Community College Notebook : OCC’s Crane Showing All the Right Moves

Dareck Crane made a couple of moves, one off the court and one on, that have increased his basketball fortunes greatly this season.

Crane, a 6-foot 3-inch sophomore at Orange Coast College, moved from off guard to point guard a few games into the season. He also moved from Compton, where he grew up, to Costa Mesa to be closer to school.

“I knew it would be asking a lot of him,” OCC Coach Tandy Gillis said about Crane’s move to point guard. “But he’s doing a lot. A lot of people say he can play anywhere. He’s that type of player. He works hard to learn things.”

Crane has helped lead OCC to a 16-4 overall record and a 1-0 mark in Orange Empire Conference play. He is averaging a team-high 16.6 points and 4.4 rebounds a game and has a team-high 35 steals.

“At first, I was uncomfortable,” Crane said. “I was used to catching the ball and shooting it. Now, I have to know where everybody is on the floor. I was also afraid it would hurt my offense, but coach told me that he wants me to still shoot the ball.”

Crane was a 3-year varsity player at Compton High School, where he averaged 19 points a game as a senior forward in 1987. But when he went looking for a college, none were looking for him.

Crane heard about OCC from Ron Calhoun, Compton’s freshman basketball coach. Calhoun played at OCC in 1979-80, and he suggested Crane call Gillis.

“Ron (Calhoun) knows the game,” Gillis said. “And if he says someone can play, then they can.”

Crane and Orange Coast’s LaMont Speed, who also were high school teammates, traveled 80 miles from Compton to OCC and back each day last school year. The long commute caused them to miss classes and even the team bus for a few games, according to Crane.

The two moved into an apartment near campus this fall with the help of part-time campus jobs and financial aid.

Crane struggled in class last year with a C average, but this year he is close to a B average.

“It (the commute) resulted in a lot of illness and other problems,” Crane said. “Moving close to school has really helped out a lot. Things are going a lot better this year.”

On the line. When Cypress (8-10 overall and 1-1 in conference play) is at Fullerton Wednesday in a men’s basketball game, the 7:30 p.m. matchup will feature the best and worst free-throw shooting teams in the Orange Empire Conference.

Ian Donnelly, a freshman forward from Katella High School, has made 95% (35 of 37) of his free throws to lead Cypress, which is shooting 74% (252 of 339) as a team.

Donnelly set a Cypress record by making 26 in a row earlier this season. He missed 2 in a row but has made 9 consecutive since.

The free-throw line is one of the few places where Fullerton (16-3, 1-0) has struggled. The Hornets are shooting 61% (339 of 554).

Riverside (16-8, 1-1) travels to Rancho Santiago (11-7, 1-1), and Saddleback (8-10, 1-0) is at Orange Coast (16-4, 1-0) in other Wednesday games. Golden West (15-5, 0-2) has the night off.

Markus Muller-Stach has moved into a tie for fourth on the Golden West men’s basketball all-time scoring list.

Muller-Stach, a sophomore forward from Corona del Mar High School, has scored 1,033 points in a little more than a season and a half and is tied with Jim Anderson (1972-74). Chris Thompson (1969-71) leads with 1,441 points. Muller-Stach averaged 18 points last season and is averaging 23.5 points this season.

Community College Notes

Gari Calhoun, an all-Mission Conference linebacker and honorable mention All-American for OCC last fall, has signed a letter of intent to play at Clemson next season. Calhoun, who attended high school in Atlanta, had 99 tackles, including 6 sacks, this season. Mike Miscione, a running back from Rancho Santiago, has signed with Cal State Long Beach. Miscione, from Esperanza High School, ran for 1,139 yards and 11 touchdowns this season. Sean Turner, an OCC defensive back from Corona del Mar High School, and Robbie Glover, a Rancho Santiago defensive back from Orange High School, have signed with Ball State. Ken Griggs, a wide receiver for OCC, has signed with California. Griggs, from Edison High School, had 22 catches for 274 yards and a touchdown this season.