Desi Debase all-region in basketball

Desi Debase might be one of the smallest players on the basketball court, but she gets big honors.

   The 5-4 Sulphur Springs point guard has been named the Class 4A All-Region team by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches.
   “This is great for her and our program. I don’t know when a Lady Cat player last got an honor like this, but this is great for her to be all-region. I wanted her to get all-state, but this is very good as well,” said Jeff Chapman, Sulphur Springs head girls basketball coach. “She was one of the few sophomores on the team.”
   Debase was in her first full year of varsity play this season. She was a force to be dealt with on the court. Like a twisting, turning ball of energy, she was often tough to keep up with on the court.
   Her statistics were amazing as she led the team in scoring, steals and assists.
   Debase played in 32 games, scoring at least 10 points in 30 of them, as she averaged 20.4 points a game. She also came up with 188 deflections and 170 steals.
   “I know Desi was one of the best players in 4A,” Chapman said. “Rarely a point guard is the leading scorer. She was the leader for us. We would not have had such a successful year without her.”
   The Lady Cats finished 21-12 and made the post season for the third consecutive year.
   Chapman said, “Her freshman year, she was our second leading scorer and did not start all the games. This year she got better because of her tremendous work ethic. She played more minutes on the court than anyone and she was in shape to do it.”
   The coach said one of the things which drives Debase is her competitive spirit and determination to be first in all things she takes on.
   “Even in practice, if we are running sprints, she wants to be first. In drills, she wants to win,” Chapman said with a laugh. “You can’t coach that, she just wants to do it because she is driven.”
   Chapman said, “She’s young. She needs to learn how to shift gears and not go all out on every trip down the court. It has cost her fouls in the past, when she was too aggressive. But I appreciate her effort.”
   “Her challenge now is to keep improving,” Chapman said. “She needs to be in the gym taking shots. I’d like her to get better at shooting 3-pointers. If she puts in the extra work on her game, maybe she can get all state next year. She needs to play this summer and work on her pull up jumper and other parts of her game. The difference between the good and the great players is the work they put in. She’s good now, but she can get better.”