Father Figure : Guardian Fills Void for University’s Zeigler

It had to happen sometime.

Demitrius Zeigler, University High School’s scoring machine, just couldn’t maintain that wicked pace. The law of averages, not to mention every sort of defensive concoction, was against him.

Finally, things went flat.

Zeigler struggled and flailed Friday against Irvine. He rarely saw the ball, and when he did, he rarely got a good shot. The result was a season-low 12 points, well off his 27-point average.

It was a frustrating evening for the junior guard. He grimaced and winced with every missed shot.

In the stands, Fred Lipscomb was having sympathy labor pains.

“Oooh, that one should have gone in,” Lipscomb said. “I can’t believe this. It’s the worst game he’s had. Oooh.”

And so it goes, game in and game out. On good nights and bad. Zeigler scores, passes and defends. Lipscomb tallies, cheers and supports.

It’s the next best thing to having your father there.

Zeigler has been living with Lipscomb since September, an arrangement that was made after his mother, Leslie Minor, moved to Oregon for a job. Lipscomb even became Zeigler’s legal guardian so Demitrius could remain eligible.

But there have been benefits beyond the basketball court for Zeigler.

“Fred has been a positive male role model,” Zeigler said. “He has taught me the finer points of being a man. Much of it, my mom has told me before. But it’s different hearing it from another man. It sinks in.”

Zeigler’s father is just a vague memory to him. His parents were divorced when he was 5, and he hasn’t seen his father since.

“Not having a father is just one of those things that makes you a little tougher,” Zeigler said. “Fortunately, I had a strong mother.”

Lipscomb, 31, entered the picture two years ago through the Big Brother program, when he was paired with Zamir, Demitrius’ younger brother, now 14.

At the time, Minor was working toward her Ph.D. in psychology at UC Irvine and was also a part-time professor at the university. When state budget cuts came down last year, her position was eliminated.

She landed a job as a professor at Central Oregon College and moved her family to Bend, Ore., in August. Zamir and Jawan, 6, the youngest of Minor’s three children, were perfectly happy with the shift north, but Demitrius was not.

He and his mother wanted him to stay at University High for academic reasons.

“The school in Oregon could not match University’s academic program,” Minor said. “But it was a hard decision. We talked about it for quite a long time.”

The deciding factor was Lipscomb’s offer to look after Zeigler.

“I’m not sure Fred thought we would take him up on it,” Zeigler said. “I think it was more a gesture of kindness.”

Actually, it was Zeigler who didn’t know what he was in for.

Lipscomb is a residential life coordinator at UCI, a job that entails supervising several dormitories. He has applied a strict regimen to Zeigler’s life.

“I’m actually more relaxed than Fred,” Minor said. “He’s more firm. He has Demitrius doing housework and makes him toe the line.”

Said Zeigler: “Fred’s tough. I work in a cafeteria a couple times a week and he makes me put half my salary away. I can’t touch it. He’s taught me to be responsible.”

Zeigler, with Lipscomb looking over his shoulder, has a 3.2 grade-point average and is taking advanced classes. He also is a student government officer and is active in the school’s black student union.

On the basketball court, he is the leading scorer in Orange County. Lipscomb attends every game and keeps his own score book.

“Demi has changed my life substantially,” Lipscomb said. “I really invested a lot of time, but it’s basically been out of my own enjoyment. When I was younger, my parents split up. I wanted to help. Heck, I don’t think I’ve missed a game.”

Like many others, he has been awed by Zeigler’s season.

Even Zeigler was caught off-guard by his success. Sure, he had been on the varsity since he was a freshman, but he had hardly distinguished himself. He averaged only five points last season.

“I think I was the only person who thought he could be this good,” Trojan Coach Mike Dineen said. “I don’t even think Demi thought he could be this good. He’s learned he can do this night in and night out.”

Opponents have learned as well.

Zeigler never scored more than 10 points in a game last season. This year, he has scored 30 or more points 10 times.

He scored a school-record 46 points against San Pedro, tying a county record with 10 three-pointers. He leads the county with 86 three-point baskets.

Zeigler has done this on a team that is 5-17. His teammates are inexperienced and opponents have been able to key on Zeigler. It’s not unusual for two, sometimes three, defenders to shadow him.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” Zeigler said. “There are times when I feel like everyone is looking to me to score. It’s a lot of responsibility.”

Zeigler has been learning that much of his life.

Minor moved from Seattle to Irvine to go back to school when Demitrius was in the second grade. She attended UCI, worked and went about raising her three children.

Her oldest child helped where he could.

“For a while, I had a house-cleaning service and Demitrius would go with me,” Minor said. “He would vacuum and stuff. He always understood that money doesn’t come easy. He knows you have to work hard to get what you want.”

Zeigler applied that work ethic to the basketball court. He began playing when he was in the second grade, but was never considered a standout.

Still, he worked to improve.

“I was on a traveling team in the sixth grade, but I think I played maybe five minutes the whole year,” Zeigler said. “I was the water distribution engineer.”

Said Minor: “Personally, I was really happy he chose basketball. I played one year at Washington and I was the one who started teaching him the game when he was a little boy. He probably doesn’t remember that.”

What Zeigler does remember is his mother’s struggle to maintain a family.

“She would work all the time and also went to school,” Zeigler said. “Seeing her makes me appreciate what it takes to be successful.”

But there was always one thing she couldn’t be. Lipscomb has filled that void.

Said Zeigler: “You know, it’s a luxury to have a father.”

Zeigler Makes His Points Long Beach Poly: 22 El Modena: 24 San Diego El Camino: 17 San Pedro: 46 Diamond Bar: 28 Kennedy: 30 Peninsula: 31 Hayward Mt. Eden: 28 Palo Alto: 33 Danville San Ramon Valley: 34 Santa Margarita: 22 Woodbridge: 32 Tustin: 30 Saddleback: 27 Irvine: 17 Newport Harbor: 34 Corona del Mar: 19 Santa Margarita: 21 Woodbridge: 23 Tustin: 32 Saddleback: 32 Irvine: 12 Average: 27.0