STEVE JURICH 5A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP RUN 2007

A late bloomer, Steve Jurich, now age 21, grew 9 inches in high school. With his height and statistics inaccurately listed his senior year, he was not on the national radar and was forced to make tough decisions. His passion kept him climbing. Jurich was named Honorable Mention All Conference finishing in the top 10 in scoring-a list that included Jarryd Bayliss --and top ten in rebounding. While the numbers aren't off the charts, personal stats on a championship team usually are spread out. The Desert Mountain Wolves were well coached, well disciplined, shared the ball, and shared playing time. Its important to note that many players with big numbers in high school play for 2A, 3A, or 4A schools-and get 3 times the touches that an unselfish team will give to any one player. Playing at the 5A level, the competition is tougher, bigger, faster. A state championship takes a team effort, and team players wiling to sacrifice.

Jurich was recruited by Air Force in the summer of 2007, and accepted a stint at Air Force Prep, which did not count toward eligibility. He discovered the military would not be his favored career choice.

Fast forward to 2010, the stout 6' 712 240 pound continued his impressive development and maturation with 366 rebounds (5th in the nation) and 448 points scored (16ppg12rpg). After going 15 and 10 his freshman year with two 30+ scoring games, he finished with a career double-double for Coach Paul Eberhardt at Scottsdale Community.

Jurich was voted First Team All Conference (ACCAC) by the Arizona Community College coaches, and selected second team All American in the NJCAA.

Playing against top professionals and college players In the summer of 2009, he averaged 17 ppg in Amare Stoudemire's Summer ProAm league. Along with star European point guard Curtis Millage, Jurich was pivotal in his team's successful run, resulting in the league championship. He guarded 3's, 4's, and 5's in that game including former Utah Jazz star Greg Ostertag.