Savannah Dhaliwal
Savannah Dhaliwal is unlike so many of the other stars in B.C. high school basketball’s graduating Class of 2017 in one key way.
Quite simply, points and rebounds aren’t the metrics she uses to determine the effectiveness of her own play.
“I want to be remembered for my effort,” says Dhaliwal. “Once you think you’ve accomplished something, then it’s all over and I want to keep doing more. I don’t want to be average.”
Not that there is anything remotely shabby about the 26 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and two blocks-per-game she averaged as perhaps the single-most heavily guarded player in B.C. this past season.
But for Dhaliwal, stats took a back seat to in-game hustle, and the famed 5 a.m. workouts she put herself through in an effort to ensure that no one was working harder.
Said the 6-foot Dhaliwal when asked about her regimen earlier this season: “I get such a good feeling being in the weight room at 5 a.m. It’s still dark. It’s tough to wake up early, but I think to myself, ‘How many others are doing what I am doing right now?’ And when my body starts to ache in the fourth quarter of a big game, I know I am ready.”
It’s an attitude that set her apart over a high school career that began with provincial MVP honours and B.C. championship titles in both Grades 8 and 10, and a Final Four appearance this past March at the B.C. senior Triple A tournament.
And now, an NCAA Div. 1 career beckons at Portland State.
Securing her scholarship and the opportunity to pursue what she believes will ultimately be a career in med school, Dhaliwal is most proud of the fact that her hard work has paid dividends.
“I have been serious about wanting this since about Grade 6 and a lot of people were not 100-percent sure I could do it,” said Dhaliwal. “I might not be 6-foot-4 and I might not be the most athletic player on the floor, but I have worked for everything I’ve gotten.
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that no one is going to be the perfect player. But you can still do the little things that others can’t. I won’t get pushed around. My nose has been elbowed and bloodied in so many tournaments, but aggressiveness is a mentality.”
SCHOOL: Panorama Ridge (Surrey) FRESHMAN’S FUTURE: Portland State