Player of the Week : Leslie Leads Turnabout

SAN DIEGO —  Clairemont High School senior Reggie Leslie said he had never been through anything like it.

The Chiefs had lost their first 14 games of the season going into last Tuesday’s game at University City.

“We didn’t really win a lot in my sophomore and junior years, but this was tough to handle,” Leslie said. “But we didn’t get down on ourselves. We kept working hard.”

The hard work finally paid off. Led by Leslie’s 33 points, Clairemont defeated University City, 64-45, for its first win of the season. For his effort, Leslie, who also scored 12 points in a 47-45 loss Friday to La Jolla, has been named The Times’ Prep Player of the Week.

“The big key was that we finally got our guard, David Watkins, back,” Leslie said. “He’s a good passer, and he allowed me to have such a good game.”

Leslie, a 6-foot 3-inch, 230-pound forward-center, needs people like Watkins to help him score. Most of Leslie’s scoring comes from inside.

“Our outside shooting is not the best, so we have to work it in,” he said. “I was having a good game, and they got the ball to me.”

The victory has helped turn things around for the Chiefs. Following the loss to La Jolla, Clairemont came back to defeat University City, 51-30. The Chiefs are 2-4 in the City Western League, 2-15 overall.

“The whole team was really excited after that first win,” Leslie said. “We had a lot of our fans there, and they gave us a lot of support. We knew that win would get us going.”

Leslie attributes much of the reason for the Chiefs’ turnabout to Coach Jim Mottershaw, who has maintained the team’s spirit.

“He always tells us that we’re the ones who have to do it,” Leslie said. “He lays down the facts. He stresses that all he can do is help us. We have to do it ourselves.”

Leslie has been doing a lot for himself. He starred in football (Times’ all-county guard and defensive tackle) and is a pitcher on the Clairemont baseball team.

Upon graduation, he’ll have to decide which sport to pursue.

Whatever he chooses to do, Leslie has learned a lot from his experience this season.

“It has taught me to keep working hard no matter what,” Leslie said. “If you keep working, the wins will come.”