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For Mira Costa, Whiteside is the right side
by John Tawa
When talking about Tara Whiteside, the numbers to know are 4.0 and 24.0. The former is the junior's grade point average in honors classes at Mira Costa High School. The latter represents the five-foot-nine-inch wing player's scoring average for the Mustangs' girls' basketball team. It's a combination of academic excellence and athletic prowess that is the envy of all.
"She's very intelligent, innovative, creative, respectful and a wonderful athlete," said junior class adviser Denise Anderson. "The best thing about her is she has a wonderful personality."
"She's the first to practice and the last to leave," said her coach Sylvia Holly. "She's a throwback player. Every once in a while, you're lucky enough to coach a kid like this."
Last year as a sophomore, Whiteside averaged 17 points per game on a 15-9 team and was named the Ocean League's Most Outstanding Player. This year, she's taken her game to even higher levels, and has approached her school record of 38 points in a game on more than one occasion.
"It seems like she's saved all of her big games for when the competition is a little better," Holly said. "She could score 50 on some schools, that's just how good she is. She gets double and triple-teamed a lot but she still gets her points."
Whiteside, who hopes to parlay her talents into a basketball scholarship in 2001, credits her parents for her academic discipline.
"They stress school, especially my dad," explained Whiteside, whose father Jim is Chevron's Manager of Operations. "They are always reminding me that I'm going to need to fall back on something if I end up getting hurt and can't play sports any more."
A straight "A" student is obviously capable in every subject, but Whiteside has a particular love of science.
"I want to be involved in sports medicine as an athletic trainer or a sports doctor," she said.
On the court, Whiteside plays a graceful, intelligent style of basketball. She is an exciting ballhandler, equally adept with either hand, and possesses a wicked crossover dribble that freezes her opponents. She has an outstanding shot, but plays under control, letting the action come to her. She is a fiery defender, not afraid to mix it up under the boards or step into the passing lane for steals and easy hoops. But, most importantly, she is the team's leader, always playing hard and inspiring younger teammates to play as hard as she does.
Her play in the second quarter against Ocean League rival Torrance last Friday underscores the kind of player she is. With her team leading 17-10 after the first quarter, Whiteside single-handedly outscored the Tartars 11-7 in the second quarter to help Costa open up a 33-17 halftime bulge that they would never relinquish against a team previously undefeated in the league. Whiteside added five rebounds in the quarter and logged some time in the post when 6-2 center Hilary Stromath was forced to the bench with foul trouble.
But her crowning achievement came at the halftime buzzer, when Whiteside swished a 27-foot three-pointer and capped her celebration with a right handed swoosh followed by upraised fists to exhort the crowd.
"Some plays, I just get really excited inside," Whiteside explained. "I play with a lot of energy and want to win really badly."
Whiteside finished with 30 points and 18 rebounds in the 57-47 win.
For all of her scoring prowess, getting assists is what really turns Whiteside on.
"A lot of people can score, but looking to pass to other people and making passes no one's ever seen is better," she explained.
That's a great attitude for the best player on a very young and improving team. With the 57-47 win over Torrance, the Mustangs are 9-8 overall and tied for second behind Leuzinger with a 4-1 league mark. They rely heavily on freshmen and sophomores, including Stromath, point guard Tavi Shabestari and Megan Whiteside, Tara's sister, yet remain in the thick of a league race Whiteside thinks they can win.
"What really holds us back is being so young and not knowing the game enough," she explained. "But I think we're physically capable. If we work really hard, we'll just get better and better."
But the team's fortunes in the Ocean League are tied to Whiteside, something her coach knows all too well.
"The kid is definitely a player and will be a Division I prospect," Holly explained. "She's our team leader and by far the best player in the South Bay. People will disagree with me, but the ought to come watch her play and see all the different things she can do on the court." ER