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  • Esperanza's Mark Hill is the Register's Orange County boys basketball...

    Esperanza's Mark Hill is the Register's Orange County boys basketball coach of the year. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Esperanza's Mark Hill has been selected as the Register's Orange...

    Esperanza's Mark Hill has been selected as the Register's Orange County boys basketball coach of the year. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Esperanza players and Coach Mark Hill celebrate after defeating Moreau...

    Esperanza players and Coach Mark Hill celebrate after defeating Moreau Catholic 72-65, in the CIF State Division II final at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill gives instructions to his players during...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill gives instructions to his players during the semifinals game of the CIF-SS Division II Regional playoffs against Crossroads at Esperanza in Anaheim on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill, right, reacts to a call by...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill, right, reacts to a call by the referee in the first round CIF-SS Open Division basketball playoff against Santa Margarita in Santa Margarita on Friday, Feb. 17, 2017. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the second half of a...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the second half of a CIF State Division II final against Moreau Catholic at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. Esperanza won 72-65. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill yells instructions to his players during...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill yells instructions to his players during the semifinals game of the CIF-SS Division II Regional playoffs against Crossroads at Esperanza in Anaheim on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill yells instructions to his team in...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill yells instructions to his team in the second half of a CIF State Division II final against Moreau Catholic at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. Esperanza won 72-65. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

  • Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the first half of a...

    Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the first half of a CIF State Division II final against Moreau Catholic at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

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Different teams have different personalities.

Mark Hill has had a variety of teams, and team personalities, in his 15 seasons as Esperanza’s boys basketball coach.

“This year’s team was a quiet group,” Hill said.

This year the Aztecs made a lot of noise, though. They were the only Orange County boys basketball team to win a CIF State championship.

For guiding the Aztecs to the top, Hill is the Register’s Orange County boys basketball coach of the year.

Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the second half of a CIF State Division II final against Moreau Catholic at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. Esperanza won 72-65. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
Esperanza coach Mark Hill in the second half of a CIF State Division II final against Moreau Catholic on March, 25, 2017. Esperanza won, 72-65. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

Esperanza finished the season with a 30-3 record and. The Aztecs went undefeated in the Crestview League. They were 25-1 at the end of the regular season and were selected to play in the elite Open Division of the CIF-SS playoffs.

The Aztecs took a 22-game winning streak into the playoffs. The streak was ended by Santa Margarita in the first round.

Esperanza was eliminated from the CIF-SS playoffs in its next game, a loss to Oak Park in the consolation bracket.

Then came another steak in the CIF Southern California Regionals.

The Aztecs beat Dorsey of Los Angeles, Bakersfield and Crossroads of Santa Monica to get to the regionals Division II championship game. They beat Pasadena in the final.

That put Esperanza in the CIF State Championships game. The Aztecs beat Moreau Catholic of Hayward, 72-65, to win the first state boys basketball title in Esperanza history.

Esperanza players and Coach Mark Hill celebrate after defeating Moreau Catholic 72-65, in the CIF State Division II final at the Golden 1 Arena in Sacramento, Calif., on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)
Esperanza players and Coach Mark Hill celebrate after defeating Moreau Catholic, 72-65, in the CIF State Division II final on Saturday, March, 25, 2017. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

Hill knew he had a good team when the Aztecs went to Chicago for a late-November, season-opening tournament. The Tournament of Champions featured Spartanburg Day of South Carolina and its nationally known junior star, Zion Williamson.

“I didn’t know exactly how we’d do against inner-city Chicago teams and some of the other great teams they had there,” Hill said. “I’d hoped we’d go 2-2 in the tournament, and was kind of afraid we might go 0-4.”

Esperanza went 3-1.

“And at point,” Hill said, “I thought we’d be pretty good.”

The players believed in Hill, said Eperanza star player Kezie Okpala.

“He has a lot of trust in his players and their abilities,” Okpala said.

Hill, whose 15 years as Esperanza’s coach is split over two stints, found this year’s team to be among the easier he has coached.

The Register’s Winter coaches of the Year Stephen Jennings, Crean Lutheran, Ruben Fernandez, Godinez,Mark Munoz, Trabuco Hills, Kurt Mitthof, Trabuco Hills, Mark Hill, Esperanza at the Register’s Athletes of the Year Banquet at Marconi Auto Museum in Tustin on Thursday, June 8, 2017. (Photo by Matt Masin, Orange County Register, SCNG)
The Register’s Winter coaches of the Year, from left: Stephen Jennings of Crean Lutheran, Ruben Fernandez of Godinez, Mark Munoz and Kurt Mitthof of Trabuco Hills and Mark Hill of Esperanza at the Register’s Athletes of the Year Banquet. (Photo by Matt Masin, Orange County Register, SCNG)

“It was a motivated group,” he said. “It wasn’t a group where I had to crack the whip at practice. Sometimes it’s a grind, but this team loved competing in practice every day.”

Hill shared the credit for Esperanza’s great year with his coaching staff of Craig Matthews, Chris Roberts and Dan Gardner.

And, of course, there were the players.

“These guys really did believe in themselves,” Hill said.

Maybe the coach had something to do with that, way back in November.

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Esperanza’s Kezie Okpala is the O.C. boys basketball player of the year

Esperanza's Kezie Okpala is the Register's Orange County boys basketball player of the year. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)
Esperanza’s Kezie Okpala is the Register’s Orange County boys basketball player of the year. (Photo by Kyusung Gong/Orange County Register/SCNG)