Merced Union High School District

Merced High senior Diego Aguilar has created a shark frenzy with each 3-pointer he’s made this season. It started slow early on this season with the Bears senior raising his right hand to form a shark fin to celebrate every made 3-pointer. It’s caught on so much now that the Merced High student section and many fans put up the shark fins after every Aguilar 3-pointer. “It’s crazy to think I really started that,” Aguilar said. “It’s definitely a surreal feeling. I’m just so glad to have all the supporters. I’m very blessed.”

 

The shark fins have made plenty of appearances this season with Aguilar breaking the school record for 3-pointers made in a season. Aguilar broke the record with four 3-pointers in a 65-35 victory over Buhach Colony on Feb. 6. He added six more threes in an 80-42 win over Golden Valley in the season finale on Friday. Aguilar can add to his total on Wednesday night when the No. 8 Bears (20-8) host No. 9 Tracy (20-8) in the first round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II playoffs. It’s Merced’s first home playoff game since defeating Rocklin in 2017. 

 

“Having a shooter of Diego's caliber makes coaching easy at times,” said Merced coach Adrian Sanchez. “He has the greenlight to shoot whenever he is in the game and sometimes you just have to get out his way and not make things too complicated.”

 

Aguilar’s volume of made 3-pointers and high proficiency rank among the top shooters in the Sac-Joaquin Section and the state. Aguilar is fifth in the section for made 3-pointers with 94 this season and his 43% shooting behind the arc ranks among the top of the shooters with the most 3-pointers made in the section. His 94 3-pointers ranks 17th best in the state, according to MaxPreps.

 

“I don't really look at that much,” Aguilar said. “It's pretty crazy to see, it just motivates me more to just keep on going.” Aguilar has made six 3-pointers in a game five times this season. “When you get hot, it feels amazing,” Aguilar said. “You just want to keep on shooting. I don’t want to say I have the green light from anywhere but coach understands when I get hot I might take a couple heat checks.”

 

Aguilar broke Stephan Brown’s mark of 85 3-pointers made in 2001. That record stood for 25 years. The record was previously held by current MHS principal Marcus Knott, who made 81 3-pointers in 1992, which stood until Brown broke it. “It's really something when you think about it,” said Sanchez. “Adding his name to the hallowed list of MHS basketball greats is a testament to his hard work and dedication and so very well deserved.” 

 

Aguilar says the three-pointer really became a weapon for him last year as a junior. It didn’t have overnight. He says he spends at least an hour every day taking about 400 shots, just working on his form outside of practice. He’s in the gym on the weekends getting up shots, working with shooting machines.

 

"We like to say that there is no substitute for hard work and that it pays off when you put in the time,” Sanchez said. “Nothing sums up what has gone into Diego being a prolific 3-point shooter more than this. He's a gym rat, always putting in hours of shooting and conditioning year round. As a team, we shoot in the early mornings several months out of the year, including during the season. This is in addition to afternoon practices. Diego shoots far more than this, however, working on his craft often alone, putting in extra time, just him and the shooting machine, or him in the gym alone. He epitomizes what it means when people say that great shooters are made, not born."

 

Aguilar was named the Offensive Player of the Year last year and is leading the Bears at 14.6 points per game. Other teams have made it their top priority to slow Aguilar down, often assigning their top defender to guard him and face guard Aguilar to prevent him from seeing the ball. “It was definitely a little bit frustrating at first, but as teams kept on doing it, I kept figuring it out. It was a learning experience for me.”

 

“Diego's shooting prowess frees up his teammates offensively when too much attention is paid to him,” Sanchez said. “This helps spread the floor for easier drives to the basket and chances for his teammates to get their shots up accordingly.”

 

The combination of Aguilar’s shooting and teammates like Jordan Thomas, who broke the Merced career steals record this season, Valentin Vasquez and Aiden Matsuo, carrying the scoring load at times have led to the Bears winning back-to-back Central California Conference championships. 

 

“After our last game when we found out Atwater lost, we got super hyped,” Aguilar said. “It means everything to us, and going back to back that’s very special. But we want to keep going and go on a playoff run. It’s going to be exciting on Wednesday night. We have our first home playoff game in a while and we need to stay locked in.”

Shawn Jansen is the MUSHD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.