Besides being the leading scorer and rebounder, Bryce Warrecker set an example on the Santa Barbara High boys basketball team with his tremendous work ethic.
“While some guys worked as hard as him, no one outworked him,” said Dons coach Corey Adam. “When your best player is your hardest worker, it makes everything a little easier.”
Warrecker led Santa Barbara to a share of the Channel League championship (its second straight title), the second round of the CIF-SS Division 2A playoffs and a 19-9 record. He averaged 22.7 points and 10 rebounds and earned first-team All-State Division 2 honors from Cal-Hi Sports. He was on the second team in Division 3 as a junior.
He was named to the All-CIF-Southern Section Division 2A second-team and was voted Channel League MVP for the second straight year.
Warrecker can add another award to his list, as the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table is naming him its High School Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Warrecker and the other high school and college athletes of the year for fall and winter sports are being honored in a virtual format. The awards are being presented on the Round Table’s social media platforms of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and on the Noozhawk.com Sports Page.
The 6-foot-8 Warrecker was a force in the paint and knocked down three pointers.
“Bryce’s contributions to our team were invaluable this year,” said Adam. “Teams had to adjust how they played defense to account for him. He could play inside and outside.
“Against a state top-20 team, St. John Bosco, early in the year. they sent a double team at him with two 6-9 guys. We were able to stay in that game into the fourth quarter, down five with five minutes left, before losing by ten.”
Warrecker scored 20 points and grabbed nine boards in the loss.
“When he didn’t get doubled, he basically destroyed teams,” Adam added. “ In the first round of the playoffs, Culver City decided not to double and he scored 35 points, attempting only one shot outside of the paint.”
Adam calls Warrecker one of the great Dons’ student-athletes of all time.
“I stress student as he has over a 4.5 GPA,” the coach said.
His scoring average ranks sixth all-time in program history.
“Beyond the statistics, he was everything a coach wants in a team leader,” Adam said. “He never missed a practice, a weight-training session, or a team meeting, and was usually the first one there.”
Warrecker was recruited by NCAA Division 1 basketball programs. But he’s also an outstanding baseball player and elected to play Division 1 baseball. He signed with Cal Poly, where is uncle, Teddy, is the assistant coach.
— Noozhawk sports editor Barry Punzal can be reached at bpunzal@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk Sports on Twitter: @NoozhawkSports. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
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