Anders a Key Find for Matsuhara

Colleen Matsuhara knew she was on to something good when she could not get Shannon Anders on the telephone.

Matsuhara, the UC Irvine women’s basketball coach, was making her big push a year ago to sign Anders, a 5-foot-8 guard from Grapevine (Texas). When she called, she got the same answer.

“She was at the gym every time I called,” Matsuhara said. “That gave me a pretty good idea what sort of player we would be getting.”

If Matsuhara needed further convincing, Anders was part of a Texas team that won the AAU 18-and-under national championship in Spokane, Wash., this summer. Anders’ outside shooting was an important part of the title run.

It was a skill that Matsuhara needed, desperately. A year ago, teams dared the Anteaters to beat them from outside. Leticia Oseguera and Allah-mi Basheer, the team’s top inside players, were constantly double-teamed.

Anders could help change that strategy. In the team’s first exhibition game, she made three consecutive three-pointers in the second half to help the Anteaters rally from a 35-24 halftime deficit. Anders had 13 points in the 73-71 loss to Jiangsu, a club team from China.

“Early in practice, we were putting in our zone offense and our perimeter people, Shannon included, hit three consecutive shots,” Matsuhara said. “Leticia grinned at me, then said, ‘This could be fun.’ I told her she wouldn’t be surrounded by a picket fence this year.”

Anders, who averaged 22.6 points at Southlake Carroll High School, didn’t come by her shooting ability naturally. It took work.

“Actually, I’m kind of a klutz,” Anders said. “That’s what comes naturally to me.”

But hard work made her a player.

Anders was encouraged to be a gym rat by her father. Ron Anders would take his daughters, Shannon and Robyn, to a local church three times a week to practice.

“We started with left-handed layups when we were little,” Anders said. “That’s all we would do. When we got older, it was free throws and then three-pointers. We would stay there for hours.”

Anders was a two-time district most valuable player. Her sister, a junior at Southlake Carroll, is a returning starter.

“There were times I didn’t want to go practice,” Anders said. “Now I’m glad I did.”

Anders made Team Texas last spring. Her teammates included Tamika Catchings, a 6-0 forward who is one of the top high school players in the nation this season. They went undefeated in pool play at the AAU championships, beating California in the process. Texas edged California again in the championship game.

“My job was kind of the same as it is at Irvine,” Anders said. “I was supposed to make outside shots to keep them from clogging up the middle.”

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The Anteaters, who play Wisconsin and Delaware in the GTE Shootout at UC Santa Barbara this week, picked up a solid recruit--if she’s healthy.

Krissy Duperron, a 5-10 forward from Woodbridge High, signed a letter of intent last week. It is a bit of a gamble, considering that Duperron missed most of last season because of knee surgery.

“If that scared some people off, then we’re glad,” Matsuhara said. “Knowing how hard Krissy works, I’m sure she went overboard in the rehabilitation.”

Duperron averaged 14 points and 12 rebounds as a sophomore.

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There was much for the men’s basketball team to feel good about after its opener Friday. Still, it was a loss--100-88 to San Diego State--so some problems need to be addressed.

Paul Foster, a 6-8 forward counted on for offense, did not score until four minutes were left in the first half. Foster was not aggressive when he had the ball and had only five shots in the game.

“Five shots is not enough,” Coach Rod Baker said. “Especially since he made all six of his free throws.”

Foster finished with 14 points.

Point guard Lamarr Parker also got off to a slow start. He had four assists and 10 turnovers.

“I think Lamarr thought he needed to be better than he had to be,” Baker said.

Baker used walk-on Juan Toscanini at point guard for 11 minutes. He held his own (two assists, no turnovers), but Baker would probably prefer more consistent play from Parker.

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After losing to UCLA last week, the Irvine water polo team is the seeded fourth in this week’s Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament in Berkeley. The Anteaters will play California Friday. It they win, they will likely face top-seeded Stanford Saturday.

The tournament champion gets an automatic berth into the four-team NCAA championships Dec. 6 and 8 at La Jolla.

Anteater notes

The men’s basketball game at San Francisco has been moved to Jan. 5. . . . Christopher Ma has signed a letter of intent with the tennis team. Ma, who attends Punahou High School in Honolulu, is the No. 1 ranked singles player in Hawaii. . . Jimmy Miringoff (Del Mar Torrey Pines) and Kevin Stevens (Menlo Park Atherton) have signed letters of intent to play golf at Irvine . . . Freshman tennis player Nick Varvais reached the semifinals of the Southern California Intercollegiate tournament last weekend.