NEWS FLASH

North by Northwestern: Kevin Bentley of Montclair Prep, a 6-2, 215-pound senior, committed to Northwestern. The linebacker was selected All-Valley by The Times.

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Two for the road: Oxnard High running back Desmond Davis and Taft cornerback Airabin Justin committed to Utah.

Davis, a Times’ All-Ventura County back, rushed for 1,640 yards and 17 touchdowns in 221 carries in 1997. He was Oxnard’s leading scorer with 108 points and led the Yellowjackets to an 8-3-1 record.

Justin, who had six interceptions and was an All-Northwest Valley Conference, has yet to get a qualifying Scholastic Assessment Test score.

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Not done: Jeff Engilman will return for a 12th season as Sylmar High’s football coach.

“I’m definitely coming back,” Engilman said Tuesday.

Engilman contemplated retirement in recent years, but said the 1997 season was fun because of the help he received from his assistants.

BASKETBALL

On hold: The Cleveland High girls’ team will be without two starters indefinitely.

LaShanda Smiley, who leads the Cavaliers with averages of 16.1 points and 10.3 rebounds, suffered a sprained right ankle in Cleveland’s 55-54 loss to El Camino Real last week and is expected to be sidelined at least two weeks.

Malinda Malone, who is averaging 9.4 rebounds, sat out the team’s past three games at the request of her mother to concentrate on academics. Coach Kimberly Kelly said Malone is academically eligible to play.

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He’s baaack!: Kennedy High sophomore Montell Duhon has recovered from a sprained ankle and will play today against Granada Hills, Coach Tim Guy said.

Duhon, a 6-4 starting forward, missed the Golden Cougars’ 80-64 loss to Birmingham on Friday.

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Shock waves: Patrick Auerbach, a graduate of El Camino Real and UCLA, is the new assistant general manager-director of public relations for the Detroit Shock of the WNBA.

BASEBALL

New skipper: Marc Saraceno has been hired as coach at Montclair Prep. Saraceno, 41, guided Providence, led by future major leaguer Jeff Cirillo, to a Southern Section title in 1986. He was an assistant at Calabasas last season.

BOXING

Another KO: Heavyweight Lance Whitaker of Granada Hills improved to 13-0 with a first-round knockout of Joe Ballard in a scheduled eight-round bout Friday in Atlantic City.

Whitaker, who has knocked out all his opponents, dropped Ballard (11-3) with a combination..