High school basketball: Five-stars Jason Crowe Jr. and Alijah Arenas combine for 89 points in Classic at Damien clash

By Thomas Frey Dec 27, 2024, 11:45am

Inglewood beats Chatsworth 88-84 win as Crowe goes off in 55-point performance.

Five-stars Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood (Calif.) and Alijah Arenas of Chatsworth (Calif.) went head-to-head on Thursday, combining for 89 points in an opening-round matchup at the Classic at Damien.

Arenas scored 34 and dished out 10 assists while Crowe put up 55 points with seven assists and three steals in the 88-84 Inglewood win.

Crowe sat at 46 points as his squad trailed 80-78 with 90 seconds remaining. He scored nine of the Sentinels next 10 points to clinch the victory.

Ranked No. 7 in the Class of 2026, Crowe is averaging 38.9 points per game in his first season with the Sentinels. It's the second 50-point game of the season for Crowe, who had five 50-point contests at Lynwood (Calif.) during his freshman and sophomore seasons.
Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood scored 55 points in the Sentinels' 88-84 win over Alijah Arenas and Chatsworth  at the Classic at Damien on Thursday. (Photo: Samuel Mawanda)
Jason Crowe Jr. of Inglewood scored 55 points in the Sentinels' 88-84 win over Alijah Arenas and Chatsworth at the Classic at Damien on Thursday. (Photo: Samuel Mawanda)
Arenas, the son of three-time NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas, is rated as the No. 5 overall player in the Class of 2026, although he is expected to reclassify to the Class of 2025.

In the first game of the season, Arenas eclipsed 2,000 career points. This wasn't the first high-profile matchup of the season for Arenas, who scored 25 points in a win against five-star junior Tajh Ariza and Westchester (Los Angeles, Calif.) on Nov. 19.

Arenas averaged 31.8 points per game over his first two years at Chatsworth. He led the Chancellors to an appearance in the CIF title game as a sophomore where he scored 44 points in a loss.



Crowe also has state championship experience. As a freshman at Lynwood, he scored 36 points as the Knights brought home the hardware in the 2022-23 season. He has averaged 37 points per game in his career with 2,846 career points.

While Crowe is known for his prolific scoring, he averages 6.2 assists and 3.8 steals per game this season.