Palos Verdes High School is known for many great things, but basketball… not so much. The past seasons for the varsity basketball team have been tough and PV has always fallen short against its rival — Peninsula High School. All of this will hopefully come to end, and the upcoming season may possibly end with a CIF varsity basketball banner hanging in our gym. The key to our success is the new addition of Coach Greg Clark. Coming off a 7-22 record, this may be the coach that the basketball program has been waiting for to turn the team around. He believes that with the talented players and the support from the school, winning a C.I.F. title is definitely in the picture.
Coach Greg Clark has had countless basketball-related experiences in high school beyond the high school level. He coached seven years at Saint Marck’s High School in Wilmington, Delaware, two years at Marymount University in Virginia, and a year at University of Delaware. His most noteworthy coaching was working as the assistant coach at Southern Connecticut State University, which is a Division II college. His fast-paced coaching style and emphasis on strong defense are heavily influenced by his own high school coach.
Coach Clark explained, “My high school coach is my role model. He was the most open guy. He laid it all out there… he didn’t care about your feelings, your parents… he just told you the truth. It didn’t matter if you liked it or not, he always told the truth and he was the best defensive coach I’ve ever seen. Naturally, you were able to adapt to what he was saying.”
Starting shooting guard Connor Mckeeve stated, “Coach Clark is a very trustworthy guy and he will always tell you the truth. He’s definitely someone that the whole team and I can depend on.”
It’s obvious that Coach Clark is dedicated and motivated to flip the switch and turn this basketball program into something new. “First off, win/loss…we’re going to win games. That’s the number one goal. The attitude, the effort, the expectations of the players is what’s going to change the program. We’ve worked hard for the last six months and I think the attitude and the culture has changed and now it’s just about results. Production is everything. We have to win games now.”
With the dedication of the players and their willingness to compete, Coach Clark holds high expectations for his varsity team despite the fact that their division is very tough. “I think we have a great group, with a lot of talented seniors, and I want to send them out the right way. They get a chance to rewrite their high school careers on how it went and how it ended. The senior year is always the year that sticks out in your mind.” With nine seniors, including two potential college players, Tyler Colon and Connor Mckeeve, things seem to be leaning in the Kings’ favor. Coach Clark states, “We’re playing a really tough schedule and I’m excited for that. I think they have what it takes to win games.