Santa Margarita Catholic High School

WINGS | 2009
James Eucherious
Keefe V ’96
6’ 9”Center, James Keefe,
is arguably one of the best
basketball players that
SMCHS has ever had in
the school’s history. He is
now playing for UCLA.
Q: When did you know that you
wanted to play basketball?
A: It took me awhile for basketball to
really stick with me. I starting playing
at a very young age and kept playing
because I was good, but I enjoyed
sports like football, hockey and golf
much more. Around junior high was
when I started to focus on basketball
as my primary sport and that is when
I really thought of it as my passion.
Q: What inspires you to keep playing?
A: When I am away from the game
for a small amount of time, I find
myself missing the adrenaline of
playing and competing with other
players. This energy and excitement of
basketball is what keeps me playing.
Q: What sort of things did you
take part in here at SMCHS?
(besides basketball)
A: One of the reasons SMCHS is
such a great place is because of the
variety of activities that it has to offer.
I loved being part of the eagle pack
and attending other sporting events.
I also have many fond memories
of all the dances and rallies that
were put on by the school.
Q: What do you miss
most about SMCHS?
A: The small class size and attitude
of the student body really allowed
people to get to know each other at
the school. I missed the closeness that
everyone had with each other which
is impossible to get at a university.
Q: What are some of your
goals in life right now?
A: Right now I am just focusing on
finishing up my degree at UCLA
and preparing myself for life after
college in every way possible.
There are so many directions I feel
I could go in my life and I am just
trying to get ready for all of them.
Q: What is the hardest part
of playing basketball?
A: The wear and tear on your body is
the hardest part of basketball for me.
To play at your best there is so much
that has to go into it and your body
takes a beating during the process.
This was the hardest part for me
to adjust to at the college level.
Q: What advice would you give to
any future basketball players?
A: To anyone that is serious about
playing basketball, I would tell them to
just look at the big picture when times
are rough. Throughout the course of a
long season it can be easy to overreact
when things aren’t going well, but in the
grand scheme of your career, nothing
should be able to get you down.
25