By Rachel Rosen
Executive Sports Editor
Mira Costa boys basketball seniors Max McCalla and Tyler Antrobius earned Co-MVP of the Bay League for their dominant play as a duo throughout this season.
McCalla and Antrobius have both been part of the varsity basketball squad at Mira Costa since their sophomore year and led the team to its first Bay League title for the program in over 20 years this past season.
“Our last season at Costa was awesome,” McCalla said. “It was kind of a storybook ending to our high school careers, and I couldn’t be happier about how it happened.”
McCalla and Antrobius have both been playing basketball for 12 years and have been playing with each other for 10 of those years. They played together for the first time on a club team called the Manhattan Beach Spartans when they were only eight years old and have continued to play basketball together ever since. Both McCalla and Antrobius also played on the same West Coast Elite Under Armour AAU team throughout their high school careers along with the Costa basketball team.
“I love the way Max is able to carve upa defense and get all of his teammates open shots, and he can take over a game when he needs to,” Antrobius said. “I can’t imagine playing with anyone else.”
Both McCalla and Antrobius dominated the entire season, giving an equally important contribution to every game the Mustangs played. McCalla averaged 10 points six rebounds, six assists and one steal per game, while Antrobius averaged 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals per game.
“I feel like Tyler and I are both very unselfish players, and we will do whatever it takes to win,” McCalla said.
The duo’s chemistry on the court contributed to the most successful season for the Mustang boys basketball program in over 20 years, winning the Bay League championship and making it to the second round of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) playoffs. The Mustangs finished with an overall record of 20-9 and Bay League record of 9-1.
“Since we have been playing together for so long, we knew where each other would be
before the play happened,” Antrobius said. “That helped us a lot during the close games when the gym was super loud and we couldn’t hear each other that well. Our chemistry on the court was unmatched.”
With both standouts graduating this year, the program will have to fill their shoes, which will not be an easy task. McCalla will be continuing his career playing Division III basketball at Claremont McKenna College next year. Antrobius was offered to play for Occidental College but will be retiring from his competitive play as he is undecided as to where he is heading to college in the fall.
“I feel like the program is definitely getting better year after year,” McCalla said. “Coach Neal Perlmutter is building the program with hard work as the main focus. Everyone in the program works very hard year-round, and that hard work pays off during the season.”
McCalla and Antrobius are ending their high school basketball careers with the title of Co-MVPs of Bay League, one of the highest honors to receive in the Bay League.
“My last season at Costa was an unforgettable experience,” Antrobius said. “I’m really going to miss playing with all of my teammates who I have grown so close to over the course of the season.”
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