Driving to the basket, San Benito guard Jordan Belton was aiming to start his third playoff game — and first this year — off on the right foot. But despite head coach David Kaplansky’s warnings, Belton never expected to run into a six-foot, seven-inch center.
The Milpitas center blocked Belton’s signature drive with ease. That, though, didn’t slow the Baler senior.
“After that (Kaplansky) just told me to be smart and lean with your body first,” Belton said. “They can’t reach the ball with their extension with your body in the way. So once I hit my first basket — it was a jumper – I just started hitting my shots.”
Eventually, in the biggest game of the year – and perhaps, his high school career — Belton proved he was a difference maker, scoring a season-high and game-high 33 points.
During the course of the season, Belton led the Balers with a little more than 15 points per game, and was the de facto leader on the court. Belton was the Balers’ catalyst during their best season in nearly a decade. For only the second time in school history, they earned a spot in the Central Coast Section playoff semifinals.
Belton earned a spot on the Tri-County Athletic League’s first team, for his play.
With those accomplishments, Belton was unanimously voted the 2012 Free Lance/ Pinnacle Male Athlete of the Winter.
To reach the peak of his high school career – three years of which were spent at San Benito – Belton needed to learn from second-time boys coach Kaplansky.
For Belton, Kaplansky’s preaching of defense and hard work had a lasting effect, he said.
“It was our defense-first mentality,” Belton said. “We knew the offense would always come, but if you didn’t play defense you aren’t going to win. If you don’t get stops, the game is going to be toe-to-toe or they are going to be up by a lot if you don’t score. That was the big key that coach really emphasized. Because if you don’t play defense and if you don’t rebound, you aren’t going to win.”
The Balers – and Belton – listened, and the results were a 19-7 record, a second-place finish in the TCAL standings and a CCS quarterfinal 77-70 victory over Milpitas.
Belton, who’s first shot was blocked to open the game, led the Balers offensive and defensive attack. San Benito needed every one of his 33 points and five steals. Up by nearly 20 points, San Benito watched its lead disappear, before Belton took control in the game’s waning moments.
Through the season’s 26 games, Belton was always considered the Balers closer – the player who would finish and take over the end of games.
“He is our closer,” Kaplansky said earlier this year. “He is a good asset to have on our team because of his athleticism. And he does a nice job closing out games.”
Against Milpitas – like he had done so many times before – Belton answered his coach’s call.
Belton scored 12 fourth-quarter points – six coming from the free throw line – and survived to play one more game.
San Benito’s season ended in the semifinals to Piedmont Hills, but the Balers and Belton made their mark on the postseason. And it was all because of the team’s “fight,” Belton said.
“They all felt I was in it to fight — coach was in it to fight and we were all in it to fight,” Belton said. “Because when we fight we’ve got this game. I felt like it was just a real team effort this year. It wasn’t just me, coach or Hyram (Miskin). It was all of us. We wanted to fight and show we were competitors to the end.”
Kaplansky instilled hard work into Belton and the Balers, Belton said.
“He brought the winning spirit to the program and he helped me out,” Belton said. “Even if you are kids from Hollister, Calif. that no one really knows, you can win basketball games through hard work and dedication. I feel like that is really going to help me at the next level.”
That’s why Belton was always at his best in the team’s toughest games.
The toughest of which, game at the end of the league season against Palma. In a game that ultimately decided who would be crowned TCAL champions, Belton went play-for-play with league MVP Noah Allen. The highlight was Belton’s thundering dunk over the six-foot-four-inch sophomore.
San Benito lost 52-44, but Belton shined. It wasn’t the offense, though, that Belton was most proud of.
“You have to step up like you don’t normally do,” Belton said. “I felt like my defense really needed to step up in that game against him because normally – he is so good – he just does what he wants with it.”
Belton was never shy of the spotlight, he said.
“I like big games,” Belton said. “Basketball in this community isn’t really big for us. So when the spotlight is on you need to show up.”
Belton expects to play basketball in college next year but is undecided where that will be, he said.
“It’s just up in the air right now,” he said.
