MaxPreps.com National Coach of the Year: Westchester's Ed Azzam

Of the 11 defending state champions ranked nationally by MaxPreps.com prior to the 2009-10 season, just three were able to repeat. None navigated a tougher path in doing so than head coach Ed Azzam’s Westchester (Los Angeles) Comets.

Westchester (32-3) faced nine teams that appeared in MaxPreps.com’s Xcellent 25 at some point in the season – in-state powers Mater Dei and Taft, as well as Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.), Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.), Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), Penn Wood (Lansdowne, Pa.), Rice (New York, N.Y.) and St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.).

Despite a pair of setbacks at the City of Palms Classic in December and a letdown against Rice in late January, Westchester pulled together at the right time. The Comets won 16 in a row to close the season and capture their second straight Division I state title. They went 7-3 against the aforementioned Murderer’s Row, beating Taft twice.

“We play a very demanding schedule,” Azzam said. “We are willing to compete at the highest level against anybody at any time.”

Azzam has guided the program to six state championships since 1998 (1998, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2010) and 10 Los Angeles City Section titles. He is 677-206 (.812) in 31 years at the school, where he also serves as the Dean of Students and has taught a variety of subjects in the classroom.

Thanks to his team’s latest championship effort, Azzam has another honor to add to his resume – MaxPreps.com’s 2009-10 National Coach of the Year presented by Milk.

But Azzam insists that the credit goes to his players and coaching staff.

Seniors Denzel Douglas, Kareem Jamar (a Montana verbal commitment), Jordin Mayes (Arizona), Reggie Murphy and Dwayne Polee served as the core Westchester’s back-to-back championship runs and 67-5 record over the past two seaons.

“They really did a great job of continuing to listen and allowing the coaching staff to teach and coach,” Azzam said. “They were really special in terms of listening and playing together. Very unselfish offensively.

“Other than Dwayne, this isn’t a great team athletically, but all the parts fit together. They are just about as good as we have had, although it’s tough to beat the 2002 group.”

That’s good company as Westchester’s 2002 state championship team featured Hassan “Hot Sauce” Adams (Arizona, NBA, Europe), Trevor Ariza (UCLA, NBA), Brandon Bowman (Georgetown, NBDL, Europe), Ashanti Cook (Georgetown, Europe) and Brandon Heath (San Diego State, Europe).

The Comet coaching staff includes Earl Brown, Dewitt Cotton, Brian Henderson (largely responsible for putting together Westchester’s annually rugged schedule), Jason Sanders, Tim Varnell and Frank Wood.

“We push for the kids to get a little better every day and hopefully by the time they leave they will be improved academically, socially and athletically,” Azzam said.

It’s clearly an approach that is working. Under Azzam, the Comets are 6-0 in the California Division I state championship game, which pairs regional winners from the northern and southern parts of the state in a winner-take-all final.

“Part of that is the competition in Southern California – it’s so outstanding,” Azzam said. “You are prepared to play against any type of team when you get to the state final. Being fortunate and getting a little good luck doesn’t hurt either.”

The biggest roadblock en route to Bakersfield for the championship this year was Orange County private school power Mater Dei, which featured three Pac-10-bound starters in Keala King (Arizona State), Tyler Lamb (UCLA) and Gary Franklin (Cal). The Monarchs spent much of the season ranked in the top 10 in national polls.

Westchester nearly turned the March 20 showdown at USC’s Galen Center into a laugher by building a 20-point lead in the third quarter. Mater Dei clawed back but the Comets earned the right to advance with a 71-63 win. Remarkably, it was Azzam’s first victory over Mater Dei and head coach Gary McKnight in nine meetings dating back to 1989.

“It’s two of the better programs in Southern California and we don’t play very often,” Azzam said. “It was a game that meant a lot. Mater Dei has a lot of pride and character. Whenever you play a team that has talent and is well-coached, you feel a little bit of pride that you overcame that.”

Azzam’s storied run at Westchester is far from over. He indicated that he is at least four or five years away from retiring from his administrative role at the school and that won’t necessarily coincide with stepping away from the sideline.

“I really enjoy teaching the game,” Azzam said. “You are still able to get to the kids before the point where they think they know everything. I’ll be here as long as the players continue to allow me to teach.”