Junior Seth Wilson leads Marana with 19 points and six rebounds a game. He also excels in swimming and volleyball for the Tigers.

james gregg / arizona daily star

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Marana basketball player Seth Wilson often finds himself in the right place at the right time.

When his sister's friends persuaded him to try out for the boys volleyball team in his freshman year, he became a prominent middle blocker and helped the Tigers make the state tournament in 2006 and 2007.

When a friend accidentally grabbed two applications for student council at the end of last year, Wilson decided to fill out the extra one. Students elected him student body secretary.

"I like the people in student council and the nice things that they do," he said.

Wilson and the council are raising funds to provide Christmas dinner and gifts for 30 local families.

When his friends encouraged him to give swimming a try earlier this year, he became a part of one of the most successful swim teams in school history.

"It was probably the hardest thing I have ever done, even though I thought it would be an easy sport," Wilson said. He swam in the 50 and 100 freestyle.

But his good timing is most evident on the basketball court. Unsure about whether he would make the varsity squad last season as a sophomore, he accomplished his goal of "getting a lot of playing time" by starting every game since November 2006.

This season, the junior leads the Tigers with 19 points and six rebounds a game, but his merits have gone largely unnoticed.

Here are three things to know about one of Southern Arizona's leading scorers:

Wilson is comfortable in charge. "It's weird to say but I naturally like being a leader, and I like being looked up to," said Wilson, who is one of the team captains.

He is also an Eagle Scout and ranks fourth in his class with a 4.2 grade point average.

He knows what needs to change for Marana. The Tigers went 1-26 last season but are 2-10 already this year. "Losing is a mental thing. We're used to losing so we have to turn that around," he said. "We have a lot of new guys this year and all of them really want to win. It's definitely a different atmosphere now."

Winning is not the only option. Wilson's goal is to lead the Tigers to the 4A Sonoran Region tournament. "I love basketball, so I don't just play to win," he said. "It's not all about basketball. Even if it's not the best season ever, my friends are out there on the court having a good time with me."