Bieber setting his tone

Beck Diefenbach – Shaw Suburban Media Hampshire's Justin Bieber reacts after scoring a three-point shot to take the lead over Genoa-Kingston during the fourth quarter Monday in Genoa. (Beck Diefenbach – Shaw Suburban Media)

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Justin Bieber couldn’t believe it a few months ago when his MySpace profile was inundated with friend requests from teenage girls.

There were hundreds of requests, some had added their phone numbers and notes like “I’m your biggest fan.”

The girls thought they were friend-requesting the 15-year-old Canadian pop singer, not the 17-year-old guard from Hampshire’s boys basketball team. Although, if they saw Bieber in action on the basketball court, they probably would be his fan as well.

The 6-foot-3 senior leads the area in three-pointers (43) and is second in the area with 17.4 points a game. Prairie Ridge’s Chad Ljunggren leads the scoring list with 18.1 points a game. Bieber has helped the Whip-Purs to an 8-5 record.

Bieber was making a name for himself long before the singer hit it big. He started on his varsity team in Oregon as a freshman before his family moved back to Hampshire. Bieber has started three seasons now with the Whips, many of whom played with him when they were younger and all of whom were happy to have him back.

“He’s always been able to shoot, but he’s gotten a lot stronger and he can penetrate and shoot off the dribble,” Hampshire coach Bob Barnett said. “Last year we had a lot of guys who could score, so he took his opportunities when they were there. He has to create more on his own this year, and he’s gotten a lot smarter.”

Bieber agrees.

“Over the last couple years on varsity I’ve gotten smarter and stronger,” Bieber said. “Probably smarter is the biggest thing.”

Hampshire guard Shyler Ralphs noticed something else though.

“We were about the same height the summer before our junior years,” Ralphs said. “Now he’s about 3 inches taller than me. He’s improved a lot over the last year and he’s gotten taller.”

Ralphs, who plays some point guard now so Bieber can attack defenses in different ways, empathizes with defenders after seeing Bieber in open gym situations.

“I learn a lot from guarding him,” Ralphs said. “I pick up so many more moves. He’s an absolute nightmare to try to guard. He always seems to be able to free himself for a jumpshot. He’s a very scary player to guard.”

Barnett likes that Bieber can shoot over smaller defenders or simply blow by taller ones. He elevates well on his shot and his high release and arch on his shot makes it difficult to block. In Monday’s 57-52 victory at Genoa-Kingston, Bieber demonstrated how clutch he can be when he hit a three-pointer that gave the Whips a late lead, then drove the lane and banked in a five-footer in the final minute.

Bieber played with the Illinois Magic in travel basketball in the summer, where he was teammates with Richmond-Burton’s Kenny Riordan, Prairie Ridge’s Chad Ljunggren and Cary-Grove’s Chad McCarron. Bieber is being heavily recruited by NCAA Division III schools, with Lake Forest, Luther (Iowa) and St. Norbert (Wisconsin) showing the most interest.

Wherever he goes next year, people likely will recognize his name.

“We were in class in the fall and he told me about all his MySpace requests,” Ralphs said. “It’s absolutely hilarious.”

Some opposing cheering sections have picked up on the name as well. Fans from Rockford Lutheran and South Elgin began singing or yelling “One Time,” the other Justin Bieber’s biggest hit, while Hampshire’s Bieber was shooting free throws.

“Everyone teases me about it,” Bieber said. “I don’t have any of his songs on my iPod. His song isn’t bad, but it’s kind of weird because it’s my name.”