BACKCOURT BOOKENDS : San Fernando Guards Mauldin and Stephens Look Alike, Play Alike and Talk the Same Unspoken Language

For two people who would prefer to go unnoticed, Joe Mauldin and Tory Stephens do a lousy job of blending into the background.

First, consider their appearance. Mauldin and Stephens, both senior guards for San Fernando High, shave each other’s head regularly, sometimes in a whimsical pattern, sometimes down to the no-wax shine.

“They watch a lot of Division I basketball,” San Fernando Coach Dick Crowell says. “It’s just sort of a fad that’s going around that they like to be a part of.”

Then there is their performance. San Fernando rolled to the Northwest Valley League championship and newspaper box scores revealed high-scoring performances by both players:

San Fernando 80, Birmingham 59--Mauldin, 23 points and 6 assists; Stephens, 25 points and 9 rebounds.

San Fernando 85, Monroe 65--Stephens, 28 points and 12 rebounds; Mauldin, 25 points and 9 assists.

Stephens is a dangerous outside shooter, averaging 26.3 points and 7.5 rebounds a game, and Mauldin, the team’s playmaker, averages 18.6 points and 4 assists. San Fernando (15-5) is seeded second in the City Section 3-A Division and opens the playoffs tonight against visiting Narbonne.

Stephens and Mauldin currently sport diamond-shaped rugs on their heads, with identical diagonal grooves. Stephens, however, hinted earlier this week that they might return to the cue-ball look for their playoff debut.

Whether their hair style is much ‘do about nothing, Mauldin and Stephens have achieved celebrity status at school. Yet they don’t handle fame as smoothly as they do the fast break.

The Tigers’ bald-headed backcourt bookends really are bashful.

“Tory is a great kid,” Crowell says. “He has a lot of friends and he’s really popular with the girls. But he’s painfully shy.”

As far as talking goes, Stephens is about a decibel louder than Harpo Marx. An example of his understated style:

Question: “Tory, describe how it felt to sink five three-point jumpers and score 32 points in that key win over Granada Hills?”

Stephens: “Felt good.”

“Well, how does it feel when you’re on a fast break and the crowd comes to its feet?”

Stephens: “Feels good.”

Says Crowell: “Tory doesn’t talk about too many things. He just sort of goes about his business, not seeking any status or publicity.

“Joe is more aggressive.”

Mauldin may be a bit more outgoing than Stephens, but he’s no Groucho Marx. Both players speak in tones as soft as a four-foot fadeaway. Neither is eating up the exposure, but they are learning to digest it.

“We’re getting used to it,” Mauldin says, trying to conceal an embarrassed smile. “It’s no problem.”

Mauldin and Stephens’ similarities go beyond appearance. Both are 17, born 11 days apart. Both are from the South: Mauldin from Alabama, Stephens from Mississippi. They live just a few blocks apart.

“And we always hang together,” Mauldin says.

Mauldin and Stephens (both 6-2) admit that they strive to look alike and, for the most part, they do. As the team’s predominant ballhandlers, they not only pass to one another, but for one another.

Birmingham Coach Elliot Turret, a newcomer to the league, had difficulty distinguishing Stephens from Mauldin when he first scouted a San Fernando game.

“They’re built similarly,” Turret said. “And they were both bald. They’re both muscular kids, lean and well-defined. When people talk about athletes being thoroughbreds, I think that’s what they’re talking about.

“Facially--and by their game--I couldn’t tell them apart.”

Mauldin and Stephens resemble each other so closely they could be brothers. In fact, they are brothers--sort of.

“You could say that,” Mauldin says. “That’s what my mom calls Tory.”

About the only name they have had difficulty answering to is student. Dreaming exclusively of professional sports stardom, both have spent more time in the past hitting the jump shot than school books.

But that is changing.

“They eat, sleep and breathe sports,” Crowell said. “Especially Joe. He’s truly an athlete in every sense. He plays football, he goes out for track. He could go out for the baseball team if he wanted to. If there is any such thing as a four-sport athlete, Joe’s it.

“But that was part of his problem. He was so much into sports that he didn’t hit the books enough.”

Mauldin, who plays quarterback in the fall, was academically ineligible his sophomore year. Influenced heavily by his brother, Leo, who led San Fernando’s basketball team in scoring as a senior in 1981, Mauldin began to rethink the importance of academics.

“He wound up playing at College of the Canyons,” Mauldin said of his brother. “He probably could have played somewhere better, but his grades weren’t good enough. I started realizing that I wanted to go to college and be successful and not have to worry about graduating and maybe getting a lousy job. I wanted a little more out of it.”

Mauldin improved his grade-point average to 3.1 and received three A’s and two B’s on his most recent report card. His academic turnaround recently paid off when he signed a letter of intent to attend Cal State Fullerton on a football scholarship.

“When he got to the 11th grade and saw that he had the opportunity and potential to get a scholarship, that’s when he got serious,” said Barbara Riley, Mauldin’s stepmother. “He’s matured. I don’t know how to describe it, but I see it. He sees the future.”

Said Crowell: “His problem was mostly when he was younger. You have kids come in who are 14-15 years old and a lot of them don’t appreciate what a college scholarship is.”

“He understands,” Stephens said of his backcourt mate.

Stephens’ academic problems are more difficult to understand than Mauldin’s. His GPA is 2.1, but his academic performance has been inconsistent. In his junior year, Stephens received six D’s and an F in 12 classes. But in the fall semester, he posted a 2.8 GPA.

“His attitude a year ago was lethargic, passive,” said Dan Ballard, Stephens’ academic counselor. “This year, he’s a lot more into his studies. And he’s talking to me more. It’s a combination of being successful in basketball and getting good grades.”

Stephens, like Mauldin, realized he had better spend more time in the library than in the gym or he might wind up spending time in unemployment lines.

“It’s kind of scary,” he said. “What are you going to do when school is over? Go to school or get a job? Are you going to be a failure?

“I gotta be something. I don’t want to be like the bums I see walking around here.”

Stephens has attracted attention from San Jose and Weber State, and Crowell is trying to interest Fullerton. “If some schools need a shooting guard, he’ll get more offers,” Crowell said.

Crowell insists that no coach monitors student athletes more than he. Incidents of teachers confronting him with poor academic performances by Mauldin and Stephens, Crowell says, have disappeared.

But for all the effort Mauldin and Stephens have made satisfying teachers, they still manage to irritate their basketball instructor. Both have been guilty of turning games into the Tory and Joe Show.

“When they realize they are going to win they might do a little hot-dogging and fancy passing,” Crowell said. “They like to put on a show.”

Mauldin has been guilty of attempting flamboyant slam dunks when a layup would suffice. The result often has been a high carom off the rim followed by bench time.

Last week, a missed dunk by Mauldin resulted in a fast break for Birmingham. Avenging an earlier loss, the Braves grounded Air Mauldin and the flying Tigers, handing them their worst defeat and only league loss of the season, 88-57.

“I really don’t know why I do it,” Mauldin said. “It just happens. I usually make them, no problem. But if it’s there, I’m still gonna dunk it.”

Says Crowell: “Joe can be a little stubborn. Sometimes it’s hard to get through to him what you want to get done. But I’ve found the best way to deal with Joe is not to cross him in front of his peers. It’s counterproductive.”

Stephens disdains the dunk, which is about the only difference between the two. Mauldin claims his backcourt buddy is scared to stuff the ball.

“If I go up and miss it, then the crowd will get on me and the coach will get on me. I don’t want that,” Stephens said.

Mauldin and Stephens, however, spend more time pleasing their coach than perturbing him.

“A lot of the things they do, you and I will never be able to do,” Crowell said. “They’re right up there among the best guards in the Valley. They’re going to play in-your-face basketball and you’re going to be in a contest when you play against them.

“At San Fernando, I probably won’t see a combination like these two ever again.”