DG153

Dreads on teams in the Pac-12, SEC, and MAC, as well as four of the starters on my dread all-America team are the feature attractions in dread gallery #153, the second of three DGs covering the 2013-14 season in college basketball.
We'll begin with the MAC. There were 4 players with dreads on teams in the MAC this season, and two of them earned all-conference honors .....

1. One of the two, 6-9 Ohio junior F Maurice N'dour puts up a shot against G Jaryd Eustace of Miami (Ohio) during a game on Feb. 8. N'dour, a native of Senegal, had 14 points and 8 rebounds as Ohio picked up an 82-75 home victory.
 

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2. Surrounded by the enemy, Maurice N'dour goes to the floor trying to gain possession of the ball against Western Michigan players (left to right) David Brown, Austin Richie, and Shayne Whittington on Feb. 5 at Kalamazoo. N'dour finished with 20 points (one of his 9 games with 20+ points) and 6 rebounds, but the Bobcats fell to 16-6 as WMU went on a 33-17 run in the final 8:39 of the game to win 90-74.

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3. Maurice N'dour tries to avoid G Nyles Evans of Akron as he goes to the basket for a shot during 1st half of a quarterfinal game in the MAC tournament at Cleveland on Mar. 13. Maurice hit 5 of 6 from the field, finishing with 11 points and 5 rebounds but also fouling out in 23 minutes, as the Bobcats' hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament ended with an 83-77 loss to the Zips. 

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4. With their 23-11 record not good enough for a bid to the NIT, the Bobcats had to settle for the CIT. After advancing through the first two rounds, they took on VMI in the quarterfinals, where Maurice N'dour and F Phillip Anglade battled for possession on this play at Athens on Mar. 26. With N'dour hitting all 6 of his FG attempts, Ohio raced to a 35-18 lead in the 1st half; but VMI stormed back to win 92-90. N'dour ended up shooting 12 for 13, finishing with 26 points and 7 rebounds as the Bobcats finished with a 25-12 record.
In his first season with Ohio after transferring from JC, Maurice had 4 double-doubles (including 28 and 12 in a big win over Toledo on Feb. 1), was named MAC player of the week three times, and, of course, earned a place as a reserve on my all-America with dreads team.

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5. The other MAC player to make the all-America with dreads team also played his home games in Ohio - about a couple hundred miles north of Athens. Senior F Quincy Diggs of Akron shoots a layup contested by Oregon State F Devon Collier during 2nd half of a 1st round game in the Diamond Head Classic at Honolulu on Dec. 22. Diggs had 11 points and 3 rebounds as the Zips won their 5th straight after a 1-2 start, defeating Oregon State 83-71. 

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6. Quincy Diggs looks to go to the basket during 2nd half against South Carolina on Dec. 28. After losing to the Gamecocks on Christmas Day in the 3rd place game of the tournament in Hawaii, they lost to them again three days later at Columbia. Diggs had 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists - and 7 turnovers (ouch) - in Akron's 78-45 defeat.

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7. Quincy Diggs' preferred look for most games was partially reduced dreads, which you can see here as delivers a subtle elbow to F Connor Tava during a MAC tournament semifinal game on Mar. 14.

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8. 6-6 F Quincy Diggs takes it to the basket against Western Michigan on Mar. 14. Suspended last season, Diggs fought his way back onto the team hoping to help lead it to a second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance; but those hopes came to an end. The Zips led MAC #1 seed WMU by 17 at halftime and 15 midway through the 2nd half. But the lead vanished when WMU went on an 18-0 run. Diggs hit just 4 of 15 from the field, finishing with 13 points and 5 rebounds in a crushing 64-60 defeat in OT. Quincy's Akron career ended five days later with him scoring 23 points in 24 minutes in a 97-91 road loss to IPFW in the 1st round of the CIT.

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9. Daveon Balls, nicknamed Petey, 6-0, 170-pound sophomore G for Northern Illinois, puts up a shot against Central Michigan on Feb. 12. Balls scored 11 points (one of his 4 games in double figures) and had 2 steals in 24 minutes as the Huskies routed CMU 88-63. 

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10. Daveon Balls, who debuted his dreads early last season, puts up a token hand as F Karrington Ward misses a 3-pointer during 1st half of a 2nd round game in the MAC tournament at Cleveland on Mar. 12. Balls had 5 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists as NIU's season ended with a 53-48 loss to Eastern Michigan. The Huskies finished at 15-17, a huge improvement after going 5-25 in 2013. Balls' stats this season were similar to his numbers in his freshman season.
DAVEON BALLS (2013-14): 32 games, 18 MPG, 4.0 PPG, 31.5 FG%, 1.8 RPG, 1.4 APG

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11. Marquiez Lawrence, 6-8, 200-pound freshman F for Kent State, has F Tucker Haymond - as well as his own dreads - blocking his view of the rim as he tries to shoot during a 75-59 home loss to Western Michigan on Jan. 23. If you wanted to see these dreads this season, the first place you needed to look was the Kent State bench, not the court. This game against WMU was one of only two games where he had double figures in minutes played. Let's hope he improves enough to be on the court much more often next season. Instead of listing Lawrence's averages, I'll just list his actual totals for the whole season.
MARQUIEZ LAWRENCE (2013-14): 16 games, 51 minutes, 12 points, 50 FG%, 13 rebounds, 1 blocked shot, 1steal

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12. Of all the players with dreads in Division 1, the highest number of them are from (oddly enough) Indianapolis, including 6-7, 190-pound freshman F Steven Davis of Wright State, shown here defending against G Marc Brown during a 58-53 home win over UIC on Jan. 12. Early in the season it looked like Davis, who redshirted last season, was going to be a key contributor for the Raiders. But once Horizon League play began, he hardly played at all. After playing 9 minutes in this game on Jan. 23, he played only 15 more minutes the rest of the season. So like Marquiez Lawrence, we're hoping for a lot of improvement from Davis in the seasons ahead. 
STEVEN DAVIS (2013-14): 22 games, 9 MPG, 2.7 PPG, 34 FG%, 1.5 RPG

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13. With dreads so long you can't even see his number (44), 6-9 junior F Tavares Sledge throws down one of the two dunks he had on back-to-back possessions during 2nd half of a Horizon League tournament 2nd round game against Oakland at Green Bay on Mar. 7. Sledge finished with 8 points and 5 rebounds in 19 minutes as Wright State advanced with a 73-57 win.

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14. Tavares Sledge and UW-Milwaukee G Cody Wichmann battle for the ball during the Horizon League championship game at Dayton on Mar. 11. With regular season champion UW-Green Bay being upset in the semifinals, Wright State found themselves on their home floor playing for a trip to the NCAA Tournament. But Milwaukee led wire-to-wire, defeating the Raiders 69-63. 

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15. Tavares Sledge is called for a foul trying to block a shot by East Carolina F Brandan Stith during 2nd half of a 1st round game in the CIT on Mar. 18. Sledge had 2 points and 4 rebounds as Wright State advanced to round 2 with a 73-59 road victory. Tavares had a season high 11 rebounds in 15 minutes against Maurice N'dour and Ohio in the 2nd round, but the Raiders' season ended at 21-15 with a tough 56-54 road loss to the Bobcats.
When I read that Sledge had been arrested last September, I was afraid that he would be suspended for the whole season and thus would not be making his 3rd straight appearance on my dread all-America team. But thankfully he was reinstated immediately after serving his 19-day jail sentence and played his first game on Dec. 29: http://www.whio.com/news/news/crime-law/tavares-sledge-back-raiders-roster-after-convictio/ncWTW/ ..... Hopefully Tavares' problems are behind him and he'll be able to make the dread all-America team for a 4th time next season.
TAVARES SLEDGE (2013-14): 21 games, 12 MPG, 2.6 PPG, 44.9 FG%, 3.4 RPG 

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16. For the first three months of the season the Campbell Camels had one player with dreads. But then at the end of January they suddenly had two, after 6-6 senior F Leek Leek, a native of Sudan who had been growing his hair since transferring to the team from JC the previous season, decided he better convert it into dreads before it was too late. Here Leek passes the ball on Mar. 5, during Campbell's season-ending loss to Charleston Southern in the 1st round of the Big South tournament. Leek, a starter in all 32 games this season, averaged 6.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in his 12 games with dreads to finish with overall totals of 6.5 PPG and 2.9 RPG.

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17. Campbell's other player with dreads, 6-6 star junior F Reco McCarter, drives against F Chuck Ogbodo (#13) and G Freddie Jackson during a 69-50 road loss to UNC-Wilmington on Dec. 3. McCarter wasn't a star during the first two months of the season; but once the calendar turned to 2014 he scored in double figures almost every game. 
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18. Reco McCarter drives against F Malcolm Bernard on Mar. 5. McCarter finished with 19 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists, but Campbell scored just 3 points in the final 5:45 of the game and were knocked out of the Big South tournament by Charleston Southern in the 1st round 81-71. Although I was able to find these photos where Reco's dreads look good, unfortunately for a lot of games this season he had them reduced. McCarter was the Camels' best player this season, leading the team in points and rebounds and finishing 2nd in assists. And he came very close to making the all-America with dreads team.
RECO McCARTER (2013-14): 32 games, 28 MPG, 12.7 PPG, 45.3 FG%, 5.1 RPG, 2.4 APG, 1.2 SPG

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19. James Currington, 6-6, 186-pound freshman F for Mississippi Valley State, can't prevent Washington G Darin Johnson from hitting a layup during 2nd half at Seattle on Dec. 27. Currington shot 5 for 5 from the field, finishing with 11 points and 6 rebounds in 22 minutes, but the Delta Devils lost to UW 95-80. Currington had an outstanding first season in an MVSU uniform, making my freshman all-America with dreads team. But there will not be a second season. He's transferring to Southeastern Louisiana, where hopefully these sick dreads will be even longer when he's eligible to play in November 2015.

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20. As long as they were, James Currington's dreads weren't the longest on his team - not even close. That honor goes to 6-0 sophomore G  Cameron Dobbs, shown here teaming up with F Daniel Hurtt to defend a shot by G Tre Demps during 2nd half of an 86-64 loss to Northwestern on Dec. 16. Not just the longest on the team, Dobbs' dreads arguably are the longest in Division 1, and I'm sorry I couldn't find a better photo of them than this. As a player, Cameron is a 3-point specialist - 70 of his 109 FG attempts were from 3-point range. And after he shot 29.5% last season, I'm happy to report that he improved a lot this year - to a still chilly 37.6%. 
There were two other players with dreads for Valley this season. 6-2 junior G Jurmelle Hall redshirted (I think). And like Dobbs, senior F Ervin Thomas made my dread all-America team. (I included a photo of Thomas in my dread news report but couldn't find any other decent photos of him from this season.)
CAMERON DOBBS (2013-14): 24 games, 9 MPG, 4.8 PPG, 37.6 FG%
ERVIN THOMAS (2013-14): 19 games, 13 MPG, 2 PPG, 34.0 FG%, 3.9 RPG

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21. Darryl Palmer, 6-7 sophomore F for South Carolina State, challenges a shot by Michigan G Derrick Walton on Nov. 12 at Ann Arbor. Palmer had 5 points and 2 blocked shots as the Bulldogs, as expected, were routed 93-59. 

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22. Darryl Palmer looks to pass while being double teamed by junior G Rod Hall and star F K.J. McDaniels of Clemson on Dec. 3.

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23. Oops! Darryl Palmer was so cold from the field against Clemson, he couldn't even make a dunk, failing to increase the Bulldogs' 2-point lead with 6:28 remaining in 1st half. Palmer finished the game 4 for 16 from the field, scoring 8 points and getting 5 rebounds and 2 steals in a 65-49 loss to the Tigers.
I now want to take a moment to apologize to Darryl for omitting him from a couple of categories in the stats section of my dread news report. He should have been listed among the leaders in rebounds and blocked shots but wasn't because I somehow wrote down the wrong numbers by his name on my sheet of paper with everybody's stats. I'm sorry, Darryl. My bad. Here are his correct stats.
DARRYL PALMER (2013-14): 29 games, 28 MPG, 7.0 PPG, 39.7 FG%, 7.0 RPG, 1.3 APG, 1.5 BPG

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24. Photos of Delaware State G Larry Haley from this season were hard to come by, but I was able to find this rear view of the 6-3, 190-pound sophomore defending against F Price Okoroh of Howard on Dec. 15 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Haley went scoreless in this game and in 9 of the 11 games he appeared in. Here are his aggregate statistics (not averages) for this season.
LARRY HALEY (2013-14): 11 games, 42 minutes, 9 points, 23.1 FG%, 4 rebounds, 2 assists

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25. 6-7, 215-pound junior F James Siakam of Vanderbilt denies F Gavin Ware at the rim on Mississippi State's first shot of the afternoon in SEC action at Nashville on Feb. 1. Siakam, a native of Cameroon playing his first season with dreads, had 2 points and 7 rebounds in Vanderbilt's 55-49 victory.

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26. Texas A&M G Jordan Green almost loses his arm while trying to keep James Siakam from this offensive rebound midway through overtime on Feb. 15. Siakam hit both FT to increase Vanderbilt's lead to 55-50. After recording a double-double at Texas A&M three weeks earlier, Siakam repeated the feat in the rematch, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds. A&M jumped to a 10-0 lead and led the whole game until the Commodores tied it with 4 seconds to play. VU went on to win 57-54.

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27. James Siakam and 6-10 C Damian Jones make it difficult for Florida F Casey Prather to score during 1st half at Nashville on Feb. 25. Vanderbilt fans probably are still thinking about what might have been had the Commodores upset the #1 ranked Gators. But Florida won 57-54, dropping VU to 15-12. And the Commodores never won again, losing their next 4 games to finish at 15-16. With Siakam's dreads just getting started, they weren't very impressive looking. I'm sure they'll look much better next season - if he keeps them.
JAMES SIAKAM (2013-14): 31 games, 24 MPG, 7.2 PPG, 58.9 FG%, 5.3 RPG, 1.2 APG, 1.3 BPG

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28. Debuting his dreads in the season opener on Nov. 8, 6-6 sophomore G Michael Qualls of Arkansas gets a couple of arms and a leg up while defending SIU-Edwardsville G Christian Salecich. Qualls began an eventful season with 16 points and 5 rebounds in 25 minutes as the Razorbacks spanked SIU-E 99-65.

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29. Michael Qualls and his beginner dreads drive to the basket against the very long dreads of Clemson junior G Rod Hall at Fayetteville on Dec. 7. Qualls came off the bench to hit 6 of 7 shots from the field, finishing with 17 points and 6 rebounds. Hall had 10 points and 4 assists. Arkansas improved to 6-2 with a 74-68 victory. Clemson fell to 7-2.

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30. Michael Qualls goes to the basket for a slam dunk but is rejected with authority by Kentucky F Julius Randle during 2nd half at Fayetteville on Jan. 14. Unfortunately for Randle the refs called a foul on him. Qualls made 1 of the 2 FT to tie the game at 66 with 7:30 remaining.

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31. And here it is! The dunk seen 'round the world - or at least the state of Arkansas anyway. Michael Qualls slams home an offensive rebound just before the buzzer to give Arkansas a thrilling 87-85 victory of Kentucky. Qualls finished with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals as the Razorbacks improved to 12-4.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaYHwkK7VEs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kpsgBTBBP0

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32. Michael Qualls fires in jump shot over G Jon Hood to give the Razorbacks a 26-15 lead in the rematch against Kentucky on Feb. 27 at Lexington. Not many times does a team sweep Kentucky during the regular season, but Arkansas did it this season. It wasn't quite as dramatic a finish as the first meeting, but the Hogs won in OT again 71-67, with Qualls contributing 14 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals.

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33. Early in the 2nd half in the SEC tournament on Mar. 13 South Carolina F Demetrius Henry tells Michael Qualls, "You may shoot the free throws but ain't no way I'm letting you dunk!" Qualls made both FT, cutting the Gamecocks' lead to 35-34. With the Razorbacks entering the tournament at 21-10 and on the bubble for an at large selection to the NCAA Tournament, they were in a must-win situation. In a game where neither team led by more than 4 points throughout the 2nd half, South Carolina scored the final 5 points of the game to edge the Razorbacks 71-69. The Hogs then advanced to the 2nd round of the NIT before being eliminated by California 75-64.
Immediately after his game-winning dunk against Kentucky, Qualls scored a total of 9 points the next 3 games, shooting 3 for 20 from the field. A week after that he was suspended for a game. But the positives outnumbered the negatives for Qualls, who made the all-America with dreads team. I'm looking forward to seeing more highlights and seeing these dreads get longer the next two seasons.

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Two players with dreads on teams in the OVC made the dread all-America team. Unfortunately though, I couldn't find any really good photos of them.

34. 6-4 senior G Justin Childs of Tennessee-Martin plays keeps away from Southeast Missouri State G Darrian Gray after grabbing a rebound during 2nd half on Feb. 12. Childs finished with 5 points and 5 rebounds in UTM's 79-70 road win. Childs' played slightly fewer minutes this season than he did as a junior, so his numbers fell off a bit. However, he did significantly improve his shooting percentage (from 37 to 43) and also led the Skyhawks in steals with 43.
JUSTIN CHILDS (2013-14): 31 games, 21 MPG, 6.5 PPG, 42.9 FG%, 3.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.4 SPG

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35. Fred Garmon, 5-11, 175-pound junior G for Austin Peay, dribbles the ball during a 72-70 victory over Southern Illinois on Nov. 19. These dreads would be a lock to make next years dread all-America team too. But sadly, it appears they will not, as Garmon's continuous problems with his knees have caused him to retire. Here are the details - along with Fred's stats - in a story on the Austin Peay website: http://letsgopeay.com/news/2014/5/16/MBB_0516144322.aspx?path=mbball

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To find any dreads in the Pac-12 this season it was pretty simple; you needed to follow only one team .....

36. Colorado F Xavier Johnson, a 6-7, 220-pound sophomore who debuted his dreads in February 2013, gets tangled with Oklahoma State F Brian Williams while going for a loose ball during 1st half at Las Vegas on Dec. 21. Johnson was held to 3 points and 5 rebounds in 27 minutes as the Buffaloes' 10-game winning streak ended with a 78-73 loss to the Cowboys.

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37. Xavier Johnson drives to the basket for a layup against 6-10 C Angus Brandt on Jan. 2. Colorado fared better against the other OSU on their schedule than they did the first. Johnson had 9 points and 9 rebounds as Colorado got 2014 off on the right foot, winning their Pac-12 opener at home over Oregon State 64-58.

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38. With Oregon in town for an early-season showdown three days later, G Dominic Artis tries to steal the ball from Xavier Johnson during 2nd half. He very well may have suceeded, as one of Johnson's 5 turnovers in the game was a steal by Artis.

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39. Xavier Johnson celebrates as he heads back down the court after a basket by Colorado late in 2nd half. Johnson shot 6 for 10 from the field, finishing with 15 points and 7 rebounds. As a team the Buffs shot 56.4% as they improved to 13-2 and handed Oregon their 1st loss of the season with a 100-91 victory.

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40. F Travis Wear is his Xavier Johnson's way as he tries to get to the basket against UCLA on Jan. 16. Johnson had 8 rebounds but only 2 points (1-6 FG) in 33 minutes as Colorado suffered their 1st home loss of the season 69-56.

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41. Xavier Johnson hammers USC C Omar Oraby while trying for an offensive rebound after a missed shot by F Josh Scott (#40) during 2nd half at Los Angeles on Feb. 16. Considering that Colorado was leading by 16 with 4 minutes to play and didn't need to foul, I'd say this looks like some kind of payback. But I didn't see the game, so I don't know. Johnson finished with 20 points and 4 rebounds (and 5 fouls) in 25 minutes in his home town as the Buffaloes split their LA road trip, defeating USC 83-74 (after losing at UCLA 92-74). 

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42. After fighting through a screen and deflecting a pass away from Xavier Johnson just as he was about to catch it, Arizona F Aaron Gordon then outmuscles Johnson in the fight for the loose ball and ends up getting the steal and dunking at the other end to up the Wildcats' lead to 49-31 early in 2nd half on Jan. 23. Johnson scored 21 points (7-12 FG), but the Buffs never cut the deficit to any less than 11 points for the rest of the game in a 69-57 loss to Arizona.

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43. Xavier Johnson collides with USC F Strahinja Gavrilovic and loses the ball during 1st half of a 1st round game in the Pac-12 tournament at Las Vegas on Mar. 12. Johnson had 11 points and 3 rebounds as Colorado, seeded #5 in the tournament, barely got by 12th seeded USC 59-56.

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44. California F David Kravish resorts to cheating while battling for a loose ball with Xavier Johnson during 2nd half on Mar. 13. No broken arm, no foul, right? Johnson had 10 points and 8 rebounds as Colorado picked up a very big 59-56 win over Cal in a Pac-12 quarterfinal. The Buffaloes lost to Arizona the next day, but their 23-11 record was good enough to get them selected into the NCAA Tournament ....... They didn't stay in it for long. 

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45. A double team by forwards Michael Young (#2) and Talib Zanna of Pittsburgh forces Xavier Johnson into a turnover during a 2nd round game in the NCAA Tournament at Orlando on Mar. 20. Xavier was charged with 4 turnovers in the game, one more than Pitt had the entire afternoon.

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46. Xavier Johnson goes up for a two-handed slam to cut Pitt's 31-point lead to 58-29 with 12:03 remaining. It was that bad for the Buffs. Notice that Colorado is in the home uniforms, so they actually were seeded higher (#8) than Pitt (#9). But this was never close. Pitt scored the first 13 points of the game, and it only got uglier from there for Colorado fans. Xavier was on the court more than any other player (33 minutes) and finished with 11 points and 4 rebounds as Colorado's season ended with the 77-48 blowout defeat. Johnson recorded 3 double-doubles, and his highest scoring game was 27 points in a season good enough to earn him a spot on my all-America with dreads team. And he's only going to get better (and his dreads longer) from here.

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47. The outstanding dreads of Miami native Richie Spiller make their Division 1 debut in a Florida A&M uniform in the season opener on Nov. 8, as the 6-0, 185-pound freshman G teams up with G Walter Davis to defend a driving Myles Mack of Rutgers. Spiller had 1 point, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 1 steal in his first game in FAMU's 92-84 defeat. Spiller was not a major contributor in his first season for FAMU (11 minutes per game), and he won't be a contributor at all next season. You'll have to find your way to beautiful Garden City, KS, to see these dreads next winter, as Spiller has transferred to the junior college there.
RICHIE SPILLER (2013-14): 29 games, 11 MPG, 2.5 PPG, 30.1 FG%, 1.1 RPG, 1.1 APG

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The next five photos in DG153 will be brought to you by ...... Tom Hanks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-zaO-hUYag
WILLLL-SOOON!!

48. In his first appearance in a North Florida uniform after a transfer from JC, 5-11, 175-pound G Devin Wilson got to play in his hometown of Gainesville, against the Gators, here defending G Kasey Hill on a drive to the basket in the season opener on Nov. 8. Wilson was on the court for 21 minutes (1 minute less than what turned out to be his season high) and had 4 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 turnovers in North Florida's 77-69 loss to Florida.

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49. Devin Wilson is on the defensive again on Dec. 4, trying - and failing - to stay in front of Alabama G Levi Randolph. Randolph outscored Wilson 20-8 in the game, and the Crimson Tide whipped the Ospreys 76-48. Devin was strictly a reserve guard in his first season for UNF, as he came off the bench in all 26 of his games played. He finished the season with 34 assists and 21 turnovers, which is not bad.
DEVIN WILSON (2013-14): 26 games, 12 MPG, 2.3 PPG, 27.3 FG% (ouch), 1.2 RPG, 1.3 APG

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50. With his dreads still short enough in his sophomore season that he didn't bunch them or band them at all, 5-11, 170-pound G Russell Wilson (the much less famous one) of Samford guards G A.J. Merriweather during an 89-75 road loss to East Tennessee State on Nov. 21. Wouldn't basketball be so much more fun to watch if everybody freed their dreads like Russell.   

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51. Russell Wilson loses the battle for possession to G Damarius Smith on Dec. 7 at Birmingham. Wilson had 5 points and 5 assists in 21 minutes in Samford's 85-63 victory over Austin Peay. Russell must not have been too thrilled having his playing time decrease this season (from 21 to 16 minutes per game), or maybe he just wanted to play a little closer to home (Lake Wales, FL). Whatever the reason, you'll need to be in Boca Raton to see these dreads next year, when Russell suits up for the Division 2 Lynn U Fighting Knights.
RUSSELL WILSON (2013-14): 33 games, 16 MPG, 3 PPG, 42.4 FG%, 1.4 RPG, 2.3 APG

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52. One of the reasons 6-5, 215-pound F De'Runnya Wilson chose to attend Mississippi State was that they were going to allow him to play basketball in addition to football. And sure enough, after turning in a very impressive freshman season for the Bulldogs on the football field, he joined the basketball team. Here on Mar. 5 he tries to get a handle on the ball before it goes out of bounds during 1st half against F Marcus Thornton and Georgia. I don't know how good a basketball player De'Runnya is; but I've seen him play football, and he very possibly could have the NFL in his future. So I doubt we'll be seeing him on the basketball court any more. We only briefly saw him this season.
DE'RUNNYA WILSON (2013-14): 7 games, 52 minutes, 6 points (that's 12 fewer than he scored playing football), 11.1 FG%, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals

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We'll take a look at Amos Wilson in DG154.

53. Joining De'Runnya Wilson on the Bulldogs' bench were the sick dreads of junior G Tevin Moore, seen here driving against F Anthony Perez during an 82-63 loss to Mississippi on Jan. 25. Moore played a little more than Wilson did but finished the season on injured reserve. After playing a total of 35 minutes in his first 12 games, he played 17 in one game against Arkansas on Feb. 22 (finishing with 5 points and 4 rebounds), and the stress on his body was so great that he injured his Achilles tendon. Tevin made the dread all-America team with these dreads. Hopefully he'll be able to do the same next season.
TEVIN MOORE (2013-14): 13 games, 52 minutes, 15 points, 33.3 FG%, 6 rebounds, 0 assists, 3 turnovers

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54. After redshirting at UALR in 2012, 5-8, 150-pound G (and Little Rock native) Tre'von Wilkerson returned home on Nov. 26 - in a Southern Arkansas Muleriders (Division 2) uniform. Here Wilkerson defends against G Josh Hagins, who made my 2013 freshman all-America with dreads team before cutting off his dreads before the start of this season. Wilkerson had 3 points and 3 rebounds in 13 minutes in SAU's 90-58 loss. He averaged 5.0 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 2.4 APG, and 1.1 SPG in 16 minutes coming off the bench almost every game. Tre'von, who played a year in JC after leaving UALR, may be on the move again. His name is no longer on the roster on the SAU website.

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In my 2013 dread news report I wrote that F Dytanya "Bubby" Johnson would be suiting up this season for D-2 power Florida Southern. What I didn't know then was that he would be joining a team with three other players with dreads - and sick dreads, at that .....

55. That's Bubby in the middle (above), the tallest player on the team at 6-8. #1 is 6-3 G Tyler Logan (above right, 3.3 PPG, 1.4 RPG); #23 (above left) is 6-6 F Garrett Putman (5.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG), and #22 (lower left) is 6-6 F Lamar McKnight (9.1 PPG, 4.8 RPG). Sad to say, but Johnson (3.4 PPG, 3.3 RPG) cut off his dreads at some point during the season, leaving just three players with dreads when the season ended. Florida Southern, located in Lakeland, finished 1st in their conference, won the conference tournament, got the top seed in the South region of the D-2 tournament ...... and then promptly lost their 1st round game at home to #8 seed Tuskegee 98-95, finishing with a 26-5 record.  

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Last stop before we reach the finish line of DG153 is Tuscaloosa for a look at my favorite player in the SEC.

56. Levi Randolph, 6-5, 205-pound junior G, encounters heavy resistance in the form of F Darius Carter (#12) and G Tekele Cotton as he tries to score against Wichita State on Dec. 17. Randolph had a mostly quiet 30 minutes, finishing with 7 points and 3 rebounds in Alabama's 72-67 loss to the Shockers, who improved to 11-0.

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57. Levi Randolph successfully fakes Robert Morris F Lucky Jones into the air before beginning his drive on Jan. 4. He finished with 6 points, 5 turnovers, and 4 rebounds as the Crimson Tide finished nonconference play at 6-7 after defeating RMU 64-56. 

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58. Even as he is releasing the ball, Levi Randolph knows this shot is going nowhere but back in his face, courtesy of Florida C Patric Young with the Gators leading 50-44 during 2nd half at Gainesville on Feb. 8. The Gators continued to be a nemesis for the Crimson Tide. This 78-69 loss was Alabama's 9th straight loss to Florida.

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59. After taking a nice feed from G Trevor Releford, Levi Randolph slams home the final two points of the 1st half between G Jabari Brown and F Torren Jones with :09 on the clock, giving Alabama a 42-35 lead over Missouri on Feb. 22. After scoring no more than 6 points in any of his 7 previous games, Levi exploded for 19 in the final 12 minutes of the 1st half against Mizzou.

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60. Levi Randolph throws down the last of his 4 dunks against Missouri, giving the Tide a 12-point lead with 37 seconds remaining. Randolph hit 11 of 15 from the field and finished with a career high 33 points as Alabama improved to 11-16 with the 80-73 victory. A performance like this must have been exasperating for Coach Grant. Why can't he play at this level, or at least close to it, all the time? Randolph had scored a total of 24 points in the 7 games before this one.

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61. More hang time for Levi Randolph in the Crimson Tide's next home game, one week later on Mar. 1 against Auburn. Randolph's 6 FG came on 2 dunks and 4 3-pointers as he finished with 24 points and 9 rebounds in a 73-57 win over Auburn.

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62. Levi Randolph hits the deck while battling for a loose ball against LSU G Andre Stringer during the SEC tournament at Atlanta on Mar. 13. Randolph had 10 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals as the Crimson Tide were one and done in the tournament, wrapping up a very disappointing season at 13-19 with a 68-56 loss to LSU. Levi was so inconsistent this season that I had to drop him off of the all-America with dreads team. But although it was a disappointing season on the court, he certainly hasn't had any disappointing seasons in the classroom. Check this out: http://www.rolltide.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/080214aab.html ...... Conratulations! Levi, and maybe next season you can be as a big of a star on the basketball court as you are in the classroom.
LEVI RANDOLPH (2013-14): 32 games, 30 MPG, 9.6 PPG, 42.0 FG%, 3.8 RPG, 1.4 APG