In sports, too often the Player of the Year honor is awarded to the athlete that has scored the most points, rushed for the most yards or had the highest batting average.
Every once in a while, you need to dig beyond the stats and look at the intangibles when considering such matters.
This season Osceola’s Cory Vega is the Osceola News-Gazette Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
Vega, a 6’1” senior who played center in Coach Steve Mason’s four-guard scheme, averaged 10.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game for the regional finalist Kowboys. Those numbers came against a tough schedule, and Vega was usually charged with guarding the opponent’s tallest, most physical or athletically-gifted player.
His talents and leadership were instrumental in Osceola’s 20-6 season that included OBC and district championships and another deep Class 7A playoff run.
“If you look beyond the numbers, Cory is definitely a deserving choice for Player of the Year,” Mason said. “He certainly was the glue that held our team together. He had to go against bigger, taller and sometimes more accomplished basketball players all year and not only did he hold his own but he sometimes dominated those players. He was the unquestioned leader of the team both on and off the court.”
Mason points to Vega’s Jan. 19 effort against Windermere as an example, where Osceola recorded a 66-57 road upset. Vega held 6’7” Duke commit Sean Stewart to well below his season averages of 21 points and 12 rebounds per game in leading Osceola to the win.
“It was typical of the way he played all season,” Mason noted. “He used his intensity and desire to make up for the fact that he was going against bigger players all season.”
Vega, who has been a star offensive lineman on the Kowboys football team for the past two years, credits Mason — who returned as Osceola head coach for the first time in more than a decade – with his outstanding season.
“From the beginning of the year, Coach Mason told all of us not to worry about scoring,” Vega said. He made us concentrate on playing with intensity and hustle all the time and told us the scoring opportunities will come. He has meant so much to my development both as a basketball player and a person.”
Vega added that facing bigger opponents never really bothered him. “In basketball, there are a lot of things more important that how tall you are,” he says. “Technique, desire, positioning – they all can negate height.”
Although he says he loves basketball more than football, Vega says he is undecided about his future. “If I’m fortunate enough to play at the next level, it probably will be in football,” he says. “UCF and a few other schools have contacted me about possibly walking on, so we will have to see if that works out.”
If and when his athletic career ends, the Vega says a college degree in the medical field or perhaps a career in the military are possibilities.
Joining Vega on the Osceola News Gazette’s All-County team are teammates Sean and Chris Combs. In regional wins over Ft. Pierce and Wellington, the two combined for 69 points.
Senior Chris Combs led the Kowboys in scoring (18.7 ppg) and also averaged a team-leading 5.4 assists per game. Sean Combs averaged 16.8 points per game.
“As a combo, I felt our backcourt was as strong as any in the area,” Mason said.
Joining the Osceola High players on the All-ONG Team are Jorden Birmingham and Jeremy Valez from Gateway. The Panthers “Mr. Inside/ Mr. Outside Combo,” Birmingham averaged 10.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while Valez averaged 10.6 points and dished almost four assists per game as Gateway finished with a 18-9 record and played Jones High School to the wire in a regional playoff loss.
After going just 13-41 in their first three years, Tohopekaliga had their first non-losing season and won the first district playoff game in 2020-21 –finishing with an 11-11 record. Senior guard Josh Camejo (17 ppg) and senior power forward Elial Salva (8.7 ppg, 9.5 rpg) earn spots on the All-ONG Team in aiding that turnaround for the Tigers.
Rounding out the 11-member ONG All-County Team are Celebration point guard Mitchell Sparks, Poinciana senior guard Justin Wilson and Harmony juniors Rafael Balines and Miquel Tirado. Sparks averaged 14.1 points and 3.7 assists in leading Celebration to a 13-10 mark; while Balines (11.6) and Tirado (12.9) paced the Longhorns to a respectable 16-10 mark – with five losses coming by four or fewer points. Wilson averaged 15 points a game for the Eagles.
