Her Minor Weakness Isn’t a Major Problem : Costa Mesa: Even though her three-point shot needs work, it hasn’t kept DiCamilli from becoming a top scorer.

There is a glimmer of hope for opponents assigned to guard Olivia DiCamilli of Costa Mesa High School.

But at the same time, there’s no reason defenders should get too excited. We’re talking about a minor chink in the DiCamilli offensive armor here, not Superman and Kryptonite.

OK, pencils and papers ready? Here it is, straight from the source:

“I’m still working on my three-point shot,” DiCamilli said. “I haven’t got that down yet.”

Told you it was nothing to jump up and down about.

With the ability to drive explosively to the basket with either hand or pull up and shoot 18-footers, DiCamilli, 5 feet 10, doesn’t really need three-point range. She was an all-county, all-league and all-Southern Section selection as a freshman and sophomore, and enters her junior season as one of the top players in the section.

And that self-professed lack of three-point range doesn’t give opposing coaches any comfort.

“I guess if you could find a way to keep her from ever stepping across the three-point line, then that would mean something,” Estancia Coach Russ Davis said. “But you can’t, so it doesn’t. She’ll always find a way to score.”

As a freshman, DiCamilli averaged 15 points and 12 rebounds while helping lead the Mustangs to the Southern Section Division 2-A championship. Last season, she averaged 23.4 points and led Costa Mesa to the section Division III-A finals.

Like the rest of the Pacific Coast League, Costa Mesa Coach Jim Weeks is well aware of what DiCamilli can do offensively. In the subjective view of a coach, however, Weeks still sees room for improvement.

“We’re trying to get Olivia to be as good a defensive player as she is an offensive player,” Weeks said. “That’s not to say she was a bad defensive player the last couple of years, because she wasn’t.

“But she and I both know she can dominate on defense like she does on offense, and she’s really applying herself at both ends of the court now.”

During the summer, DiCamilli played on a California all-star team that competed in the Junior Olympics in Johnson City, Tenn. Surrounded by players with offensive skills equal to hers, DiCamilli decided the best way to contribute consistently was on defense.

“If you’re going to be a good defensive player, it’s because you want to be,” DiCamilli said. “It’s one of those things coaches always tell you, but you’re the only one who can decide to do it.”

Playing tough defense and continuing to develop offensively are DiCamilli’s top goals in a season in which Weeks expects her to be Costa Mesa’s leader on and off the court. In her first two years with the Mustangs, DiCamilli accepted the role of underclassmen everywhere and let the upperclassmen handle the leadership duties.

Although Costa Mesa was a top team during those two years, there was occasional friction among the Mustangs. The younger members of the team thought the older players, who had suffered through several dreary seasons, sometimes lacked the proper intensity during practice. The upperclassmen felt the underclassmen were a little too outspoken for their own good.

“It was a difficult situation because we basically had two groups: one that came in and won right away, and one that had been through some tough times and understandably wasn’t quite as motivated,” Weeks said. “Things are a lot easier this year because everybody in the program knows how hard we have to work to keep winning, and that Olivia is the one who’s going to set the example.”

DiCamilli, who said she “totally stressed out” because she didn’t get a chance to play any basketball during a recent five-day trip to visit relatives in Maryland, is happy in the leadership role.

“I love to play and I think that going hard and being more competitive in practice makes practice more fun,” she said.

At every opportunity, DiCamilli works on her three-point shot. In her freshman year, the college recruiting letters began arriving, and DiCamilli knows an improved perimeter game will make her a better college prospect.

“I’m a lot more confident with my outside shot now,” she said, “but I really want to be a three-point threat, so I’ll keep working on it until I get it down.”