WHITEHALL – It’s not that Red Watson is overlooked.

It’s hard to ignore a young athlete with that kind of talent and work ethic.

But Watson has gone through his time at Whitehall High School with lots of very good athletes. He’s played on very good basketball and football teams, and while he’s always been a key contributor, he’s never been that star player who stands out above the rest.

But now it’s Watson’s turn to shine, as his prep basketball career is winding to a close.

Watson, the 5-foot-8 senior point guard for Whitehall, recently became the career steals leader for the Vikings program. He currently has 173 steals, six more than former record holder Barry Williams, who played in the 1980s.

Now Watson is only five steals away from setting the team’s single-season record. He has 70 this season, while Williams had 74 in his best year.

Watson will get his chance to break the record on Wednesday when the Vikings, who defeated Sparta on Monday in the first round of regionals, will play defending state champion Grand Rapids Catholic Central for a Division 2 regional title at Forest Hills Eastern High School.

Whitehall, currently 18-5 on the season, won the West Michigan Conference championship and a Division 2 district title before heading to regionals.

The interesting part is that Watson, the consummate team player, had no idea he was so close to the single-season steals record until he learned about it on Tuesday.

“That’s motivation right there,” he said. “I would love that.”

Watson is the type of player who does a lot of important things really well, but they’re the kind of things that don’t usually grab the headlines.

In the final MuskegonSports.com boys basketball leader board, he was sixth in the area with an average of three steals per game, and ninth in the area with an average of 3.6 assists per game.

Getting steals has become an art form for Watson. He gets so many by playing tight defense and looking for the signs that tell him when to go after the ball.

“I just play it like I play cornerback in football – I just read the hips and that guides me to the ball,” he said. “It happens when they get too comfortable and start crossing over too much. And if they have the ball in their weak hand I can tell, and that’s when I take advantage.”

Whitehall Coach Christian Subdon said Watson will stop at nothing to get a steal.

“If the ball goes to the ground he’s going to the ground,” Subdon said. “He doesn’t have any concern about his body. He’s going to the ground and getting it.”

Setting up offensive plays and getting assists is also a specialty for Watson.

It’s not that he can’t score. He has a nice outside shot and can drive to the rim. He demonstrated that as a sophomore on varsity, averaging around 13 points per game. He has also shown off his scoring ability in the tournament this year, scoring 11 points in one game and 13 in two others.

But he prefers to set up plays for the big scorers on his team – this year that’s been freshman Camden Thompson – and watch them finish.

“I would rather get my team involved because that also gets me involved,” Watson said. “I like to share the wealth, especially when I throw lobs to Camden.

“It’s good enough for me because I like to win. As long as we’re winning it doesn’t matter who puts the ball in the hoop.”

As the point guard, Watson sets up plays that come from the coaches on the bench, but as a three-year senior starter, he also has the green light to change the play if he sees something in the defense that presents a better scoring opportunity.

“I can change it if I see a mismatch, and I see that the play we called might not work as much as a different one,” he said.

Subdon said he has total trust in Watson’s knowledge of the game and judgement on the court.

“He’s a kid I will listen to,” the coach said. “If he says something’s not working, I will say let’s do something else. I trust him.”

While Watson definitely prefers team to individual success, he admits he was a little miffed when he was not selected as an All-Conference player in the West Michigan Conference, despite his overall statistics, and the fact that he plays a huge role for the league’s top team.

He was similarly snubbed in football as a junior when he led the area in interceptions but was not an All-Conference selection.

“It’s fine because I still put in the work and do what I have to do for the team, but it bothers me a little that I’m a three-year starter for a winning team, and I’ve got good numbers,” he said. “I scored 11 and 13 and 13 in three tournament games. That’s hard to do.”

What will be really hard to do, for Watson and the Vikings, is knocking off mighty Grand Rapids Catholic Central in Wednesday’s regional finals.

GRCC is 21-1 and hasn’t lost since its sixth game of the season, back in early January.

Coach Subdon said his players respect the Cougars and their accomplishments, but are not particularly stressed out about the challenge. Whitehall is the type of scrappy, defensive-oriented team that doesn’t back down from anyone.

“We go into very game the same way – we give everything we got, and we’re not scared of anyone,” Subdon said. “Everyone out there is a high school kid playing basketball. They are the defending state champs, and they’re rolling right now, but we’re going to come after them. If they’re going to beat us, they’re going to have to earn it.”

Regardless of how much longer the season lasts, Watson said playing on a team that won conference and district titles, and is now one win away from a regional championship, has been a lot of fun.

“I’ve never played basketball this long (into the postseason),” he said. “I hope we can continue it.”