High School Career
LeRon Ellis began his athletic accomplishments at an early age. He helped lead the Parkrose High School boy's basketball team to the Oregon state semi-finals during his freshman year. Ellis was also selected as part of the 1984 Oregon Boys' High School Water Polo All-Tourney Second Team and his school's water polo team placed third in the Oregon state water polo championship tournament. LeRon Ellis left behind his feats in Portland after two years with Parkrose High for a new start in Southern California. Ellis moved back to California with his father and the two settled in Orange County, where he caught the eye of Gary McKnight, the boys' basketball coach for the nearby Mater Dei High School.
Ellis excelled with the Mater Dei Monarchs and soon became one of the team's cornerstone players in the center position. He demonstrated both dominant offensive and defensive performances on the court, excellent shot blocking skills and was noted for being considerably quick and agile for his age. The Mater Dei Monarchs posted another impressive record of 30-1 during the 1985–86 season and established a 59-game winning streak (second-longest in CIF history) over the past two seasons. Their spectacular season was followed by another CIF Southern Section 5-A tournament title in March 1986, making the Monarchs back to back champions. LeRon Ellis scored a then career-high of 30 points in the tournament, was named the tournament's MVP and was selected as the Los Angeles Times' Player of the Week. However Mater Dei fell short in a close overtime game to Crenshaw High School in the CIF Division I state final game later that month.
During the 1986 summer off-season Ellis received a number of recruitment offers from the nation's top NCAA basketball programs. Ellis eventually narrowed his choices down to St. John's, Georgetown University, the University of Southern California and the University of Kentucky. Former Laker player and coach Pat Riley helped persuade Ellis to attend Kentucky onbehalf of Wildcat's coach Eddie Sutton. On September 15, 1986, LeRon Ellis announced he would sign with Kentucky. Ellis was rated as one of the top 20 high school basketball players in the nation and was the star player for the number two ranked boys high school basketball team at the start of his senior year.
LeRon Ellis began the season helping his team make it to the 1986 King Cotton Tournament finals. The Monarchs went on to play what would become one of their most fabled basketball seasons in the school's history. Ellis and company replicated their previous 30–1 record during the 19867–87 season and bagged their third straight CIF Southern Section 5-A title. Mater Dei preceded to the state CIF State Championship tournament, ousting the top-ranked Fairfax High School in the semi-finals. The Monarchs completed their memorable season in style by defeating Ygnacio Valley High School in the finals and clinching the school's first CIF Division I state title. LeRon Ellis won a series of prestigious awards that season while averaging 22.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and a 54% field goal shooting percentage. By the end of the season LeRon Ellis was considered to be one of the country's top high school basketball players and the Mater Dei basketball team was ranked number one in the nation by USA Today.
LeRon Ellis also displayed outstanding athletic skills off the basketball court while at Mater Dei. He returned to water polo during his senior year and led the team in scoring. Ellis was also a member of the Mater Dei track & field team and participated in the high jump and triple jump, where his 46-9.5 mark in the latter was placed in the top 25 all-time Orange County boys' track & field triple jump record. LeRon Ellis was even involved in several non-athletic school activities, including participating in several theater productions with the Mater Dei drama club and winning first prize in the school's bake-off.
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