One logical way to catch the eye of a basketball coach is to do the things coaches want their players to do, things liking hustling, reading the court and playing unselfishly. And catching the eye of local coaches is a good way to get their recognition.
That, says Aptos High junior Hannah Hocom, is the path she took to becoming this season’s Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League girls basketball MVP, an award selected by league coaches and released earlier this week.
“I’ve been told a lot that I do things coaches really appreciate. I think that was a big factor in deciding the MVP thing,” Hocom said. “I think they appreciate that I’m smart with the ball, that I’m always working 110 percent, always hustling.
“I admit, I’m not a flashy player, but I think coaches respect who I am as a player.”
Teams had to respect Hocom on the court, and especially behind the 3-point arc. She led the county in 3s per game with an average of 2.63, placing her third in the tri-county area according to MBayPreps.com. Once teams started shutting down her deep looks, though, she could often beat them on the drive or dish to one of her other talented teammates. She averaged 14.1 points per game — second only to teammate Natalia Ackerman (15.8) in the county — and 2.1 assists.
Toward the end of the season, though, the Mariners leaned on her more for her defense. Coach Stefan Hocom, her father, would often assign Hannah to shadow an opponent’s star and make that player a nonfactor. Hocom rarely came off the floor and averaged 2.1 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.
“I like defense. It’s something you always control because of how hard you work,” Hocom said. “On offense, sometimes you’re going to have an off shooting night. Even the best in world have off shooting nights. But defense you can always control.”
Aptos went undefeated in the SCCAL and the league tournament, clinching its first outright SCCAL title since 1982-83 season. It also reached the Central Coast Section Division III finals and earned the No. 2 seed in the CIF Northern California D-III regional bracket, where it lost in the quarterfinals.
No Aptos player has been named MVP since Briana Hinga claimed the award in 2002.
Next year, Hocom said, she’ll be more focused on getting her team to the NorCal championships than repeating as MVP.
“I definitely don’t think that’s going to be a goal next year,” she said. “Next year is just about my team trying to get farther than it did (this) year, have a better season than it did this year and as a team going further.”
Soquel coach Kanani Thomas got plenty of chances to see Hocom in action. Their teams met four times this season. She said the junior earned the honor.
“You can tell Hannah works really hard,” Thomas said. “She get lots of shots up. I respect that about players.”
Thomas earned some respect this season as well, as coaches named her the SCCAL Coach of the Year. It was the first time the fifth-year coach held the honor on her own after sharing it with Stefan Hocom last season.
Thomas guided the Knights, who appeared somewhat lost after the graduation of senior leaders Michaela Thornton and Nayeli Rodriguez, to a second-place finish in the league and the SCCAL Tournament. With just two seniors on the roster, they reached the CCS D-III semifinals, falling to eventual champion South San Francisco.
“I was very surprised when they all voted for me, obviously in an excited way,” Thomas, a Soquel alum, said. “Generally what you see in things like that is the championship team usually takes coach of the year. So, I was surprised and humbled and honored.
“I knew would be tough season for us, losing Michaela and Nayeli. Sometimes it’s hard for people to see the changes we’ve gone through. I have talented players, but they all had to step up and take different roles. It’s nice to see that your peers see that, too.”
Soquel juniors Mckenna Finch and Mckenzie Duran joined Aptos’ Ackerman and fellow sophomore Ella Gigiuere on the first team. Santa Cruz’s Nayla Samaha rounds out the first team as the lone senior.
Behind Aptos and Soquel, Scotts Valley finished third in league play, followed by Santa Cruz, St. Francis, San Lorenzo Valley and Harbor.
Contact Julie Jag at 831-706-3257.
