The differences between Jarron and Jason Collins,...

The differences between Jarron and Jason Collins, obscured by an obvious physical resemblance and the time-worn “Twin Towers” moniker, are easier to discern after four years at Harvard-Westlake High.

True, the Collinses were equally integral members of the Wolverines’ state Division III championship teams of the past two seasons. True, both were among the nation’s most-pursued college recruits before signing with Stanford in November.

Indeed, the selection of Jarron, a 6-foot-9 swingman, or Jason, a 6-10 center, as The Times’ Valley player of the year, simply was too close to call.

So, the Collinses are co-players of the year.

However, the spotlight trained on the nationally ranked Wolverines helped illuminate the brothers’ individuality, on and off the court. As either will attest, distinguishing one’s self is doubly difficult for a twin.

“Our friends know that we definitely have two different personalities,” Jason said.

Said Jarron: “We are similar, I guess. We have the same foundation. I think it just takes a while for people to notice the difference.”

Jarron did his part by developing his perimeter shooting the past two seasons. Jason continued to dominate inside and finished his high school career with 1,500 rebounds, a Southern Section record.

For the season, Jason averaged 19.4 points and 11.8 rebounds, Jarron 14.4 points and 8.1 rebounds. Having spent the fourth quarter of dozens of blowouts on the bench, the twins’ dominance is difficult to measure statistically. But such has been the case during their careers at Harvard-Westlake.

“I can’t begin to tell you what an experience it’s been,” Coach Greg Hilliard said. “We’re just not accustomed to having that caliber of athlete at our school.”

Even before the season began, Jarron and Jason earned their place among the best prep players to emerge from Southern California. But recruiters still tended to look at both and see just one.

“A coach from Washington State called me and, going into the conversation, it was obvious he had never seen me play,” Jarron said. “He figured that I was the [center] and he didn’t realize that I don’t play that well with my back to the basket.”