Center of attention

Warren's Sarah Boothe is the Sun-Times Player of the Year. Boothe is most proud of her averages in rebounds and assists.
(Marina Samovsky/ News-Sun)

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One of Warren coach John Stanczykiewicz’s favorite memories of 6-5 senior center Sarah Boothe doesn’t take place on the basketball court.

It’s on the dance floor.

‘‘When you see a tall girl, they usually slouch and don’t wear heels and sometimes they have a hard time looking feminine and they play it down,’’ Stanczykiewicz said. ‘‘Last year I chaperoned prom, and when I saw Sarah she was really a beautiful young woman. She had a lot of confidence and was on the dance floor all night dancing. She was having the time of her life. That would be my favorite moment.’’

That was last year. In her final year at Warren, the Stanford recruit is dancing on the basketball court, and putting up more than impressive numbers for a team that went 26-2 during the regular season.

She averages 20 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks, 1.7 assists and is shooting 54 percent from the floor and 33 percent from three-point range. She is a McDonald’s All-American finalist.

In her fourth year as a varsity starter, Boothe broke the 2,000-point mark this week, has more than 1,000 rebounds, more than 350 blocks and 200 assists. She is a three-time Sun-Times All-Area selection.

And now she is the 2008 Sun-Times girls basketball Player of the Year.

‘‘Wow, that’s a great honor; that’s awesome,’’ Boothe said. ‘‘I’m happy with how I’ve played and how my team has played. We have really good chemistry and our record has shown that.’’

Boothe led the Blue Devils to those 26 victories, even though there was uncertainty when the season started. Warren lost four of five starters and Boothe said many girls basketball pundits weren’t sure how they would handle that pressure.

The Blue Devils obviously handled it just fine behind their leader.

But Boothe doesn’t care if she scores 20 points or two, just as long as the team wins. Boothe is most proud of her rebound and assist totals, because it shows how aggressive she is on defense and that she’s a team player. Boothe is all about not padding the stats.

Stanczykiewicz agrees. Many times he has taken Boothe out of games in which Warren has led by 25 points or more, so other girls can get playing time.

‘‘When people hear Player of the Year, they think a player should have more points [than Sarah] and should have 1,500 rebounds, and some of that is my fault,’’ Stanczykiewicz said. ‘‘When we get up by 25 or 30 points, we take her out and give other girls a chance to play and not let her pad her stats. When you consider the attention she gets defensively, those are spectacular numbers. She’s done everything we’ve ever asked.’’

Boothe has recorded double-figure averages in points and rebounds despite being double- and triple-teamed. At first it was frustrating for Boothe to try to make plays and do her job in the post, but she got used to having two or three girls half her size hanging from her jersey.

‘‘It got frustrating sometimes and I’d have to [take a shot] really quick or pass it out,’’ Boothe said. ‘‘But I’ve always had great shooters like Shana Shepherd that I could pass it back out to and they’d hit a three. They’ve done a great job playing off of that and cutting to the basket for a shot.’’

As the postseason begins this week, Boothe has one more shot to make it Downstate and bookend her high school career. Warren last went to the state finals in Boothe’s freshman year but lost to Young. It was Warren’s first trip Downstate in school history.

Then it’s off to Stanford. Boothe was accepted last summer, and said making the decision to go to the northern California university was one of the toughest she has ever made.

‘‘When I went there the first time my junior year I really liked it, and Notre Dame and DePaul were some other schools I was looking at,’’ Boothe said.

‘‘The hard part for me was the distance. My parents come to all my games and they’re a huge support system. It will be hard to leave them and all my friends.

‘‘But I’m really happy with my choice. I had that gut feeling that everyone talks about.’’

Stanczykiewicz has said that Boothe will be remembered as the face of Warren girls basketball. She will be known as the player that put the school from Gurnee on the map.

Boothe has her own idea of how she wants future Warren players to think of her.

‘‘I want my legacy to be that I was a dominant player and a good teammate,’’ Boothe said, ‘‘and that I was always able to stay humble through all my experiences.’’