By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor It can always be argued that one player is better than another. It doesn’t matter the sport or gender. The same is true with the Pasadena area’s best girls basketball player in the 2016-17 season. But it would be hard to argue that any player carried more weight on her […]
By Brian Reed-Baiotto, Sports Editor
It can always be argued that one player is better than another.
It doesn’t matter the sport or gender.
The same is true with the Pasadena area’s best girls basketball player in the 2016-17 season.
But it would be hard to argue that any player carried more weight on her shoulders to lead a program to their eventual deep CIF playoff run like La Salle junior Julia Macabuhay.
The 5-foot-5 point guard was nothing short of sensational in leading La Salle to 22 wins in a year their coach was hired just 35 days before it began.
The Lancers, behind their incredible junior also finished second in the Santa Fe League and made it to the CIF-SS Division 3-A semifinals, before losing to Lancaster, 53-47.
Macabuhay led La Salle in scoring in 31 of their 32 games and averaged 24 points per game.
There were several games this season in which La Salle built big leads and she sat for much of the second halves or her numbers would be even higher.
Macabuhay also dished out seven assists per game, grabbed five rebounds and three steals each night, all while running the offense and leading the defensive charge.
Her high-score of the season was 39 points and she had 25 games in which she scored at least 20 points or more.
If all of her other numbers weren’t impressive enough, Macabuhay had a higher free-throw percentage (95%) than any boy or girl in the area or section.
“She is one of the best players I have ever coached, boy or girl,” La Salle coach Freedom McCullough said. “Her skill set is ridiculous, and I personally think she’s one of the best players in Southern California.”
Macabuhay started playing basketball at 5 years old at a park league.
“I never thought about playing basketball at the next level, but there was something about the sport that kept me there,” she said. “I always had a ball in my hand, I dribbled the ball inside, and people started to tell my parents they should bring me to a club team and how much better that would make me.”
Perhaps the biggest compliment Macabuhay is paid are the number of boys basketball players that will stop when she’s got the ball in a practice or game in awe of her skills.
Case in point:
La Salle was at Flintridge Prep in the quarterfinal round of the CIF-SS Division 3-A playoffs and the game was close throughout.
We sent Flintridge Prep boys point guard Kendall Kikkawa a text and asked how the game was going late.
Kikkawa, a star in his own right texted back, “it was back and forth and then No. 10 (Macabuhay) just took over the game. She was incredible.”
Macabuhay credits her parents Carlo and Jasmin Macabuhay and brother Jon Carlo for inspiring her to be the best basketball player, but more importantly the best student and person she can be.”
“I see my parents work hard every day for me and my brother,” she said. “Working hard in the classroom and on the court is the very least I can do for them.”
But Macabuhay’s praise doesn’t stop at home. She’s also very thankful to her coach.
“Coach Freedom McCullough and his staff took over late and yet expected the very best from each of us. They took us out of our comfort zone daily and made us better. All four of our coaches did something in a small amount of time that we didn’t think was possible.”
Macabuhay is the star of the team and the ‘quarterback’ of the La Salle offense, but both she and McCullough deflected praise for their individual awards and said none of it could have been done without all of the other players and coaches that made this such a remarkable season.
Macabuhay returns next season with fellow juniors Alyssa Arroyo and Nicole Ortiz, so basketball at 3880 East Sierra Madre Boulevard in Pasadena should be an entertaining place to watch a game.
Quotable:
Flintridge Prep coach Jayme Kiyomura-Chan: “Julia was relentless against us in the quarterfinal CIF game. She put her team on her back and led the charge. She showed why she’s the best in the area.”
La Salle coach Freedom McCullough: “Once she gets a little stronger and develops her pull-out jump shot, it’s a wrap. No one will be able to guard her. She also makes her entire team better around her.”
La Salle point guard Julia Macabuhay: “Going into the season, the only goal in mind was to go as far in the playoffs as possible. I wanted to do anything I could to make myself and my teammates better and do everything I could to help us win games. Knowing that my teammates and I made school history for the basketball program was amazing, and earning (individual accolades) is just the cherry on top. My junior season is one I’ll always remember.”
