teaching position from the Capistrano Unified School District. He was given the same notice a year ago, but was rehired. He is hoping for a repeat of that sequence later this summer and told the Orange County Register he is planning on being at Tesoro again this fall and is not exploring options elsewhere.

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