Derrick Taylor won four City Section titles coaching basketball at Taft High. He won a Southern Section 3A title coaching at St. John Bosco and a Division II state championship with the Braves. So when he decided to come out of retirement and coach at Blair this season, you knew something good might happen.
On Friday night, Blair continued its run in the Southern Section Division 4 playoffs by upsetting No. 1-seeded Bonita 79-71. Jaleel Hunter had 14 points and 20 rebounds.
Blair lost its top player, Tim Anderson, who transferred to Pasadena. The team started 0-4. Now the Vikings are 21-9 and playing in the Division 4 quarterfinals on the road against Trabuco Hills on Tuesday.
Taylor lost his job at Taft in 2023 after guiding the Toreadors to an Open Division title. He briefly was going to coach at Gardena Serra, then stepped down for health reasons.
Things quickly have turned around for Blair, but it comes as no surprise to those who’ve seen what Taylor can do.
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