BUGGED BY THE SWATS : Valley’s Mario Lopez Lets Defensive Forte Foul Up His Offense

Perhaps the only thing keeping Valley College forward Mario Lopez from leading his team in scoring is the fact that he leads the team in blocking shots.

As one of Southern California’s best swatters, he is averaging five blocked shots a game--a talent that would impress most college basketball coaches. But the 6-7 sophomore’s aggressiveness in trying to deny baskets has contributed to his fouling out of 11 games.

Those early exits in the preseason prompted the Valley coach to ask Lopez to concentrate more on shooting and rebounding, less on blocking shots.

“The success of his shot blocking doesn’t necessarily reflect the success of the team,” said Valley Coach Virgil Watson. The Monarchs are 7-10. “He has to come to grips with a happy medium--give up a little shot blocking to help the team.”

Lopez averages 12 points and eight rebounds a game.

“If he doesn’t try to block so many shots, he can stay in the game longer and score more points,” Watson said. “We were banking on Mario scoring more points than the guy whose shots he is trying to block. He should be averaging 18 or 19 points and 14 rebounds a game. But that reality hasn’t set in yet.”

Lopez, who is one of only three returning Valley players, agrees with his coach.

“I need to be in the game when it comes down to the last four minutes,” he said. “That’s the most crucial part of most games--when they’re won or lost.”

In his defense, Lopez added his own theory: Many officials on the junior college level are reluctant to let shot blockers perform.

“They’re not ready to accept the fact that I can block shots,” he said. “JC referees don’t see very much shot blocking on the JC level, so when I go up and block a shot, they usually attribute it to a foul.”

Lopez said the fear of fouling out restricts his spirited defense.

“Foul trouble refrains me from playing the game the way I like to play it,” he said. “But it’s just instinct. Sometimes, when I go up, I’m not thinking about anything except blocking the shot. It’s like someone who dunks the ball a lot. It’s hard to stop them from doing it when it’s instinctive.”

That instinct was nurtured at Notre Dame High, where Lopez was expected to block shots.

“It was a role I accepted,” he said.

At Valley, it sometimes interferes with the team concept.

“I know I have tried to take it upon my shoulders to help out more than I should,” Lopez said. He has averaged about 20 points in games in which he did not foul out. “It’s hard when you know you shouldn’t have tried to block that shot and you get called for a foul. Then you start thinking that you could have helped the team more by staying in the game.”

After a brief Watson-imposed rest on the bench during a recent tournament game, Lopez returned to the floor with less than a minute left--and with four fouls. A teammate, guard Gary Goodrich, got off the bench, put his palms together and pleaded with Lopez: “No fouls, Mario--no fouls, no fouls.”

“A lot of the guys say that,” Lopez said. “It’s constructive.”

Lopez fouled out with nine seconds left--less than 40 seconds after he put the game out of reach by sinking two free throws and pulling down a defensive rebound. Valley won the game, 74-70.

“I have to foul sometimes,” he said. “We have a lot of good defensive players, but if two of them get beat to the hole, I have to draw the foul. Maybe I have to lay off that.”

That change would be welcome to Watson, who in his first year as head coach has only recently figured out a system. As Mountain Valley Conference play begins, he said, he is “trying to implement it.”

Said Watson: “He has to have enough confidence in his own teammates. He has to be able to say, ‘He can get that man. I don’t need to do his job.’ ”

At the same time, Watson isn’t about to give up on the two-year starter.

“How far do you go before you take the engine out of the car? What am I going to do, put him on the bench? He’s going to end up there anyway.” he said. “That would be like telling a guy on a track team to take a lap. He runs anyway, so what would that do?”

Said Watson: “He’s like a little kid who sees a new toy and tries to grab it. He feels as if every ball he sees is as good as his. You can try to hide the ball, but if Mario sees the ball--if he can focus in on it--he’s going to go after it.”

Come hell or high swatter.

‘How far do you go before you take the engine out of the car? What am I going to do, put him on the bench? He’s going to end up there anyway. That would be like telling a guy on a track team to take a lap. He runs anyway, so what would that do?’

Virgil Watson

Valley basketball coach