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On some basketball nights, the Big West becomes a 6-foot-and-under league.
Four of the league’s top-12 scorers are no taller than 72 inches. UC Davis guard TJ Shorts II, who is 5 feet 9 while taking a deep breath, was the Big West’s player of the year for the 2017-18 season. Shorts also is UCD’s top rebounder. Six of the nine Big West teams start players 6 feet or shorter. Terrell Gomez, Cal State Northridge’s 5-8 guard, is averaging 19.1 points. Max Hazzard, a 6-foot point, is UC Irvine’s leading scorer.
Tonight, two of the league’s under-sized players — Cal Poly’s 5-10 Donovan Fields and Hawaii’s 5-9 Brocke Stepteau — face off in the Stan Sheriff Center. The tip will be at 7:05 p.m.
“The Big West has always been open to (under-sized) guys,” Cal Poly coach Joe Callero said. “The higher, bigger schools … they want 6-1 to 6-4 point guards. But you look at TJ Shorts and Donovan Fields and Gomez, we’ve got guys all under 5-11 who are really doing it. Donovan (Fields) is one of them.”
UH coach Eran Ganot theorized the widespread emphasis on ball screens fits players who are quick and aggressive, regardless of height.
“There’s a different dynamic to guarding ball screens,” Ganot said. “They can split it. They can slip right through before they can get there.”
A shorter guard often can mask his intent behind a screen, similar to a running back in football emerging from an I formation.
“Getting through holes as a running back is kind of the same thing as ball screens,” Stepteau said. “You can kind of wiggle through certain areas that not everyone can. The key thing with that is you’ve got to be able to make the right reads. There are a lot of guys who are fast and quick, but if they can’t make the right reads, they’re not going to be effective. I think the combination of my size and my speed and kind of learning the system and what to look for in the offense has helped me put it all together.”
Callero said Fields, who played in football in high school, has embraced the rugged drives into the lane.
“When you’re undersized, you’d better have that,” Callero said. “If you’re hit a few times, you’re less likely to cringe. That’s part of the game. You’ve got to make sure you’re going to be aggressive enough.”
Fields and Stepteau have found creative ways to score in the paint. While Stepteau leads the ’Bows in 3-point accuracy (40.3 percent), his pet move is a floater off drives.
“My dad used to sit in the driveway with a broom stick,” Stepteau recalled. “He would put it in the air, right above the rim. I had to learn how to shoot over that. He said if I can make floaters over that, I shouldn’t have any problems making floaters over 6-11 defenders. I’ve been doing that since I was probably in the third grade. The floater is something I’ve always had.”
In Big West play, Stepteau has an assist-turnover ratio of 2.6-to-1, fourth-best in the league. Fields’ ratio is 2.1
“Donovan is a tremendous competitor (with) great quickness,” Callero said. “He’s also constantly improved. He’s gone from a point guard that didn’t have a very good assist-turnover ratio to a very solid decision maker, a much better defensive player.”
Stepteau also has become a pesky defender against taller opponents.
“That can be a weapon, too, using size and quickness,” Stepteau said. “A lot of taller people aren’t used to going up against people my size. Defensively, they’re not used to having a guard that low. When they’re dribbling, they’re not used to being guarded by someone that low to the ground.”
BIG WEST BASKETBALL
>> Who: Cal Poly (5-17, 1-8 BWC) vs. Hawaii (14-9, 5-4 BWC)
>> When: 7:05 tonight
>> Where: Stan Sheriff Center
>> TV: Spectrum Sports
>> Radio: 1420-AM
VERTICALLY CHALLENGED PLAYMAKERS
BWC players 6 feet and under who are making an impact
PLAYER / SCHOOL / HEIGHT / NOTES
Terrell Gomez CSUN 5-8 19.1 ppg
TJ Shorts II UC Davis 5-9 15.0 ppg, 4.9 rpg
Brocke Stepteau Hawaii 5-9 40.3% on 3s
Donovan Fields Cal Poly 5-10 16.0 ppg
Devearl Ramsey UCSB 6-0 3.5 apg
Max Hazzard UC Irvine 6-0 12.2 ppg
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