At Poway, Sting of Past Success : Titans Weather Bad Season, Great Expectations

Poway High School’s basketball team isn’t used to ending the season with the regular season. The past three years, the Titans have won the San Diego Section 3-A championship.

That all ended Thursday, as Poway lost to Orange Glen, 63-61. This time, the Titans (2-10 in the Palomar League, 9-13 overall) weren’t preparing for the playoffs. They were trying to stay out of last place in league.

“I was aware this year was going to be tougher,” said Neville Saner, Poway coach. “We tried to make some adjustments because of that, and things just haven’t worked out.”

It’s doubtful that any fine-tuning on Saner’s part could have compensated for the departure of such standouts as Dominic Johnson, Andy Byrne and, particularly, Jud Buechler, the county’s leading scorer last season with a 23.3-points average.

Since their sophomore year--the same season that Saner became coach--they had formed the nucleus of a team that dominated the county with size, shooting ability and rebounding strength. Last season, the Titans shot 55% from the floor and averaged 78 points a game; this season’s team has shot 41% and averaged barely 50 points a game.

Poway’s decline as a county basketball power was demonstrated graphically in December, when the Titans played Morse. This used to be an even matchup between two premier teams. This season, Morse won, 71-39.

But Saner is quick to stress that, except for a few bad games, the Titans have not been doormats. Citing narrow losses to Vista, San Dieguito and Torrey Pines, he said Poway came within a few points of having a respectable season. “In the second round of league, we’ve been competitive every game,” Saner said. “We’ve been within striking distance. . . . We just don’t have quite enough. Our inside game isn’t good enough. Our perimeter shooting hasn’t been good enough.”

Saner had counted on leadership from of senior guard Gary Anderson, who has started since his freshman year, and junior forward Adam Jones. But Jones severely twisted his ankle in a preseason tournament game against Madison and then contracted mononucleosis and was lost for the season.

An inexperienced team, a few close games that went the wrong way, the loss of a key player--it all helps explain why a strong basketball program would have a bad season.

But the explanations don’t help the Titan players, most of whom were varsity reserves during Poway’s glory days or members of last season’s junior varsity team, which went 20-3.

“The kids are used to doing well,” Saner said. “The public and their peers expect a lot from the Poway kids. It’s hard on them. . . . I’m not at all displeased with the kids’ efforts. They’ve been most cooperative and they’ve handled it very maturely, and I appreciate that.”

Of course, the players aren’t the only ones taking the heat for the Titans’ lackluster season. Many Poway basketball fans are dismayed that Saner--a one-time protege of John Wooden--has failed to match his mentor’s success at putting together a long string of championship seasons.

“Despite the loss of those good basketball players, people still expect a lot,” Saner said. “That’s the price of being successful. You kind of create a monster for yourself.

“I’m no miracle worker. I’m just a coach who tries to do a sound job. We just try to build a good foundation at Poway, be real firm on the fundamentals and just play good, unselfish basketball.”

Defeat doesn’t sit well with Saner, but he’s doing his best to be philosophical.

“I can weather any storm,” he said. “I’m 40 years old. You’re not going to see me going haywire over high school basketball. I’ll just do the best I can.”

Yet, almost in the same breath, Saner revealed the competitive intensity that has helped him lead teams to victory in the past and that is gnawing at him now.

“I know we could have done better,” he said. “I know I could have done a better job. I take the bulk of responsibility. That’s my job.

“(But) I see reasons for optimism. It’s not a complete disappointment. We’ve been very competitive. . . . I just want people to know that we’ll be making some noise next year. We’ll definitely be back.”