DAILY PILOT HIGH SCHOOL MALE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK:Kaluz a rare center of attention

An average kid is what Stefan Kaluz Jr. calls himself. More like modest.

At 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds, there’s nothing mundane about the Corona del Mar High center.

On the basketball court or in the classroom, Kaluz excels.

He never expected to shine in athletics. He arrived with his parents to America from Slovakia as a lanky sixth-grader. Taller and thinner than most his age, his physique resembled Gumby more than someone who would turn out to be a force.

With his studies, of course he would stand out. As he put it, “when your parents are in cancer research” you’re expected to be smart.

Brainy he is. Check his grade point average and it’s above 4.0, good enough for Ivy League schools to court him as a junior.

But he’s the first to tell you he’s really not like his folks, Stefan Kaluz Sr. and Milota Kaluz, outside of academia. He can’t figure out why.

“My dad is like 6-foot and my mom is like 5-10. I don’t know where I get my height,” said Kaluz Jr., whose parents work at UC Irvine. “If you ever talk to my parents, they are both really calm.”

Size and a fiery attitude can go a long way in basketball.

The Sea Kings have benefited from Kaluz, who’s averaging 20.3 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. Now they are counting on Kaluz to take them far, back to their glory days, when they won CIF Southern Section Division IV-AA titles in 1992-1993 and 1994-95.

Kaluz has longed for the opportunity, even back when he was a 6-7, 180-pound, below-average freshman. So if it means playing on an injured left ankle, he’ll do whatever it takes.

Ask CdM first-year coach Ryan Schachter of Kaluz’ status and he has a quick response: “He’s definitely going to give it a go.”

After a first-round bye, Kaluz is ready to lead No. 4 seed CdM to the start of its CIF Southern Section Division III-A championship run Friday.

The extra days off came in handy for Kaluz. Nothing like rest when you’ve been playing with a bone bruise in your ankle in the last three regular-season games.

Kaluz did his job to close out the season right for CdM (18-7), fighting through pain to lift his team to a share of the Pacific Coast League championship. So, how could Kaluz be so effective? In the league finale at University, he scored 31 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked three shots in a 69-50 victory that clinched a share of the league crown with Laguna Hills.

“When you play, pain pretty much goes away, you don’t think about it,” Kaluz said. “Because of the adrenaline.”

At times, Kaluz has too much adrenaline pumping through his body to control.

Intensity has allowed Kaluz to toss most defenders aside in the paint, and also him off out of a game. Two technical fouls from Kaluz in a Jan. 12 game at Laguna Hills probably cost CdM an outright league title.

Unforgettable whistles. Kaluz still hears them. The one for slamming the ball in the second quarter, and the other for catching an opponent in the face with an elbow forced Kaluz out of the game with two minutes remaining in the fourth. There went CdM’s five-point lead and Laguna Hills went on to win, 64-63.

“That was over the top. That was a big mistake on my part,” Kaluz said. “I’ve tried to learn from it. I don’t talk to referees and I try to calm my temper down. I hurt my team. It was a growing process for me.

“If I play aggressive, I have to stay calm inside, be aggressive with my moves.”

Kaluz is dangerous when he touches the ball near the paint. He’s shooting 73%, a concern for most teams. If they collapse on the big man, he can pass it to capable scorers.

On the wing there’s senior Eddie Lane, who Kaluz dubs as “explosive.” Austin Evett is the point guard, learning the position in his senior year. Junior Joe Eberhard can light it up from the outside, so can sophomore Sean Donovan.

Then there’s John Joyce, a 6-7, 230-pounder, giving defenses fits, and Kaluz, too.

“To be able to practice with somebody my own size is great. We try to work together,” Kaluz said. “I would be nowhere without [my teammates]. As long as I’ve been at CdM we’ve had three or four 6-7, 6-8 guys. Not a lot of high school teams can [say they] have that.”

Especially someone as gifted, yet humble, as Stefan Kaluz Jr.

STEFAN KALUZ

Hometown: Newport Beach

Born: May 25, 1990

Height: 6-foot-9

Weight: 215 pounds

Sport: Basketball

Position: Center

Coach: Ryan Schachter

Favorite food: Pizza

Favorite movie: “Wedding Crashers”

Favorite athletic moment: Playing with an injured ankle and helping Corona del Mar get back into first place in the Pacific Coast League by scoring 23 points, grabbing 15 rebounds and blocking two shots in a 56-51 victory against Laguna Hills on Jan. 31.

Week in review: Scored 31 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, helping the Sea Kings to a 69-50 victory at University Tuesday that clinched a share of the league title with Laguna Hills.