COACH OF THE YEAR : Corisis Didn’t Play, but He Sure Can Coach

Who says you need to experience playing basketball to coach basketball?

George Corisis, who has coached the Palmdale High girls’ basketball team to eight league titles in 13 years, never played high school basketball.

Instead, he camped behind

the benches of some of Southern California’s best coaches and took notes.

“A lot of people want to try to be smarter than other people or find shortcuts to success,” Corisis said, “but maybe if you find someone who is successful and copy them, it is a little easier.”

Corisis said Buena Coach Joe Vaughan and Pepperdine Coach Mark Trakh, formerly of Brea Olinda High, are two of the coaches he has followed closely.

“You just spend a lot of time talking to college coaches,” Corisis said. “You can always learn something from colleges coaches.”

Ironically, Corisis’ team saw its season end with a loss in the Southern Section Division I-A quarterfinals to Vaughan’s Buena team. But the Falcons, who had only one senior in the starting lineup, still managed a 21-4 record and a 10-0 Golden League mark, earning Corisis The Times’ Valley Coach of the Year award.

The league championship pulled Corisis, 46, and the Falcons out of a minor slump. After winning four consecutive titles, Palmdale finished second two years ago and third last year.

This year’s team didn’t figure to be the one that got the Falcons back on top. There were three sophomores, a junior and a senior in the starting lineup.

But Corisis, following the paths of other well-known Southern California coaches, took his team through a grueling summer schedule.

The Falcons played tournaments in Las Vegas, Utah, Morro Bay, Orange County and Chino. Palmdale played about 60 games over the summer.

“At the end of the summer we felt we might be young by what grade we are in but as far as experience, we had some maturity,” Corisis said.

So much for inexperience.

For the players and the coach.