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  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers in Orange County this season, averaging close to 20 points per game.

  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers in Orange County this season, averaging close to 20 points per game.

  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers in Orange County this season, averaging close to 20 points per game.

  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers in Orange County this season, averaging close to 20 points per game.

  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley is one of the leading scorers in Orange County this season, averaging close to 20 points per game.

  • Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley, right, seen here in 2013, is...

    Orangewood Academy's Marcus Berkley, right, seen here in 2013, is averaging 20 points per game this season.

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Date shot: 12/31/2012 . Photo by KATE LUCAS /  ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

GARDEN GROVE – Marcus Berkley felt slighted.

His playing time dissipated as the year wore on. His role shrank. He rarely played late in games, and when the postseason came around, Berkley fell out of the rotation altogether. He felt he should’ve been in the mix. He felt he was better than the guys receiving heavy minutes.

Berkley played two varsity seasons at Centennial High of Las Vegas before transferring to Orangewood Academy in Garden Grove his junior year. He said Orangewood embraced him immediately, and the support system he established on campus soothed the transition few transfer students complete without a hitch.

“This school looked at me as someone who needed to play a big role on the team,” Berkley said. “And I accepted that role and took it to heart.”

Berkley, a senior this season, is the son of a former semi-professional football player and a record-breaking collegiate long jumper. He earned his athleticism, however, working religiously on his jumping ability and basketball instincts. He was born in Seattle, and his family later moved to Las Vegas.

Berkley toured the Amateur Athletic Union circuit as a preteen, traveling from showcase to showcase with some of the best local talent.

“When I was younger, I did great (in club) because it was more team-oriented,” Berkley said. “But as I got older, it became more one-on-one, sort of show-what-you-got stuff. That wasn’t my style of basketball.”

***

Berkley is an anomaly, making his living inside the 3-point line, where these days shots are devalued by coaches.

His handle can get him anywhere on the court, and at 6-foot-4, Berkley can elevate over shorter guards on those tasty 15- to 17-foot jumpers. Less than 20 percent of Berkley’s points this season have come via 3-pointers, a relatively low mark in 2015 for a volume shooter. Similar scorers, such as Esperanza High’s Jarrett Brodbeck and Servite High’s Trevor Treinen, by comparison, credit 37 percent and 34 percent of their points to triples.

Berkley’s been taking those midrange jumpers for as long as he can remember. His father refused to let him shoot threes growing up, so in practice, while his teammates fired from long range, Berkley perfected his intermediate shot. He’s shooting close to 50 percent from the field this year, averaging 14 shot attempts per game. Twice this season, Berkley has scored 30 points. Eight other times he’s finished with more than 20.

He’s currently 14th in Orange County in scoring, rapidly approaching last year’s point total.

“He’s a much better scorer, much more in control,” said former Orangewood boys coach Leslie Aragon, the school’s athletic director and girls coach. “He knows that he needs to do more this year, but he also knows how to do more without taking the team hostage. He does his best for the team. He’s more of a complete player now.”

First-year Orangewood coach Rob Brooks said Berkley is his best defensive player, a rarity for kids so gifted offensively, he added.

Berkley often guards an opposing team’s best player, no matter his position. He’s crafty enough to maneuver around taller forwards and centers near the basket, and his height gives point guards fits. Berkley can stick with speedy ball handlers, even as his minutes pile up late in games. He’ll occasionally poke a guard’s dribble away from behind, and his active hands regularly deflect lazy passes. Two steps in the open court, and he becomes a one-man fast break.

Berkley rarely leaves the floor. He’s too valuable on both ends to take a breather, Brooks said. Berkley is relied heavily upon for defensive rebounds and hustle stats such as steals and charges. Orangewood’s defense leads to offense, and the Spartans are averaging 60 points per game this season, about what they averaged in 2014, when Berkley received first-team All-San Joaquin League laurels.

“I love defense,” Berkley said. “I take that to heart. That’s where it starts for me. If I’m not playing good defense, I’m not playing good offense. If I lock up and get my team to lock up on defense, it relieves pressure on me to score. We get a stop defensively, we get a good look at the basket on offense.”

***

Berkley and classmate Caleb Thomas, a first-year transfer student from Houston, believe they owe it to the team to push their respective limits.

They are Orangewood’s best players, and they play accordingly. Thomas is 6-foot-6 and a slim 175 pounds. He does most of his damage on the offensive glass. Thomas is a willing shooter, but works best off the ball and in the paint. He can leap with the best of them, and his wingspan compensates for his height disadvantage underneath.

Berkley and Thomas complement each other offensively the way star tandems should. They are savages defensively.

Their friendship blossomed in the summer, when Thomas arrived at Orangewood. Berkley took Thomas under his wing, and now they regularly hang out together after hours. Thomas expects Berkley to lead this year’s troupe night in and night out, and vice versa. Both admitted there’s a sense of one-upmanship between them. Anything-you-can-do type stuff.

“There’ve been times when we’ve wanted to fight each other,” Thomas said, laughing.

Said Berkley: “He’s a competitive guy, we get after it at practice, dang near to blows sometimes. At the end of the day, much love, he’s my brother.”

Berkley is the best player in Orange County nobody has heard of. He’s unassuming. Humble, but knows he has yet to reach his ceiling.

Assorted Division II universities and community colleges are actively recruiting Berkley, with some even seeking his early commitment. Berkley said his first priority is choosing a college that fits his academic criteria, a college that asks a lot of its student-athletes. He’s a bookworm at Orangewood, regularly staying on campus until 9 p.m. for tutoring.

He said he’s spoken with his sister regarding choosing a major. Nursing sounds cool, he said.

Orangewood will need another player like Berkley next year to continue its ascent. There aren’t many of those kids around.

“He’s a natural leader, and he leads with his actions and his words,” Brooks said. “That’s rare in today’s game. His game speaks loudly. He wants to do well for his teammates, himself and this school. He does a great job representing what Orangewood Academy is all about.”

Contact the writer: 714-704-3790 or bwhitehead@ocregister.com