{"id":2694,"date":"2025-03-21T20:54:19","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T20:54:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/?p=2694"},"modified":"2025-03-21T20:54:19","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T20:54:19","slug":"khs-fires-varsity-boys-basketball-coach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/?p=2694","title":{"rendered":"KHS fires varsity boys basketball coach"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Oscar Lopez won’t return for fifth season after receiving sit-down evaluation Tuesday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Brian Sumpter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lake County Sports on Facebook<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KELSEYVILLE >> Oscar Lopez is out as Kelseyville High School\u2019s varsity boys basketball coach, a decision that came down Tuesday after the coaching veteran received a sit-down evaluation with principal Mike Jones and athletic director KC White.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez, a middle school physical education teacher at Mountain Vista Middle School, is a 2012 Kelseyville graduate and was a member of the school\u2019s 20-7 team during his senior season of 2011-12. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s tough because I played for this program, it\u2019s a special place for me,\u201d the 30-year-old Lopez said. \u201cI\u2019ve been coaching for nine years, the last six at Kelseyville High.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He inherited a struggling Kelseyville varsity boys program after COVID wiped out the 2020-21 season. The Knights were coming off an 8-17 campaign in 2019-20 and a 5-21 mark in 2018-19. Under Lopez\u2019s watch the last four seasons, Kelseyville has gone 66-46 overall, including a 42-16 mark in league play and a 4-4 record in the North Coast Section playoffs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey told me they wanted to move in a different direction,\u201d Lopez said of his sit-down meeting with Jones and White. \u201cI\u2019m not sure what that means. We\u2019ve been successful on the court, so it can\u2019t be about wins and losses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Knights have excelled in the classroom as well, according to Lopez, compiling a 3.8 GPA this past season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey couldn\u2019t give me any specific reasons for what I did wrong,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cThe only thing they mentioned was a comment I made to Lake County Sports about the district\u2019s decision (to forfeit Kelseyville\u2019s league game with Cloverdale on Feb. 11, which cost the Knights a share of a second straight league title). I didn\u2019t put anyone underneath the bus with the comment, I just told the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kelseyville was rolling toward a share of the league championship when three players posted an offensive photo online following a league win over archrival Clear Lake.  The photo included nine members of the team posing with a custom-made banner featuring an offensive phrase aimed at Clear Lake. While two members of the team immediately removed the photo, one did not. The Kelseyville Unified School District announced the forfeiture the following day on its website. As a result, the Knights ended up 11-3 in the league standings behind 12-2 St. Helena and 12-2 Middletown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Knights went on to reach the North Coast Section Division 5 semifinals as an at-large team, losing to eventual state champion International (San Francisco). They also qualified for the NorCal playoffs, losing to Sonoma Valley in the opening round (Sonoma Valley later lost a close game to International).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feeling good about coming off another successful season, Lopez said that feeling didn\u2019t last long. While working on next season\u2019s schedule, Lopez said he sent an email on Friday, March 14 to athletic director KC White inquiring about the dates for the Stokes Tournament this coming December in Kelseyville. He received an email back saying that he was to meet with Jones and White for a sit-down evaluation Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never had an evaluation before, not a sit-down one anyway,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cI did meet with him (Jones) after my first season because of the six technical fouls I received. He wanted me to cut them down.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez didn\u2019t receive a single technical this past season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t really comment on personnel matters,\u201d Jones told Lake County Sports when asked about the evaluation Lopez received.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kelseyville\u2019s principal would only confirm that Lopez would not return for a fifth season as varsity boys basketball head coach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

White said the evaluation process for Kelseyville\u2019s coaches was instituted this year, which is why Lopez has not received an evaluation in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been directed to give an evaluation to every coach we have beginning with the fall (2024) sports season,\u201d White said. \u201cThe coaches will be meeting with me (and the principal) at some point. I haven\u2019t completed the evaluation process with all the winter sports coaches yet. Less than a handful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

White said he could not comment on the evaluation Lopez received or his firing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnfortunately, I can\u2019t give comment on personnel matters. I\u2019m kind of stuck. I can\u2019t talk.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez said he was evaluated in 29 categories using a scale from 1-5, one being the worst and five the best. His average score was 3.4, including five fives and 13 fours he received, but also five twos and two ones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He received a score of one for \u201csupervision of the locker room\/training room\u201d, and another one in the category for \u201cindividual and team discipline\/control.\u201d He also received scores of two for \u201cbeing a good role model\u201d and for \u201cpublic relations,\u201d which encompasses media relations, interaction with the school\u2019s booster club, parents\/guardians, and spectators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez said he is at a loss to explain the low marks in those categories. On the category of public relations, he said he reported the scores of every one of his games to the media (he reported 100 percent of his games to Lake County Sports) and isn\u2019t aware of any problems this season with parents\/guardians or booster club members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know of any coach who spends every minute with his players in the locker room before and after games,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cAnd I can\u2019t stop any player from posting something on the Internet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for disciplining players, Lopez said he did exactly that during a league game in mid-January against Cloverdale, benching a trio of Knights for showing up late to practice. He said he also almost dismissed a player from the team earlier in the season because of lack of effort but was able to work things out with the player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When another player in the program was underperforming academically, he said he took it upon himself, with the help of his players, to make sure that player was able to stay eligible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe took a struggling player and made him academically eligible,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cWe nearly got him to almost 3.0 (GPA).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez said he\u2019s not sure if the decision to fire him originated at the high school or higher up the ladder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if this (decision) comes rom the top, if I pissed someone off,\u201d Lopez said of Kelseyville Unified School District superintendent Nicki Thomas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou and I both know that I cannot comment on personnel matters,\u201d Thomas said in an email to Lake County Sports. \u201cSorry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez said he\u2019s received support from the community in the wake of his firing as varsity coach, though he doesn\u2019t know what good, if any, it will do. He\u2019s certainly received the support of his players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCoach Lopez is an unfathomably amazing coach,\u201d senior Sebastian Chavez said. \u201cHaving the privilege of spending the last four years as his student in basketball taught me what hard work and dedication is. Lopez cared for us as players, students and individuals and personally showed me what it takes to be a man. In every practice and every game, he pushed us past our limit and believed in us through thick and thin. He always had our back in any situation and if we needed anything we knew he would be there for us. By letting him go you\u2019re not only punishing our basketball program, but also the next generation of basketball players who will not get to play under him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can confidently say the decision to fire Oscar Lopez is a grave mistake and just flat out wrong,\u201d added senior Kyle Watkins, a four-year varsity veteran. \u201cThis year he had a career low in technical fouls and ejections (none). This year he has conducted himself with more class than ever. I know many will agree with me when I say he did not do anything to deserve getting fired. What is being done to our boys basketball program from our own school board is an abuse of power. It is a disgrace to not just our high school, but to all of the schools that reside in our district. I believe the decision to release Oscar was unjust and unfair.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI want to express my sincere gratitude to coach Lopez for allowing me to be a part of his program over the past four years,\u201d senior Brock Barrick said. \u201cDuring my time in the basketball program, I\u2019ve grown not only as an athlete but also as an individual. Coach Lopez\u2019s passion for basketball and his deep care for his athletes have made a lasting impact on me. He has always pushed us to be better players and, more importantly, better young men. I remember watching him play, and it was clear that he was a fierce competitor — a quality that has been evident throughout his coaching as well.  I went into every sporting event without a doubt in my mind that he had my back through thick and thin. I believe it\u2019s a mistake letting him go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was coached by Lopez for three seasons, and we accomplished more than any other Kelseyville basketball team ever has in those years,\u201d senior Gene Holdenried said. \u201cHe was always tough on us but we got better because of it. His commitment to our program and youth basketball in Kelseyville didn\u2019t go unnoticed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead to his future, Lopez hasn\u2019t decided if he\u2019ll seek a coaching job elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if I want to coach anywhere else,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cIf there was an offer that presented itself, I might have to consider it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lopez does know that he\u2019ll be coaching his son Anthony\u2019s fifth- and sixth-grade All-Star team during a tournament this weekend in Lakeport. After that, your guess is as good as his.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Oscar Lopez won’t return for a fifth season as Kelseyville High School’s varsity boys basketball coach. (File photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oscar Lopez won’t return for fifth season after receiving sit-down evaluation Tuesday By Brian Sumpter Lake County Sports on Facebook KELSEYVILLE >> Oscar Lopez is out as Kelseyville High School\u2019s varsity boys basketball coach, a decision that came down Tuesday after the coaching veteran received a sit-down evaluation with principal Mike Jones and athletic director […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2695,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,12,17],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2694"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2694"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2694\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2697,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2694\/revisions\/2697"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2695"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/briansumptersports.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}