Meet Trey Whitley

Harbor High in Santa Cruz County isn't known for producing college basketball talent but that situation changes every so often. Going back a bit, there was center Tim Young back in the mid-90s who went on to Stanford and then a professional career overseas and currently Colin Gruber who is a junior on the UC Riverside basketball team.

Now it's time to introduce senior guard Trey Whitley.

It's not just the 17.5 points per game he scored overall this season as a member of Coach Robert Shipstead's Pirate crew which finished 20-8, 8-5 and enjoyed a third place finish in the Santa Cruz County Athletic league as well as earning a spot in the recent CCS playoffs. For the record: last season, it was 7-17, 3-9 and, prior to both Shipstead and Whitley, 1-23 and 0-12.

No, Whitley makes his teammates more effective.

It's a hard-to-quantify talent but his ability to create with the ball as well as shoot from very long distance created openings not just for himself but his Harbor High teammates. His dribble-drives brought attention from more than one member of an opponent's quintet and Whitley would either finish at the rim or kick the ball out for a catch-and-shoot good look.

He attended Santa Cruz High his freshman and sophomore years. Transferring to Harbor High as a junior, Whitley was forced to sit out some games but still earned an honorable mention all-league nod.

At 6-foot-1 and 150 pounds, he isn't the tallest or the heftiest but he's quick, with good springs in his legs, the court vision to spot opportunities for himself and others and the mind set to just do whatever is needed.

The evidence: in a February 21 matchup against Santa Cruz High, Whitley was the best performer on the floor with 21 points despite the Cardinals having a pair of ace backcourters themselves.

Shipstead, whose own playing bonafides include four years at the varsity level for Harbor, three all-Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League honors as well as a "Sophomore of the Year award, credits Whitley for "being very unselfish " and "for putting in a lot of work over the summer. He averaged 25 in league for us along with six assists, four rebounds and two blocks."

As for what he sees as his best asset, Whitley offered, "my finishing skills" and, well aware of his height vis-a-vis the next level, he is continuing to work "on my role as a point guard. There's more to it than shooting and I like to control the pace of the game."

A bit of a throwback, he cites Michael Jordan as his biggest basketball influence because "he was a spark to his teammates and always so competitive."

Whitley is looking to major in business marketing and minor in psychology in college. His reason: "Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson are great businessmen."

His views his best basketball moment to date as "beating Santa Cruz High this year." That was a 64-56 victory on January 24 against the eventual SCCAL champion.

Whitley's plan is to attend a community college next season but that destination has yet to be determined.