Mission Viejo Guard Desiano Doesn’t Score; He Just Wins Games : On a Basketball Court, He’s in Control

It was easy to overlook Mission Viejo High School point guard Tom Desiano on a basketball court. At 6-feet 1-inch and 155 pounds, he was often dwarfed by taller and bulkier forwards and centers.

Scoring is the name of the game and Desiano’s average of 11 points per game wasn’t overwhelming. He rarely generated headlines in his two seasons as a varsity starter but did establish one fact--he was a winner.

While Desiano was a starter, the Diablos compiled a 44-12 record and won two South Coast League championships. Desiano also played on freshman and sophomore title teams, establishing himself as a leader on every team.

Along the way, Desiano earned a reputation as one of the premier point guards in Orange County. He averaged 8.5 assists per game this season, the second-best mark in the county.

Although his exploits may have gone unnoticed by the casual basketball observer, rival coaches in the South Coast League were well aware of Desiano’s presence.

“I thought he was the difference in the two games (both losses) that we played against them,” Dana Hills’ Steve Thornton said. “Our first game against them was close, and Desiano took over in the fourth quarter and controlled the game.”

Said Capistrano Valley’s Mark Thornton: “Tom Desiano played super against us. We’re a running team, and he controlled the tempo to the point where we were never able to get into our running game.”

There is certainly more to playing basketball than scoring, and Desiano said there is a certain feeling of control he gets when he’s playing point guard. Desiano will be at the controls Saturday night when he leads the South team in the 20th Orange County All-Star basketball game at Peterson Gym in Costa Mesa.

“I’ve always been the guy who handled the ball since I started playing organized basketball in the fourth grade,” he said. “I feel more control when I’m handling the ball and directing the floor.”

Desiano is a master of direction with his ability to break a full-court press, penetrate defenses and then utilize his uncanny skill to pass the ball to an open teammate. Above all, he has good court sense.

“You can tell right away he’s been playing the game for a long time,” Steve Thornton said. “He seemed to make the people around him better players, which is the ultimate compliment to a point guard.”

Mission Viejo Coach Bob Minier recognized Desiano’s ballhandling skills at an early stage and said the 17-year-old is a big reason the Diablos hit 53% from the field.

“I think the point guard position is the most critical in basketball,” Minier said. “There’s not many kids around who can do what Tom can do. He sacrificed a lot for the team . . . I even tried to get him to shoot a little more. He was the classic point guard for us.”

Desiano learned his skills in the West Covina youth basketball program before moving to Mission Viejo prior to his freshman season. He said scoring is secondary in his game.

“I get more enjoyment making a good pass so that a teammate can score than I do scoring,” he said. “My primary function was to create shots for my teammates. You have to sacrifice your ego.

“I scored a lot of points on my seventh and eighth grade teams. Everyone wants to score. But I learned that a winning team needs a good point guard who will make sacrifices for the team.”

Desiano’s eyes brightened when he envisioned playing with All-Star teammates Bryan McSweeney (Dana Hills), Adam Lockwood (Estancia) and Brent Martin (Fountain Valley) Saturday night. All-Star games are generally showcases for talented, high-scoring players and Desiano is looking forward to an up-tempo game.

“This is my kind of game,” he said. “A fast-breaking offense under a 30-second clock is just what I like. It’s a perfect situation for me. There’s going to be a lot of scorers in the game, and it will be my job to get the ball to them.”

Desiano, who maintained a 3.2 grade-point average at Mission Viejo, plans to attend Saddleback College this fall where he’ll major in business or communications. He said he wasn’t disappointed when he failed to receive a four-year college offer.

“I knew I wasn’t going to be heavily recruited because of my size,” he said. “I’m going to Saddleback College where I hope to improve my ballhandling skills and put on some weight. I’ve never lifted weights consistently, so I hope I can grow a little.”

Steve Thornton thinks Desiano has a good future.

“I think he has a chance to become a real good college player,” he said. “I think he can be a good JC player right away. He needs to work on his strength and add some weight if he’s going to become a good college player.”

Minier said he’s having a difficult time finding anyone to replace Desiano in the Diablo program.

“We’ll have five good frontline players on our varsity next year, but I could really use a point guard,” he said.