Familiar Surroundings Bolster Cole’s Efforts : Prep basketball: Fans at this year’s Orange Holiday Tournament will hardly recognize Orange Lutheran standout.

It’s 1980 and Daryl Cole, all 4 feet 9 inches of him, has made the Orange Holiday basketball tournament a second home.

He and his father, Dennis, sit on the benches at Chapman College, watching game after game after game. Cole, an 8-year-old basketball junkie, couldn’t say no when it came to watching basketball. He couldn’t play enough either.

“All through grade school I would walk down to Chapman and catch three or four games,” Cole said. “I’d watch and I always thought about playing in the Orange tournament.”

Fast-forward to 1987.

Cole, a forward at Orange Lutheran High, was having second thoughts about the Orange Holiday Tournament. He was finding out that skinny, 6-2 sophomores have a lot to learn about basketball.

He’s playing against Lakewood, one of tournament’s top-seeded teams, and he’s intimidated by the older, stronger players who are moving him around the court like a chess piece. “I was in awe against such a big team,” Cole said. “I didn’t do anything the first few minutes I was in there.

“But then I grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back in. I stayed in during scrub time.”

Cole got more playing time the next night against Foothill. But this time, he started to find his shooting range. He weaved inside for layups and even pulled down a few rebounds.

End intimidation, enter confidence.

Cole finished with only eight points against Foothill, but they were eight important points.

“That’s pretty much when I realized that I could play with these guys,” he said.

Fans at this year’s Orange Holiday Tournament, which starts Tuesday at Chapman College, will hardly recognize the Daryl Cole of two years ago. He has grown three inches, has become more aggressive inside and is averaging 22.4 points a game.

Orange Lutheran Coach Jerry Simmons still smiles when he’s reminded of Cole’s varsity debut.

“He was only a sophomore and I didn’t know if he was ready or not,” Simmons said. “But when the tournament came around, I said, ‘Hey, why not now?’ ”

Simmons’ early investment paid off. Cole came off the bench the rest of his sophomore season as Orange Lutheran tied with Whittier Christian for the Olympic League title, the first basketball championship in the school’s history.

During his junior year, Cole blossomed. He moved into the starting lineup and averaged 21 points a game in leading the Lancers to a 24-5 record and the Olympic League championship.

But Cole considers the season as part success, part failure. The winning record and championships were fine, but Cole is quick to tell you about how the Lancers lost to Santa Clara in the Southern Section 2-A final and dropped a one-point game to Santa Clara in the Division IV championship.

“That second loss really hit me hard,” Cole said. “I’ll never forget it. We worked so hard to come back and we should’ve had it won. Every time I want to slough off this year, I just start thinking about that game.”

Cole hasn’t needed extra motivation this season. He scored 41 points in the first game, a victory over Santiago, and has helped the Lancers to a 4-3 record.

Cole attributes his improvement to his play with the Orange Crush, a team of county high school players who participate in tournaments nationwide during the spring and summer.

The Orange Crush will play in an all-star tournament in April at Lubbock, Tex. Cole, who has drawn interest from several Division II schools, knows the college scouts will be there.

“The Lubbock tournament is important,” he said. “It’s what will make me or break me as far as a scholarship. All the (college) coaches who are still looking for players will be there.”

Simmons describes Cole as an unselfish player who scores most of his points within the Lancers’ offense.

Still, Cole is known to free-lance at times, as he did in a recent game against Laguna Hills in the Irvine World News Tournament. The Lancers struggled to a 28-24 halftime lead as Laguna Hills’ matchup zone defense held Cole to five points.

Early in the third quarter, Cole broke free inside, grabbed an offensive rebound and laid it in as he was fouled. The free throw was a formality for Cole, who is shooting 82% from the line.

A few minutes later, Cole pulled down another rebound, dribbled upcourt and sank a three-point basket.

Before Laguna Hills’ players could say, “Who’s that No. 32?” Cole had 20 points and Orange Lutheran led, 65-40.

“He’s got a good touch,” Simmons said. “He’s a shooter. He has a little bit of an unorthodox style. He doesn’t always keep his elbow in when he shoots, but he gets the job done.”

Although he’s 6-5, Cole handles the ball as if he were five inches shorter.

“He’s a versatile player,” Simmons said. “We had to use him at guard a couple of times because we didn’t have anyone who could handle the ball.”

Cole has a favorite word when he talks about his style of play: detail.

“The details are important,” he said. “The small things make a difference. Look at a team like Mater Dei. (It’s) so well-balanced and plays great team defense. (It) pays attention to the details.

“I’ve started concentrating more on my complete game,” Cole said. “Some nights you go out and score a lot, but then you take into consideration other things, like how many points your guy scored on you, times when you should have dished the ball off or how you should have worked harder for rebounds.

“Now I realize it’s more than just hitting your shot. I guess that’s part of the maturity factor. It’s part of growing up.”