DG178 - Part 2

You have arrived at the College Basketball section of dread gallery #178; and we'll lead off Part 2 with a player I was finally able to welcome to the house this season, his 3rd and final collegiate season. Chicago native Ayo Dosunmu made a lot of Illinois fans happy (including this one) when he decided to stay home and play for the Fighting Illini. And after thrilling those fans with several late clutch baskets to help win games, the 6-5, 200-pound baby-faced assassin is moving on to what hopefully will be a long and successful NBA career. Dosunmu, who goes by his nickname Ayo instead of his real first name Quamdeen, went the freeform route with his dreads; and he stayed the course, resisting his family's desire for him to cut his hair, even though it sure took its time forming into dreads. Finally in his junior season (see photo above from the game at Nebraska on Feb. 12) it started to look enough like dreads for me to welcome him to the house, and we're glad to have him.

On Feb. 23, three nights before and about 88 miles northwest of where the NBA game between the Pistons and Kings, featured in Part 1, was played, Dosunmu was one of four players with dreads in uniform as Illinois faced Michigan State at East Lansing. This is the first of 4 games to be featured in Part 2 of DG178. I was unable to find a video of the whole game, but I'm cautiously confident of the parts of the game that most of the photos happened.

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1. 6-5 junior G Ayo Dosunmu picks up his dribble as he drives into the lane between 6-6 junior F Aaron Henry and 6-3 freshman G A.J. Hoggard with 12:54 remaining in the 1st half. After going up for the shot and finding Henry all over him, Dosunmu changed his mind and tried to pass the ball and ended up turning it over .....
 

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2. ..... After the loose ball deflects off a couple of players' hands, Hoggard picks it up and speeds into the frontcourt, with Dosunmu in hot pursuit but unable to knock the ball away from behind. Hoggard stopped his drive when he got to the middle of the lane and passed to the left of the lane to F Joey Hauser, who hit an easy 8-footer to cap a 10-0 run and give MSU a 10-5 lead.

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3. Finding himself trying to cover Ayo Dosunmu after a defensive switch, Joey Hauser comes out late to challenge Ayo's 17-foot jumper with 10:54 to play in the 1st half. The shot missed, but C Kofi Cockburn got the offensive rebound and dunked to bring Illinois within 14-12.
 

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4. 6-8 sophomore F Julius Marble and A.J. Hoggard welcome G Joshua Langford back to the bench as Langford emphatically celebrates after his 10-foot jumper gives the Spartans their largest lead of the game (to that point) at 24-16, which caused Illinois to take a timeout with 8:03 remaining until halftime.

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5. As Ayo Dosunmu drives to the basket, G Rocket Watts retreats and tries to avoid contact, but 6-11 F Marcus Bingham comes over in time to barely get a piece of Dosunmu's attempted 3-footer in front of the basket. It was the 2nd of Bingham's 3 blocked shots in the game and it kept the score at 30-21 with 5:22 to play.

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6. It's easy to see why Ayo Dosunmu was upset after this play when a foul wasn't called. After driving into the lane Dosunmu tries to go up for a shot (photo above) but is tied up by A.J. Hoggard. As Ayo comes down the ball gets away from the two #11's (right photo) and the whistle blows with 1:09 to play in the half. A jump ball was called instead of a foul of Hoggard, even though Hoggard clearly has a hold of nothing but Dosunmu's hands. And since the possession arrow was pointing MSU's way, Dosunmu was charged with a turnover, with the score remaining 32-26. Hoggard had 2 points, 2 assists, and 1 steal in 6 minutes in the 1st half before hardly playing at all (3 minutes) in the 2nd half.

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7. Aaron Henry tries some hands-on defense against Ayo Dosunmu, and it works, as Dosunmu drives to the basket and misses this shot from 3 feet away with 32 seconds to play in the half. No foul was called. Ayo got the rebound and missed an even easier shot a couple of seconds later. He finished the 1st half 2 for 9 from the field. And his teammates were no better, combining to go 5 for 20, as the Illini shot 24.1% in the 1st half compared to 53.3% for Michigan State .....

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8. ..... After Dosunmu's 2nd miss, A.J. Hoggard leads the way as the Spartans express their disapproval of F Giorgi Bezhanishvili's (#15) overaggressive pursuit of the rebound. Bezhanish was called for a foul, no fisticuffs ensued, and after the players calmed down Joey Hauser made 1 of 2 at the line to give MSU a 36-26 lead at the half.

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9. Aaron Henry once again makes it known he has no qualms about putting his hands on Ayo Dosunmu while playing defense, in this case (right photo) just flat out grabbing his wrist near midcourt with (I think) 15:00 remaining in the 1st half. In the photo above Henry briefly defends legally on Dosunmu's drive before shoving him on the play seen in photo #7. Henry played nearly the entire game (39 minutes) and was called for 0 fouls. Dosunmu committed 1 in his 36 minutes.These were two of the several close encounters the two had .....

 

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10. ..... And here are a couple more, these two with Henry on offense. Early in the 1st half Henry dribbles toward the lane with Dosunmu on him (photo above) before passing the ball to the waiting hands of C Mady Sissoko at the top of the 3-point arc. The possession eventually ended with the Spartans' first 2 points of the game. Then with 5:00 remaining in the 2nd half Henry sets to go up for a short shot to the left of the lane (right photo) on a play that resulted in Dosunmu's 2nd blocked shot of the game. These two photos give you a good look at Henry's dreads done in the 2-strand twist. I was unable to welcome Aaron to the house this season because he kept changing his hair all season, switching between dreads, braids, and normal hair.

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11. This encounter involving Ayo Dosunmu and Aaron Henry also includes Julius Marble, as he attempts to set a screen on Dosunmu. I think this was from the 2nd half, but I don't know for sure; but I wasn't going to pass up a photo where three players with dreads are the only people in the shot.

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12. I also have no idea when this shot was taken or what it is a shot of; but it looks like Julius Marble and Joshua Langford trying to keep Kofi Cockburn, Illinois' 285-pound C, from getting to the basket, which is easier said than done, especially when Cockburn has his elbows out like this.

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13. Ayo Dosunmu tries to get Illinois on the board first in the 2nd half, and Joshua Langford makes sure it's going to be on free throws only. After Dosunmu is fouled by Rocket Watts on a drive to the basket, Langford emphatically blocks his layup to prevent any chance for a 3-point play, as Julius Marble looks on from in front of the basket. Ayo made 1 of 2 at the line to make the score 36-27 with 19:52 to play. 

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14. After penetration by F Gabe Brown causes Kofi Cockburn to leave him wide open in the middle of the lane, Julius Marble takes the pass from Brown and goes up for an easy one between Ayo Dosunmu and F Jacob Grandison (no, those are not dreads he has) ... and misses early in the 2nd half .....

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15. ..... but Marble beats Grandison to the rebound and tips it in (it went in, take my word for it) for his first 2 points of the night and the Spartans' first 2 of the 2nd half, giving them their largest lead of the game at 38-27 with 19:06 to play. Marble played just 7 minutes in the game but certainly got his money's worth, taking 6 shots and finishing with 6 points, 2 rebounds, and 5 fouls. He fouled out with 7:15 to play, one second after he subbed into the game at 7:16.

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16. After catching a pass near the 3-point line and backing Ayo Dosunmu down into the low post, Aaron Henry, a natural lefthander, spins to the baseline and attempts a righthanded hook shot from about 5 feet away. He missed though, and Illinois got the rebound, keeping the score at 40-31 with 17:12 to play ... However .....

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17. ..... Aaron Henry enjoys success on these two shots on back-to-back possessions later on in the 2nd half. After dribbling from the 3-point line to just left of the lane, Aaron fakes right then turns left and takes a 10-foot jumper over G Da'Monte Williams (left photo) and hits it with 4 seconds left on the shot clock to put MSU up by 16. Then after a Kofi Cockburn 3-point play cut to lead to 13, Henry uses his 3-inch height advantage over Williams to his advantage again, driving to the left baseline and shooting a 5-footer over Williams (right photo). This shot never made it to the basket, but Henry got credit for the 2 points because Cockburn was called for goaltending, making the score 64-49 with 7:43 remaining.

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18. The caption for this photo mentioned that it was from the 2nd half but not exactly when in the 2nd half; but Ayo Dosunmu's reaction to a call by the officials kind of reflects the mood Illini fans had while watching this game - anger, unhappiness, frustration, you name it .....

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19. ..... Probably Ayo Dosunmu was even angrier and more unhappy after this play with 4:08 to play. No doubt you noticed that Dosunmu was wearing a facemask while playing during the last two weeks of the season. Well, he has Mady Sissoko to thank for it. On a drive to the basket Dosunmu goes up without the ball after it gets stripped by Joshua Langford and gets absolutely hammered by the right arm of the 235-pound Sissoko. You Mady, this ain't football, man. Actually, even in football nowadays you can't even make a hit like this anymore .....

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20. ..... Dosunmu is tended to by a member of the training staff as he tries to regain his senses. Sissoko was called for a flagrant 2 foul and ejected from the game. Here it is in slow motion:  https://twitter.com/CBBSuperFan/status/1364398388817629185

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21. Ayo remained in the game though, even with his nose broken. Here he stands dejected after (I think) missing his first FT following the flagrant foul. Shooting alone with no others players allowed alongside the lane, he missed both free throws, keeping the Illini down by 10 at 66-56. Ayo finished the rest of the game, but he didn't play again until Mar. 6 after missing Illinois' next 3 games.

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22. Any hopes for a miracle finish for Illinois diminished greatly following this play. After a Joey Hauser screen on Ayo Dosunmu caused a defensive switch, Henry easily drives past Kofi Cockburn and goes in for a righthanded layup with 5 seconds left on the shot clock for his final 2 points of the night, giving MSU a 73-61 lead with 1:56 to play. 

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23. With Illinois still down 14 with under a minute remaining, it's garbage time now, and Ayo Dosunmu pads the stats a little as he dribbles the length on the floor and finishes with a layup against the look-ref-i've-got-my-hands-straight-up-and-i'm-not-touching-him defense of Rocket Watts. That made it 79-67 with :49 to go .....

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24. Ayo Dosunmu tries the same thing on Illinois' next possession but runs into much heavier resistance this time, as he takes a knee to the crotch from Aaron Henry as he goes up to shoot and has the shot blocked by Henry with :39 on the clock. Dosunmu gained a very minuscule amount of revenge later, needlessly stealing the ball with 3 seconds left as Henry tried to run out the clock and going in for a so-what, buzzer-beating layup to make the final score 81-72. The loss stopped Illinois' 7-game winning streak and was their only L between Jan. 17 and Mar. 20. Dosunmu finished the game with 17 points (but was only 6 for 18 from the field), 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocked shots and 4 turnovers in 36 minutes. Henry led the Spartans with 20 points (9-19 FG) and had 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocked shots, and 2 turnovers.

Just like Dosunmu, Henry is forgoing his final college season and has declared himself eligible for the 2021 NBA Draft. It would be ironic (and is actually very possible) if they would be selected one right after the other with back-to-back picks. Both are expected to be picked either late 1st round or early 2nd round. Let's hope by this time next year that Dosunmu still has his dreads growing and that Henry is more serious about keeping his hair in dreads. 

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If both teams had been at full strength this season, Oklahoma State and Iowa State could have played each other with 10 players with dreads on the court at the same time. But when the Cowboys traveled to Ames to meet the Cyclones on Jan. 25, neither team was at full strength, especially Iowa State.  Having paused their season 2 weeks earlier due to pandemic protocols, the Cyclones were seriously shorthanded - down 4 starters - for their first game back after their previous 4 games were postponed. As a result there were only 7 players with dreads in uniform for the 8:00 PM CST tipoff.  

 

25. The only 8 players available for Iowa State (two of whom were walk-ons) lock arms and contemplate the tall task that awaits them during the national anthem before the game. With 3 of their 5 players with dreads sidelined, the only two remaining are 6-6 freshman F Dudley Blackwell (long dreads, gold-colored shoes), who in ISU's first 9 games of the season had played a total of only 51 minutes and scored just 9 points; and 6-5 freshman G Jaden Walker (salmon-colored shoes) (65 minutes, 11 points).
 

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26. Jaden Walker and Dudley Blackwell team up to stymie F Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe with 11:39 remaining in the 1st half. As Moncrieffe attempts a layup, Walker comes over and blocks it (which we would have seen better had the photographer waited another tenth of a second or two) and gets credit for his 1st blocked shot of the season. Blackwell, who had subbed into the game for the first time 2 minutes earlier, got his 1st rebound, keeping Iowa State's lead at 16-10. 

Walker was one of two players with dreads named Walker in uniform for this one .....

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27. Rondel Walker, 6-4 freshman G for Oklahoma State, after dribbling from 3-point range into the lane, has the ball knocked out of his hands by G Rasir Bolton (#45) as he goes up to shoot with 9:07 to play in the 1st half. Bolton thought he got all ball but was called for a foul. The OSU player reaching for the ball after the whistle is #13, 6-5 junior G Isaac Likekele. Walker made 1 of 2 free throws, giving him 5 points for the game (which led the team at that point) and cutting ISU's lead to 21-17.  

After an early 11-0 run gave Iowa State a 13-2 lead, Oklahoma State slowly fought their way back and finally went ahead after a 12-0 run of their own, turning a 23-17 deficit into a 29-23 lead.

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28. After faking a 3-point shot to get past Dudley Blackwell, 6-3 sophomore G Avery Anderson encounters Jaden Walker as he drives to the basket, so he attempts a reverse layup with 8:14 remaining in the 1st half. The shot missed, but the Cowboys kept possession as the rebound deflected off of Rasir Bolton and out of bounds. Anderson had these beginner dreads for most of the season but then cut them off near the end, at around the time the calendar turned to March.

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29. After a missed layup by Rondel Walker, Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe beats Dudley Blackwell to the rebound with 2:59 to go until halftime. Moncrieffe hit the putback layup a couple of seconds later to give Oklahoma State their first 10-point lead of the night at 38-28. Moncrieffe was the only player in double figures in rebounds with 12, nearly outrebounding Iowa State all by himself. The Cowboys killed the Cyclones on the boards by a ridiculous 49-19 margin.

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30. After Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe misses a layup on the Cowboys' next possession, Isaac Likekele has his sights on the rebound, but G Nate Jenkins (#2) knocks the ball away from him. After brushing up against the net, the ball ended up back in the hands of Moncrieffe, but he had the ball stolen from him by Jenkins.

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31. As Isaac Likekele goes up to catch a pass from Rondel Walker to the right of the lane on Oklahoma State's next possession, so do his dreads. After taking a couple of dribbles, Isaac passed the ball back out to Walker, who was fouled by Dudley Blackwell on a 3-point attempt. Walker made only 1 of the 3 FT to make the score 39-29.

Ever since joining the Cowboys in 2018-19 Likekele has been one of my favorite players to watch, mainly because he always has his dreads completely loose. But those dreads were a little less awesome this season because he had them reduced. As you can count for yourself in this photo, he has only about 30 locks or so, way less than he had during his freshman and sophomore seasons.

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32. During the break while Walker was shooting his 3 FT, Avery Anderson subbed into the game for G Bryce Williams, giving the Cowboys an all dreads lineup for the next 72 seconds, with the Boone twins and Likekele joining Anderson and Walker. Here on Iowa State's next possession as the OSU defense - specifically Walker, Anderson and F Kalib Boone (#22) - collapses on him after he drives into the lane, Rasir Bolton passes the ball out to G Tyler Harris in 3-point range .....

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33. ..... After faking a 3-pointer, Harris drives past Rondel Walker, only to find Kalib Boone blocking his path just before he gets into the lane, as Isaac Likekele (bottom right in photo) and F Keylan Boone (top right) look on. Harris picked up his dribble and passed back out to Bolton .....

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34. ..... and then Bolton passed to Dudley Blackwell at the left elbow, and he takes the jumper with 8 seconds left on the shot clock as Kalib Boone comes out to contest it. The shot missed, hitting the back of the rim, then up and off the top edge of the backboard and then down into the hands of Boone for his 4th rebound of the half. 12 seconds later .....

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35. After a pass from his brother into the lane is deflected by Rasir Bolton, Keylan Boone has to jump a second time to make the catch at the right block. But in his haste to get to the basket, he ran over Bolton and was called for a offensive foul a couple of seconds later with 1:03 to play until halftime. Telling the Boone twins apart is no easy thing, but on this night it was simpler than usual because Kalib had tape on his right wrist and Keylan didn't.

The half ended with Oklahoma State leading 41-31.

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36. The photo with the best view of Jaden Walker's dreads is this one, but I don't know at which point of the game this was taken. The YouTube video of the game I've been watching joins the game in progress, missing the first 36 seconds, so this might be a shot of Avery Anderson driving to the basket - and missing a layup - in front of Walker on the Cowboys' first possession of the game with 19:33 remaining. What I do know for sure is this isn't any of Anderson's other 9 shot attempts in the game.

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37. With the left hand of Isaac Likekele failing to bother him, Jaden Walker uses a little tongue english as he takes and makes a 17-footer to the right of the key, making the score 45-36 with 17:39 remaining in the 2nd half.

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38. Kalib Boone hits a layup with 15:55 to play, but it doesn't count because the officials called him for traveling - much to his disbelief. After juggling a pass in the lane and then getting it under control, he took a tiny, quick extra step to gather himself. It's the kind of call not made in the NBA, but he's not in the NBA yet. Kalib headed to the bench for the TV timeout with OSU up by 10, 46-36.

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39. On the Cyclones' first possession after the timeout Dudley Blackwell shows us his version of a two-handed catch, making the catch with his right hand while holding off Rondel Walker with his left. Finding himself 30 feet from the basket, Blackwell immediately gave the ball back to Rasir Bolton. The possession ended with Isaac Likekele rebounding a missed, contested layup attempted by G Darlinstone Dubar.

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40. After Rondel Walker rebounds a missed Iowa State shot with 11:00 on the clock, the simple task of dribbling upcourt becomes a problem - for both Walker and Tyler Harris. As Rondel approaches midcourt, he dribbles the ball off his foot, and it speeds into the frontcourt. Rondel chases after it then dives for it, with Harris arriving at the same time (photo above), preventing him from gaining possession. Then as Harris tumbles over him and hits the deck Walker again attempts to get to the ball (photo on right), but it's going too fast for him and rolls over the sideline. Both players were OK, and Walker was charged with his 1st - and only - turnover of the game, keeping the score at 55-44.

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41. After rebounding a missed 3-pointer by Avery Anderson, Keylan Boone goes up to shoot a 5-footer right in front of the basket with 9:36 to play. But he misses too, and as he goes back up for the rebound, his brother comes flying in over his back and beats him to it for the tip-in, giving the Cowboys a 57-47 lead. This was Keylan's last chance to score in the game. He finished with 0 points in 13 minutes, missing all 4 of his shots.

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42. After stealing an ill-advised pass by Tyler Harris near midcourt, Rondel Walker doesn't dribble the ball off his foot this time and goes in for the uncontested dunk for his final 2 points of the night, giving OSU a 67-55 lead with 6:10 remaining and giving him 20 points for the first time.

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43. On Iowa State's next possession there are still 16 seconds left on the shot clock when Rasir Bolton turns and goes up for this short but ill-advised shot against the defense of Avery Anderson and Kalib Boone. Boone easily blocked the shot, and Anderson picked up the rebound and started a fast break that resulted in a Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe layup 7 seconds later to make it 69-55.

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44. After dribbling from the free throw line to near the left baseline, Dudley Blackwell takes his last FG attempt of the night, a 10-foot jumper, with 2:31 to play, as Rondel Walker and F Bernard Kouma defend ..... although this attempt wasn't included on the stats sheet. The shot ended up being an air ball because Kouma hit Blackwell's arm (which we would see better had the photographer waited another tenth of a second or two) and was called for a foul. Dudley missed his first FT and made the second for Iowa State's final point of the game, making the score 77-60. The final was 81-60.

Blackwell played a season high 20 minutes, but they were a quiet 20 minutes, finishing with 4 points (1-4 FG, 1-1 3-pt. FG), 2 rebounds, and 3 fouls. (btw Dudley won't be back at Iowa State next season, as he is transferring to another school). Jaden Walker played 34 minutes (a total he would surpass twice in games later on in the season) and 8 points (3-6 FG, 1-3 3-pt.FG), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, a season high 2 blocked shots, a season high 3 steals, and 1 turnover.

With star G Cade Cunningham sidelined for Oklahoma State, players with dreads accounted for 53 of their 81 points. Rondel Walker finished with a season high 20 points (7-12 FG, 4-8 3-pt. FG, 2-5 FT), 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals, and 1 turnover in 31 minutes. Isaac Likekele contributed 7 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists in 28 minutes. Kalib Boone shot 100% (7-7 FG, 1-1 FT), finishing with 15 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 blocked shots, and 3 turnovers in 21 minutes. In addition to his 0 points Keylan Boone had 4 rebounds, 2 turnovers, and 2 fouls.   

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45. Iowa State's three other players with dreads were on the court for the second meeting vs. Oklahoma State on the afternoon of Tuesday, Feb. 16 at Stillwater; and here are two of them from action in the 2nd half, both with their dreads reduced. 6-6 junior F Javan Johnson looks on from the free throw line (photo above) and 6-8, 255-pound senior F Solomon Young looks on helplessly from under the basket as Kalib Boone goes up and hits an easy layup to put OSU up 46-35 with 17:12 remaining. Young had come out to double team Cade Cunningham and couldn't get back in time to stop Boone. Boone shot only 87.5% against ISU this time, missing 1 of his 8 FG attempts and finishing with 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals. The photo on the right shows one of the several times Young came away from the basket to help Johnson double team Cunningham, this occasion coming (I think) with 6:49 remaining near the right sideline, just before Cunningham threw an ill-advised pass that was intercepted by Tre Jackson .....

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46. And speaking of Tre Jackson, here is the 6-1 sophomore G taking and hitting a short baseline jumper over the arm of Bernard Kouma and under the watchful eyes of Cade Cunningham and Solomon Young on his first attempt of the game with 10:20 remaining in the 1st half, cutting the Cowboys' lead to 22-15. From there OSU went on an 8-0 run to lead 30-15 and led by at least 6 points for the rest of the game. Johnson (4-13) and Young (1-5) combined to shoot 22%, helping bring down the Cyclones' percentage for the game to 33%. OSU shot 48% and won 76-58. Johnson finished with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocked shots, and 3 turnovers in 37 minutes. Young had 6 points and 2 rebounds in 26 minutes. Jackson (2-3) was the only ISU player to shoot over 50%. He had 7 points, 3 steals, and 3 turnovers in 21 minutes. We'll see about next season, but I couldn't welcome Jackson to the house this season. Similar to Michigan State's Aaron Henry, Tre didn't have his hair in dreads for the whole season and more often than not had them in braids. 

This second loss to Oklahoma State was the Cyclones' 11th in a row, and they finished this season with an 18-game losing streak. Their 2-22 record (including 0-18 in Big 12 games) was their worst ever in the 114 years they've been playing basketball, and it cost Coach Prohm was job.

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47. The Boone twins - 6-9 sophomore F Kalib and 6-8 sophomore F Keylan, from Tulsa - weren't on the court together a lot this season, mostly because Keylan played only 14 minutes per game (up from 9 his freshman season); but here are a couple of instances. On Jan. 12 (photo above) Kalib Boone and Keylan Boone celebrate (both the same way, of course, with fists clenched) and come over to help up Avery Anderson after Anderson forces Kansas G Bryce Thompson into a rare 5-second closely-guarded violation in the 1st half. Keylan got there too late, and it was Kalib and Isaac Likekele that got Anderson to his feet after the turnover with 58.8 seconds remaining and the Cowboys up by 13. The lead was 16 midway through the 2nd half before Kansas came roaring back - only to have OSU finish the game with an 8-0 run to win 75-70. Kalib and Keylan are double trouble for West Virginia F Derek Culver (photo on right) during the 1st half of a quarterfinal game in the Big 12 Tournament on Mar. 11. It was a struggle, but Culver was able to get the ball to a teammate without turning it over. Keylan outscored Kalib in this game 7-5; but Kalib had the better game, finishing with 10 rebounds and a season high 6 blocked shots in the Cowboys' 72-69 victory. The Cowboys upset Baylor in the semifinals before losing to Texas in the final. 

Keylan had dreads first but then cut his off late in his senior season in HS, just as Kalib was getting his started. Keylan debuted the second edition of his dreads in February of his freshman season for OSU. The two had your typical improvement from your freshman to sophomore season. Keylan went from 2.7 to 4.4 points per game and from 2.3 to 4.1 rebounds per game. Kalib jumped from 4.7 points and 3.0 rebounds to 9.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He also shot 64.2% from the field this season - a new school record - and was 2nd in the Big 12 in blocked shots per game with 1.6. I'm looking forward to seeing them on the floor together much more often and continuing to improve in the seasons ahead ..... and maybe keep on playing after college.  

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Whenever there's a game on television with teams playing that I haven't seen before, I try to watch for at least a minute or two, just to see if anyone on the teams has dreads. That's why I tuned into the second semifinal game of the MAC Tournament at Cleveland on Mar. 12. And when I noticed that 2nd seeded Buffalo and 3rd seeded Akron both had multiple players with dreads, not to mention the importance of the game, I decided to watch almost all of the 2nd half. And then the next day when I checked the Cleveland Plain Dealer website for a photo gallery of the game, I found that nearly every photo had someone with dreads in it .....

 

48. 6-5 junior F Jeenathan Williams of Buffalo and 6-1 sophomore G Greg Tribble began the game guarding each other, and on his first touch of the game Williams dribbles from the right sideline to the free throw circle before passing the ball out to G Jayvon Graves. A couple of seconds later Graves hit a short shot in the lane for Buffalo's first 2 points, making the score 3-2.
 

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49. On the Bulls' 3rd possession of the game 6-7 junior F Josh Mballa drives to the basket against Greg Tribble and F Enrique Freeman, and Tribble makes sure he doesn't get an easy two, whacking him upside his head for the first foul of the game. I guess Tribble didn't get him flush though because the officials didn't check replay for a possible flagrant foul. Mballa, the Bulls' leading rebounder and second leading scorer, missed both free throws, keeping Akron's lead at 8-4.

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50. A minute later after Josh Mballa misses a contested layup, Jeenathan Williams tries to tip in the rebound, but the ball rims out. Williams then tried to grab the rebound of his own miss but knocked the ball out of bounds, keeping the score 8-4. Statistically speaking, Williams wasn't credited with either an offensive rebound or a missed FG attempt.

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51. A couple of minutes later and with Buffalo leading for the first time at 11-10, 6-8 sophomore F LaQuill Hardnett, after taking a pass from Jeenathan Williams, fails to add to the lead as his layup is easily and cleanly blocked by Josh Freeman before the ball ever leaves his hands. Hardnett, in his first season with dreads (obviously) led the Bulls in FG% this season at 65.2% ... which ain't nothing compared to the 76.1% he shot from the field as a freshman. But he was only 3 for 7 in this one. 

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52. After missing an attempted putback dunk 8 seconds earlier, 6-7 senior F Camron Reece doesn't miss this time, slamming home his first official shot of the game to make the score 22-14 and put an end to a 9-0 Buffalo run. After shooting 60.5% from the field in 2019-20 in his first season with the Zips after transferring from junior college, Reece improved to 65.9% this season in his first season with dreads. He went 2 for 2 in this game, adding another dunk later in the 1st half.  

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53. On Buffalo's next possession Josh Mballa endures some more abuse, getting a facial from G Gavin Clarke with 11:05 to play in the 1st half. After grabbing an offensive rebound, Mballa had the ball knocked away by F Jermaine Marshall (on left in photo) only to get it back only to then have Clarke poke him in the face. Instead of a foul on Clarke a held ball was called, which left Mballa a bit perturbed. Buffalo kept the ball on alternate possession.

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54. Greg Tribble's dreads touch the court as he tries to regain control of the ball after having it knocked away by F David Nickelberry with 7:23 remaining in the 1st half. After G Loren Christian Jackson stripped the ball from Buffalo G Ronaldo Segu in the lane, Tribble dove and recovered it out by the 3-point arc. Then before he could find a teammate to pass it to, Nickelberry dove on top of him trying for a held ball but instead was called for a foul. Even though Jackson got the strip, Tribble got credit for the steal, one of just 2 steals the Zips got all game.

Upon close examination it looks like Nickelberry might have his hair in dreads; but at other points of the season he didn't, so I have not welcomed him to the house yet.  

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55. As mentioned earlier, all (4) of Camron Reece's points came on dunks. Here's his other one. Open next to the basket Reece takes a bounce pass from F Ali Ali and throws it down before David Nickelberry can stop him, capping an 8-0 Akron run that cut Buffalo's lead to 26-24 with 6:20 to play until halftime.

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56. After Josh Mballa misses a layup that was contested by Camron Reece, Mballa and Reece go up again trying to get the rebound with 5:23 to play in the half. The ball deflected off their hands, and Loren Christian Jackson picked it up at the free throw line for Akron, keeping the score at 28-24.

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57. While dribbling past Josh Mballa to just to the right of the lane, Gavin Clarke loses the ball (Mballa may have stripped it - it's hard to tell on the video), and LaQuill Hardnett is in the right place at the right time to get his only steal of the game with 1:53 remaining in the 1st half. This play was in the middle of a span of 2:28 in which neither team scored. It was 33-26 Bulls at this point, and the half ended with the score 33-28.

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58. After Josh Mballa goes up to deflect an alley-oop pass intended for Camron Reece, on their way down Reece, Mballa, and C Brock Bertram all battle for possession of the ball with 11:47 remaining in the 2nd half. None of them got it, as the ball bounced in the lane and into the hands of Jayvon Graves, who got credit for a steal, keeping Akron's lead at 46-43.

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59. In a sequence the will not be included on Josh Mballa's highlight reel he misses two shots on the same possession. After having his 8-footer in the lane blocked by Josh Freeman with 12 seconds left on the shot clock, Mballa gets another chance with 2 seconds left. But after catching a pass under the basket, he is off balance as he goes up, leaning backward, and this layup doesn't even hit the rim and is rebounded on the other side of the basket by F Mikal Dawson for Akron, keeping the Zips in front 55-52 with 6:49 remaining. 16 of Mballa's 17 FG attempts were in the paint, and he missed 9 of them, finishing the game 7 for 17 from the field. 

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60. Jeenathan Williams celebrates with clenched fists as he goes back to play defense after hitting a long, NBA-range 3-point FG a couple of seconds earlier to bring the Bulls within 1 at 58-57 with 5:30 to play. Williams made up for Mballa's subpar shooting, finishing 10 for 14 from the field, including 3 for 4 from 3-point range.

For nearly the next 4 minutes neither team led by more than a point; and then after a 5-0 Bulls run put them ahead by 4, the Zips scored twice in the final minute, including a tip-in by Josh Freeman with 1.1 seconds left, to send the game into overtime tied at 68.

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61. After going scoreless on their first two possessions of overtime, Akron comes away empty again on their third, as Josh Freeman misses a layup, and Jeenathan Williams denies him a second chance, first knocking the rebound out of Freeman's hands and then grabbing this carom off of his own arm to get his 5th and last rebound of the game, keeping Buffalo in front 72-68. Freeman fell down and was late getting back on defense, and Williams hit an open 3-pointer 6 seconds later to make it 75-68.

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62. With the score 75-70 all eyes are Brock Bertram and Josh Freeman as they battle for the rebound after Bertram missed a tip-in of a missed shot by Jeenathan Williams. On either side of Freeman for Buffalo are Williams and Josh Mballa; and the other Akron players in the picture are Ali Ali (#24) and only the dreads of junior G Bryan Trimble. Unfortunately this was the only photo I could find where you can see Trimble's dreads. Bertram ended up getting the rebound, allowing the Bulls to run some time off the clock.

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63. Jeenathan Williams scores the last of his 10 FG - and drives another nail in Akron's coffin - as he hits this driving layup against Josh Freeman to increase Buffalo's lead to 78-70 with 45.9 seconds to play. Looking on from the side in jersey #12 (you can see his face but not his dreads) is Bryan Trimble. Not to be confused with Greg Tribble, whom we saw earlier, Trimble was a major contributor in his first season for Akron after a transfer from St. John's, finishing second on the team in scoring. Ranking 36th in the nation in 3-point FG% at 39.8%, Trimble was an ice cold 1 for 7 in this game.

Buffalo held on, winning 81-74 to improve to 16-7. Akron fell to 15-8, and with pandemic causing a scaled-back NIT and no CBI or CIT at all, their season was over. Williams led the Bulls with 26 points and added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals, and a game high 4 turnovers in 39 minutes. Josh Mballa had 16 points and a MAC Tournament record 20 rebounds in 42 minutes. LaQuill Hardnett chipped in with 6 points and 3 rebounds in 27 minutes before fouling out with with 2:05 to go in OT, giving the Bulls 48 of their 81 points scored by players with dreads. For Akron Trimble had 9 points in 38 minutes, Tribble had 6 points and 3 assists in 25 minutes before fouling out with 1:29 left in OT, and Camron Reece had 4 points in 15 minutes. Buffalo lost the next night to Ohio in the MAC championship game and then a week later lost a heartbreaker to Colorado State in the 1st round of the NIT to finish at 16-9.   

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Elsewhere .....

64. We begin a very brief look at the dreads of a couple of players from overseas with a stop at Lincoln, Nebraska. Yvan Ouedraogo, 6-9, 245-pound sophomore from France, and his teammates spent Christmas Day on the court facing Michigan; and midway through the 2nd half Ouedraogo gets his only blocked shot of the game, rejecting F Terrance Williams (left photo). Yvan played a season high 30 minutes and finished with 6 points and 6 rebounds as the Cornhuskers lost to Michigan 80-69. A week earlier (right photo) Ouedraogo slams home Nebraska's final two of the night with 32 seconds to play against NAIA school Doane. The dunked capped his best game of the season as he finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds in 18 minutes in a 110-64 victory.

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65. Of course, Yvan Ouedraogo had his share of close encounters with some of the Big 10's other players with dreads. With his dreads reduced at Lincoln on Feb. 20 (left photo) he loses this encounter to 6-4 freshman G Jaden Ivey of Purdue. After driving the right baseline, Ivey goes up and draws contact from Ouedraogo then shoots in this shot off the glass with 1:53 remaining until halftime. Ivey completed the 3-point play to increase Purdue's lead to 38-27. Ivey, who at the end of the season was named to the Big 10 All-Freshman team, led the Boilermakers in this one with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocked shots. Ouedraogo finished with 7 points and 8 rebounds in 20 minutes. Purdue won 75-58. Against Michigan State a couple of weeks earlier (Feb. 6, right photo) Julius Marble, after giving up a layup to Ouedraogo a minute and a half earlier, says "oh no, not this time" and is called for a foul trying to block his layup with 11:15 to play in the 2nd half ... a good idea, because Ouedraogo shoots less than 50% at the line for his career, and he missed both FT after this foul, keeping the Spartans' lead at 46-34 .....   

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66. ..... Earlier in the game A.J. Hoggard, after driving from the 3-point arc to the basket in one dribble, doesn't let Ouedraogo prevent him from finishing the play, as he hits the layup to give Michigan State a 9-4 lead. These were Hoggard's only 2 points of the game (he missed his other 4 shots), and he also had 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Ouedraogo finished with 4 points and 3 rebounds in 14 minutes. Nebraska fell to 0-6 in Big 10 play, losing at Michigan State 66-56. 

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67. With the Cornhuskers trailing Illinois by 3 midway through overtime on Feb. 12, Yvan Ouedraogo leaves the man he's covering (Kofi Cockburn) and tries to steal the ball from Ayo Dosunmu near midcourt, but Ayo ain't having that, keeping possession and keeping his dribble alive as well. 6 seconds later Ouedraogo fouled Cockburn under the basket. Cockburn made 1 of the 2 FT, the first points for the Illini in more than 10 minutes that weren't scored by Dosunmu. After Nebraska went on a 9-0 run to lead by 5 with 3:49 to play, Ayo scored his team's final 10 points of the 2nd half and the first 5 in OT, turning a 61-56 deficit into a 71-66 lead. With Dosunmu finishing with 31 points, 6 assists, and 4 steals in 43 minutes, Illinois, a 14-point favorite on the road, avoided the upset, winning 77-72. Ouedraogo played 11 minutes and had 1 point, 1 steal, and 3 fouls as the Huskers dropped to 0-9 in the Big 10. They finished in 14th place (yes, dead last) at 3-16 and at 7-20 overall.

In his 2019-20 freshman season Ouedraogo was a starter and averaged 5.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in 21 minutes and set the school record for most rebounds ever by a freshman. This season he was not a starter, and those averages dropped to 3.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 15 minutes ... and so, not surprisingly, Yvan has decided to transfer; and if everything goes according to plan, next season he'll be a prolific rebounder in the WAC while wearing the jersey of the Grand Canyon Antelopes.   

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68. Originally from Nigeria, Cliff Omoruyi didn't play basketball until he moved to New Jersey when he was in high school. But his late start in the sport didn't stop the 6-11, 240-pound center from becoming a highly-ranked recruit - so high, in fact, that it was surprising when he decided to stay home and play for Rutgers instead of signing with a more successful program. In the season opener on Nov. 25 Omoruyi knocks away a layup attempt by Sacred Heart F Kasparas Jonauskas (left photo) but is denied his 1st blocked shot in a Rutgers uniform because G Jacob Young is called for a blocking foul on the play with 5:40 remaining in the 1st half. Omoruyi debuted with a double-double, finishing with 14 points (6-6 FG) and 11 rebounds in 22 minutes as the Scarlet Knights rolled over Sacred Heart 86-63. Two nights later Omoruyi's dreads get full extension (right photo), although it's tough to see them in the arena's dark background, as he handles the ball against the defense of FDU F Pier-Olivier Racine late in the 1st half. Cliff had a tough act to follow in his 2nd game and settled for just 5 points and 4 rebounds as the Scarlet Knights defeated the Knights 96-75.

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69. On this play (photo above) in Rutgers' first Big 10 home game on Dec. 20 Cliff Omoruyi comes closer to getting a piece of Ayo Dosunmu's dreads than blocking his shot. Despite the presence of Omoruyi and G Paul Mulcahy, Dosunmu was able to hit the layup and increase Illinois' lead to 35-25 with 4:22 remaining in the 1st half. Ayo finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists. Omoruyi had 2 rebounds, 2 blocked shots, and 2 fouls in 10 minutes in the Scarlet Knights' 91-88 victory. Cliff played only 10 minutes because he suffered a knee injury early in the 2nd half (as a result of friendly fire) and ended up missing the next 5 games. When he returned in mid-January, he lost his place in the starting lineup and he no longer had his dreads completely loose. For the rest of the season they were either reduced or had a band around them, as they did on Feb. 4 (right photo) when he and Minnesota G Both Gach went to the floor in a battle for possession of the ball in the 1st half. Omoruyi scored 3 points in 12 minutes as Rutgers won at home over Minnesota 76-72. On a side note ... for the first month of the season Gach had his hair in baby dreads but then untwisted them just before Christmas and went back to normal hair for the rest of the season.

Not to be confused with and not related to Eugene Omoruyi, who played 3 seasons for Rutgers (2016-19) before transferring to and starring for Oregon this season, Cliff Omoruyi finished this season averaging 3.8 points and 3.9 rebounds per game and shot 63.2% from the field while playing 15 minutes per game.  

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70. Born and raised in Portugal, 7-0, 245-pound C Neemias Queta has starred for Utah State the last three seasons, making the MWC all-defensive team all three years ..... and the reason he has is that he's great at blocking shots. In those three seasons Queta has already set the school record for most most blocked shots in a career with 219. He gets these two before the ball even has a chance to get out of the shooters' hands. Queta had himself a block party in Utah State's back-to-back slaughters of San Jose State (Dec. 21 and 23), getting 12 (6 in both games) in just 35 minutes on the court. He emphatically stops the driving dunk attempt by G Sebastian Mendoza (left photo) early in the 2nd half on Dec. 23 and gets the rebound too. Neemias also had 9 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists in an 85-52 victory. The Aggies won the game two nights earlier 107-62. Picking on someone his own size on Jan. 16 (right photo), Queta denies 6-9 F Joshua Tomaic of San Diego State at the rim with 12:15 remaining in the 1st half, keeping USU's lead at 14-6. It was the 2nd of his 5 blocked shots, and he added 10 points and 10 rebounds as the Aggies beat the Aztecs for the second game in a row 64-59.  

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71. Not surprising for someone his size, Neemias Queta is pretty good at dunking too. After his right handed slam against BYU on Dec. 5 (right photo) Queta hangs on the rim (and avoids getting a technical foul) with 7:02 to play in the 2nd half. The dunk brought USU to within 57-52. From there the Aggies three times tied the game but could never get the lead. Queta finished with 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals - but no blocked shots - in BYU's 67-64 road win. Neemias uses two hands (left photo) on the first of his 4 dunks at Boise State on Feb. 17, bringing Utah State to within 20-17 midway through the 1st half. He finished with a career high 32 points and had 10 rebounds, but the Aggies lost 79-70, the first of two losses back-to-back to Boise State that ended up costing the Aggies the MWC regular season championship. For the season Queta averaged career highs in points (14.9 per game), rebounds (10.1) and blocked shots (3.3) and was named MWC defensive player of the year. The 3.3 blocks were 3rd best in the nation. Neemias will not be adding to his school record for blocked shots next season because (hopefully) these dreads will be coming to an NBA arena near you. 

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72. After seeing his average minutes played per game drop from 18 during his freshman season for the Houston Cougars in 2019 to 9 last season, 6-6 F Cedrick Alley headed west - about 200 miles or so - transferring to UTSA (with the SA standing for San Antonio) in hopes of getting more playing time. Unfortunately UTSA fans were not able to get a look at Alley's awesome dreads at their best, as he kept them reduced all season. Here are a couple of shots of Alley on offense in his first game in a UTSA uniform on Nov. 27. Not wasting any time, Cedrick took a career high 11 shots in 25 minutes but made only 3 of them, finishing with 7 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists in a 97-71 romp over UT-Permian Basin.

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73. In what was arguably his best performance of the season Cedrick Alley defends against Oregon State's star G Ethan Thompson on Dec. 16 at Corvalis. According to the captions the photo above is from the 1st half, and the photo on the right is Alley going up to swat away Thompson's shot in the middle of the lane with 8:42 to play in the 2nd half and the game tied at 46. From there UTSA moved out to a 51-46 lead; but it was short lived as Oregon State came back to win 73-61, with Thompson scoring 9 of his 22 points in the final 7 minutes. But in a game his team lost by 12 Alley was a +10, finishing with 14 points (1 less than his season high), 5 rebounds, and 2 blocked shots in 24 minutes.

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74. According to the shot chart included in the game book for UTSA's game against Lamar on Dec. 22 Cedrick Alley did not have any FG attempts from the right side of the basket (left photo); but it does show he was fouled by G Anderson Kopp with 18:12 remaining in the 1st half; so my guess is this is a shot of Alley going up to shoot after he was fouled even though the shot wasn't going to count. Cedrick finished the evening with 5 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 17 minutes as the Roadrunners won their final game of 2020, improving to 4-3 with an 88-66 home win over Lamar. The photo on the right is just a friendly reminder of how awesome Alley's dreads looked before he decided to keep them reduced, from early in his sophomore season as he tries to drive past BYU F Dalton Nixon midway through the 2nd half of Houston's 72-71 home loss in the battle of the Cougars on Nov. 15, 2019. Cedrick still has another season to go at UTSA, so maybe, hopefully for at least a couple of games he'll let his dreads loose. This season he played 21 minutes per game and averaged career highs with 6.3 points and 4.4 rebounds.

Alley was not the best player with dreads on the UTSA roster .....

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75. ..... That honor still belonged to 6-4, 195-pound senior G Keaton Wallace, the Roadrunners' best player with dreads ever ... so far. After averaging double figures in points for the 4th straight season, Wallace moved into 2nd place on the school's all-time scoring list. With Alley looking on, Wallace here plays a little defense on Dec. 16 (left photo), as he and C Jacob Germany try to stop Ethan Thompson in front of the basket. My guess is they failed, as this is probably a shot of Thompson hitting a layup and being fouled by Wallace with 2:19 to play in the 1st half. While Alley did well, Wallace had his worst game of the season, shooting 1 for 11 from the field and finishing with a season low 5 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 turnovers, and 5 fouls in 27 minutes. Although he also usually had his dreads reduced, there were some games where he had them flowing at full blast, including the opener on Nov. 27 (right photo). Keaton finished with 19 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals in the 26-point victory over Division 2 team UT-Permian Basin.

But even at full blast, Keaton's dreads ain't what they used to be. Unless I'm seeing things, they appear to be no longer than they were when he was a freshman 3 years ago, so at some point he got them cut a little shorter. Wallace averaged just 16.8 PPG this season, down from 18.8 as a junior and 20.2 as a sophomore; but he did have career high averages in rebounds (5.5) and assists (3.4) in 2021. With the NCAA offering everybody an extra year of eligibility (due to the pandemic), it'll be interesting to see if Wallace comes back for a second senior year or if he's going to get his pro career started.

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76. Historically BYU has seriously frowned on the idea of men having long hair. So I was kind of surprised when I found out that Brandon Averette had transferred there ... and even more surprised when I found they let him keep his dreads. Maybe history is changing. As many players with dreads as Oklahoma State has, they could have had one more had Averette decided to stay there. But after playing two seasons with the Cowboys, he played his junior season for Utah Valley and then transferred again, making the short, 8-minute trip from UVU to BYU for this season. But even though BYU let him keep his dreads, it wouldn't surprise me if they 'highly recommended' he tone them down. I mean, for every game this season he had them rubber banded into a bun, which he certainly never did at either of his two prior schools. Even so, I guess stifled dreads are better than no dreads at all. Two nights before Christmas Averette was on the floor - literally - of the NBA's Utah Jazz (left photo), battling for possession against Weber State F Dillon Jones. Brandon had 13 points, 5 rebounds, a season high 7 assists, and a season high 3 steals as BYU won 87-79. With several, not just one, bands keeping his dreads in place, Averette dribbles along the baseline against Gonzaga F Cory Kispert (right photo) on Feb. 8. Averette had 14 points and 6 assists, but the Cougars were no match for the #1 ranked Bulldogs, losing at home 82-71.

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77. BYU contributed 3 times to Gonzaga's victory total of 31 (which certainly is no disgrace), the third of those coming in the championship game of the WCC Tournament at Las Vegas on Mar. 9. Brandon Averette drives and hits an uncontested layup (left photo) to give the Cougars a 33-21 lead with 8:32 remaining in the 1st half. Brandon was 4 for 5 from the field before halftime, helping the Cougars shoot 68% in the 1st half ... but things didn't go so well after that. With 6:00 to play in the 2nd half Averette drives to the basket (right photo) and has his layup swatted out of bounds by G Jalen Suggs, keeping Gonzaga's lead at 71-68. Brandon finished with 11 points and 4 assists in 30 minutes; but after leading by as many as 14 points late in the 1st half, BYU turned into a pumpkin in the 2nd half and lost 88-78. 

In the Cougars' next game Averette got a chance to play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since he was a freshman, but BYU lost that game to UCLA 73-62. After starting only 7 times in his two seasons for Oklahoma State, Averette started all 30 games for Utah Valley in 2019-2020 and all 27 for BYU this season. In 2020-21 he averaged 11.7 PPG (down from 12.8 last season) and a career high 3.7 assists. Brandon decided not to take the NCAA up on its offer of another season of eligibilty, choosing instead to begin his pro (minor league) career.

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78. Staying in Utah ..... to find the longest dreads on any of the state's 6 Division 1 teams you needed to visit Ogden, about a half hour north of Salt Lake City. After playing three seasons in the SEC for Florida and averaging less than 3 PPG in all three, Dontay Bassett sought his greener pastures at Weber State, the same school that brought you the great Damian Lillard. Like Lillard, Bassett is a native of Oakland ... and that's where the similarities end. While Lillard is a guard, Bassett is a 6-9, 245-pounder; and, of course, he's nowhere near the player Lillard is. In his first game with the Wildcats (left photo) on Dec. 13 Bassett operates in the low post with just under 4 minutes to play in the 1st half, looking to score against Boise State F Abu Kigab. Dontay ended up taking and missing a fadeaway jump hook in the lane, keeping Boise State's lead at 29-24. He played 12 minutes, didn't score (0-3 FG) and had 1 rebound as the Wildcats lost 70-59. Against Southern Utah on Jan. 21 (right photo) Bassett turns and gets past F Maizen Fausett on his way to the basket early in the game. He ended up hitting a reverse layup while being fouled by Fausett, making the FT to give Weber State a 6-0 lead. Dontay played only 12 minutes; but he sure made them count, finishing with 12 points, 3 rebounds, and a season high 4 blocked shots before fouling out (on a technical foul he somehow got between shooting his first and second free throws on a trip to the line with 5:10 left in the game) in the Wildcats' easy 91-67 win.

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79. Dontay Bassett scored in double figures 9 times this season - or 7 times more than he did in his three years at Florida - including a career high 17 points twice, coming in back-to-back home games against Montana State on Feb. 4 and 6. In the Feb. 6 game Bassett had these close encounters with 6-9 junior F Jubrile Belo. Bassett gives the follow-through pose (right photo) as he and Belo watch his shot from the corner go through the basket. The caption says that this was a 3-pointer, but Bassett made only one 3-pt. FG and this wasn't it. Most likely this is one of the two jump shots he hits in the 2nd half. Also likely the left photo is a shot of Bassett fouling Belo just before Belo's dunk that gave Montana State a 62-59 lead with 5:56 to play. Dontay had 2 blocked shots in the game, but neither came on an attempt by Belo. Belo also had 2 blocked shots, along with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and (ouch) 5 turnovers. Bassett finished with 17 points (5-8 FG) and 5 rebounds in a season high 35 minutes. Montana State came to Ogden with a shiny 6-0 record in the Big Sky. They left 6-2 and tied with Weber State after the Wildcats' 96-88 (Feb. 4) and 82-74 (Feb. 6) wins.  

After finishing tied for 2nd in the Big Sky, the Wildcats' season ended (at 17-6) with their upset loss to 6th seeded Montana in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. After career high averages of 8.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 19.8 minutes per game, Bassett decided he would take up the NCAA's offer of another year of eligibility and will be back for a second senior season with the Wildcats.  

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Without Dontay Bassett around anymore, the title of the Florida Gators player with the longest dreads this season was held by Anthony Duruji. After two good but not great seasons playing for Louisiana Tech, the 6-7, 220-pound Duruji nevertheless decided he was ready for tougher competition than Conference USA can provide; and so he transferred to Florida, where he proved to be an important role player and was in the Gators' starting lineup for 17 of their 25 games. A better athlete than a basketball player, Duruji is no stranger to slam dunks; and after noticing that photo galleries of the Gators' game at Kentucky on Feb. 27 included several shots of him dunking, I knew they all couldn't be the same dunk. Well, it turned out that Anthony had himself a regular dunk fest that afternoon at Rupp Arena. His 4 dunks during a 12-minute span of the 1st half sparked the Gators and kept Kentucky from pulling too far ahead. Eventually the Gators won, getting a little payback for the 18-point whipping the Wildcats put on them in Gainesville 7 weeks earlier ..... But Duruji wasn't the only player with dreads on court that day ...

80. On his first touch of the late afternoon and on the Gators' first possession of the game Anthony Duruji has no intention of settling for a 15-foot jumper. Instead he dribbles right into the lane; but with his path to the basket blocked, he stops and turns and shoots a jump hook from the middle of the lane, only to have it rejected by ..... the player with the longest dreads to ever wear a Kentucky uniform - in the person of 6-10, 206-pound freshman F Isaiah Jackson. But it was a case of all's well that ends well for Florida, because almost immediately after Kentucky got the rebound, Duruji stole the ball (knocking it away from G Riley Welch from behind) and the Gators took the lead on their second possession, with Duruji picking up his 1st assist of the game. 

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81. Wearing shoes of a different color, Isaiah Jackson gets credit for his 1st rebound and first 2 points of the game, going up a just little higher than Anthony Duruji to tip in a missed reverse layup by G Brandon Boston. Of course, he wouldn't have gotten credit for either if the officials had called him for basket interference. Quite clearly the ball was in the cylinder above the rim when he touched it, but there was no whistle. Jackson's only 2 points of the 1st half cut Florida's lead to 5-4.

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82. In transition offense following a Florida turnover Isaiah Jackson finds himself guarded by 6-1 junior G Tyree Appleby in the low post; but the pass to him from G Devin Askew is underthrown, allowing Appleby to jump up and knock it away (to a teammate) and get credit for the steal, keeping Kentucky's lead at 10-5 with 16:25 remaining in the 1st half. More than once during the season Appleby changed his hair back and forth between dreads and a midsize afro; so he hasn't officially been welcomed to the house yet. We'll see about next season.

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83. After catching an alley-oop pass off the glass from Tyree Appleby on a fast break, Anthony Duruji prepares to throw down the first of his slam dunks, cutting Kentucky's lead to 13-10 with 14:38 to play until halftime. Definitely a highlight reel play, but play continued without a break for several more possession after it, and by the time there finally was a break at 12:18 it was pretty much forgotten. I don't think CBS ever showed a replay of it.

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84. After driving from 3-point range and coming to a jump stop on the left block, Anthony Duruji goes up but can't hit this shot off the glass challenged by F Keion Brooks, keeping Kentucky's lead at 20-14 with 11:55 to go until halftime. In the 1st half Duruji was 4 for 5 on dunk attempts and 1 for 3 on shots that weren't dunks.

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85. This time Keion Brooks can't do anything to make Anthony Duruji miss. After getting past Brooks at the free throw line, Anthony lifts off in the middle of the lane, soars to the rim, and slams home his 3rd dunk of the half. That brought the Gators to within 3 at 31-28. Having an excellent view of the dunk are G Davion Mintz (under the basket), whom I welcomed to the house after he debuted his dreads early in the season in mid-December, and G Brandon Boston (#3), whom I'm still deciding whether or not to welcome after he had his dreads done with the two-strand twist for roughly the final two months of the season.

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86. Once again, this time with 2:56 remaining in the 1st half, the UK defense looks on helplessly as Anthony Duruji, after cutting to the basket and taking the pass from F Colin Castleton, goes up, winds up, and ...... 

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87. ..... dunks in two more points for the Gators. After failing to dunk an alley-oop pass from Tyree Appleby a couple of minutes earlier, Duruji makes no mistake this time, getting his 4th dunk of the game to cut to Kentucky's lead to 3 again at 35-32. After trailing by as many as 10, Florida actually went ahead by 3 before going in at halftime down by 1 at 39-38. With his 10 points, Duruji led the Gators in scoring at the break.

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88. After a rebound battle between Isaiah Jackson, Anthony Duruji, and Florida G Tre Mann results in the ball deflecting back up into the air, Jackson goes up again and this time has to deal with F Omar Payne on his 2nd attempt to get the ball. Then, after wrestling the ball from Payne .....

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89. ..... Jackson takes one dribble and lifts off a long way from the basket, actually with one foot outside the lane. Isaiah may have long arms, but they're not long enough to reach the rim on this one, and he misses the dunk attempt. Of course, maybe they would have been long enough had he not been fouled by Duruji. Anthony thought about challenging the shot but knew he couldn't get up in time and instead stayed on the ground; but he was too close to Jackson to avoid contact and was called for his 1st foul of the game. After hitting 2 free throws on Kentucky's previous possession, Jackson went 1 for 2 this time to give Kentucky a 46-44 lead with 17:09 to play.   

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90. After driving to the basket on Florida's next possession, Tyree Appleby tries a layup but is denied by Davion Mintz before the ball ever leaves his hands. For Mintz, a 6-3 senior, it was his 5th blocked shot of the season, surpassing his previous career high of 4, which he had in two of the three seasons he played for Creighton before he transferred to Kentucky. For Appleby, there was more futility to come on this play. After having Mintz knock the ball out of his hands, he got the rebound under the basket and a second or two later went up again ... only to have Isaiah Jackson swat his 2nd attempt out of bounds. Jackson, of course, is no stranger to blocked shots. His 2.6 average per game ended up leading the SEC and was 15th best in the nation. Appleby finished the game 3 for 10 from the field (30%), while the rest of his teammates combined to shoot 58%.

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91. After getting past Tyree Appleby on the left baseline, Keion Brooks doesn't get the clear path to the basket he was hoping for, as Anthony Duruji drops off the man he was covering (F Olivier Sarr, #30) to heavily contest his layup attempt, which misses. The rebound caromed right back to Brooks, but he missed the putback too, keeping UK in front 46-45 with 15:05 remaining.

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92. Taking advantage of some poor defense by Colin Castleton, Isaiah Jackson gets from the free throw line to the basket on one dribble, and Anthony Duruji can do nothing but watch him as he hits the left handed layup to tie the game at 51 with 11:16 remaining. Jackson finished 4 for 4 from the field, the last of 4 games this season in which he shot 100%.

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93. The last of Anthony Duruji's 3 fouls in the 2nd half was actually a phantom foul. As F Jacob Toppin tries to convert a turnover into a fast break dunk, Duruji goes up to challenge him and makes no contact at all as Toppin goes past him. Toppin missed the dunk and crashed to the floor, and the officials decided to blame Anthony for it. Toppin made 1 of 2 at the line to increase Kentucky's lead to 59-57 with 6:30 to play.  

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94. Over the next 5 minutes Florida outscored Kentucky 10-6 to grab a 2-point lead of their own, and with 1:05 on the clock Tyree Appleby tries to make it 4. But instead, after getting past Isaiah Jackson at the free throw line and driving to the basket, he has his shot blocked for the 4th time in the game. You get a great look at the dreads of both Appleby and Jackson in these shots as Olivier Sarr comes over and knocks Appleby's attempt off the glass and then comes down with the rebound himself, keeping the score at 67-65.   

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95. Kentucky had two chances to take the lead on their next possession; but Davion Mintz missed a wide open 3-pointer with 52 seconds to go, and Olivier Sarr missed a difficult, contested 3-pointer with :31 on the clock. After Tre Mann got the rebound for the Gators, he got the ball to Tyree Appleby, and Appleby here gets intentionally fouled, with Brandon Boston making the attempted tackle with 23 seconds remaining. An 82% FT shooter, Appleby made both shots to make it 69-65, and the Gators went on to win 71-67 to improve to 13-6. Kentucky, struggling through their worst season in 94 years, dropped to 8-14.

Mintz was the game's leading scorer with 21 points and led the Wildcats with 3 steals. Boston (3-10 FG, 6-6 FT) had 13. Isaiah Jackson scored 11 points and led the team with 5 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. For Florida Appleby finished with 11 points and 5 rebounds and led the Gators with 5 assists and 3 steals (and 5 turnovers too). After a strong 1st half, Anthony Duruji was very quiet in the 2nd half (no points or rebounds in 19 minutes). He finished with 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists. To see a video of not only Anthony's 4 dunks, but also all 21 of the Gators' other field goals in the game, you can click on this link, with the dunks coming at 0:27, 0:41, 1:17, and 1:32: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=437390670804952 

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Before we move on, we can't leave without one last slam dunk from Anthony Duruji .....

96. I hope you were watching the last few minutes of the 1st round game in the NCAA Tournament between Florida and Virginia Tech. If you were, you probably remember Anthony Duruji's first career dunk in the NCAA Tournament.

With 7 seconds remaining in the 2nd half and Florida leading by 3, Duruji failed to put the game away, missing 2 FT in a row, after which VT came down and hit a 3-pointer with 1.4 seconds to go to send the game into overtime. Then on the Gators' first possession of OT, Anthony takes out his frustration on the rim, slamming the ball hard in the face of 6-9 F Keve Aluma and drawing the foul: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2684xZw57I   ..... Duruji missed the FT after the foul (of course), but at least he got the Gators off to a good start in overtime, and they never trailed in OT in a 75-70 victory. Their season ended, however, two days later with the upset loss to #15 seed Oral Roberts (the Gators were seeded 7th). If you like, you can click on the link below for a big photo gallery featuring Anthony's first season with Florida. Just as he improved as the season went along, so did his dreads, as they went from reduced early to full blast for the final two months.

https://gatorswire.usatoday.com/gallery/anthony-duruji-florida-basketball-photo-highlights-2020-2021/

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As for Duruji's former team ....

As usual, there was no shortage of dreads at Louisiana Tech this season. For years, as far back as the 2011-12 season, back when it wasn't normal to see dreads in basketball and when basketball shorts were hanging down below everyone's knees, much more often than not the Bulldogs' roster has included at least one player with dreads - and usually two or more. During Duruji's final season on the team (2018-19) he had Amorie Archibald as a fellow dreadhead. Now, even with Duruji gone and Archibald an ex-dread, the Bulldogs still had 5 players with dreads on their roster for the 2020-21 season and 3 others who had their hair in dreads for a couple of games. 

 

 

97. If I had done a dread all-America team for this season, very likely these two Louisiana Tech players would have been on it. 6-5 senior G Xaiver Armstead (right photo, and that's how he spells his name) follows through on a 3-pointer that gives Louisiana Tech a 17-3 lead over UTSA with 12:35 remaining in the 1st half on Jan. 16. They were his first 2 points of the season. 0 for 6 from the field in his first 4 appearances of the season, Armstead for some reason didn't play in the Bulldogs' 6 games between Dec. 19 and Jan. 9. Then after going 0 for 1 on Jan. 15, he finally hits the target the next night. He scored the Bulldogs' next FG too, another 3-pointer to make it 20-7. He finished with 7 points in 13 minutes in Louisiana Tech's 82-66 home win. Unlike many players with long dreads these days, Armstead lets his dreads flow at full blast every game, with this single band around them being about as much as he ever restricts them. 5-11 sophomore G Cobe Williams (left photo) also prefers to keep his long dreads unleashed, and you just can't beat those red locks. On Dec. 6 at Baton Rouge Williams tries to get the ball into the frontcourt against the pressure of LSU F Trendon Watford. I did not welcome Watford to the house the season, as the 6-9 sophomore had his hair in 4 or 5 different styles throughout the season. In this game he lead LSU with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Williams finished with 5 points, 1 assist, and 3 turnovers in 24 minutes.

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98. Although the Bulldogs' had 5 players with dreads when the season began, they unfortunately finished it with only 4. 6-3 junior G Jace Bass, shown here defending a shot by LSU freshman G Eric Gaines on Dec. 6, played in 9 of the Bulldogs' first 13 games in his first season on the team after transferring from junior college. But he missed the next 4 games after injuring his ankle on Jan. 9, and then near the end of January it was announced he was no longer on the team, with no reason why given. Bass, who is just about out of space for any more tattoos on his body, had 9 points in this game, his second highest scoring game of the season. Gaines, who had dreads for this game but didn't for most of the season, had 2 points and 2 rebounds. After starting the season 3-0, the Bulldogs hit the road for the first time for only their 4th game ever vs. LSU (the schools are 220 miles apart), and it wasn't pretty. The Tigers outshot the Bulldogs 54%-29% and cruised to an 86-55 victory.

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99. The Bulldogs' other two players with dreads are shown in these shots from their home game against UTSA on Jan. 15. 6-10 senior F Andrew Gordon (right photo) tries to drive closer to the basket against the defense of F Phoenix Ford, and 6-4 senior G Exavian Christon (left photo, with the freeform dreads) defends loosely as Keaton Wallace and his reduced dreads handles the ball. Wallace scored 18 points and led the Roadrunners with 9 rebounds and 4 assists in 37 minutes. Christon scored 5 points in 24 minutes; while Gordon, in his 2nd year with the Bulldogs after transferring from West Virginia, had a career high 12 rebounds and tied his career high with 14 points in just 20 minutes.

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100. Here's a better look at the colorful dreads of Cobe Williams, as he handles the ball under the watchful eye of G Jhivvan Jackson on Jan. 15, with both photos possibly taken seconds apart on the same possession. During his freshman season Williams had his locks entirely red, but this season he didn't dye the new growth they've had since then.

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101. In case you were wondering ..... yes, Cedrick Alley was on the court for UTSA on Jan. 15, and he had these close encounters with Cobe Williams and Xaiver Armstead, trying to stop Williams' drive to the basket (photo above) and defending against Armstead (right photo). I can't find videos of most of Louisiana Tech's games, so for the most part I have no idea at what parts of the game these photos were taken. Maybe the photo above is a shot of the layup Williams made with 12:20 to play in the 1st half. As mentioned earlier Armstead went scoreless in this game (before exploding - lol - the next night) but did have 4 rebounds in his 6 minutes on the court. Williams had 6 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists in 31 minutes. Alley finished with 8 points and 5 rebounds in 18 minutes. The game was close until UTSA went scoreless for the final 4 minutes. Louisiana Tech scored the final 10 points of the game and won 77-66. And with the easier, aforementioned 82-66 victory the next night, the Bulldogs improved to 11-4.    

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102. G Jamal Bieniemy tries to get through a sea of players with dreads during Louisiana Tech's game against UTEP at El Paso on Jan. 23. In the middle, with his dreads fully extended, is Exavian Christon; on the right, halfway in the picture, is Andrew Gordon; and on the left? ..... That's 6-5 senior G Jacolby Pemberton, who has had dreads off and on the past couple of seasons. They were on for this game, and he finished with 10 points and 7 rebounds in 28 minutes. Christon scored 3 points in 21 minutes, and Gordon had 4 points and 5 rebounds in 10 minutes.

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103. At another part of the game (photo above) Jamal Bieniemy has another player with dreads to deal with, as he drives against Cobe Williams. Also in the shot are the braids of 6-6 sophomore F Isaiah Crawford; but since this photo isn't in 3-D, I can't tell if he's in on a double team or back away from the ball. Crawford, like a lot of other players, couldn't make up his mind what to do with his hair. He had games when it was in braids, in dreads, and normal. Also changing up, with a handful of games with his hair in dreads, was 6-7, 275-pound freshman Kenneth Lofton, shown here with dreads (right photo) defending, along with Williams, against G Souley Boum. 

Lofton and Crawford were the team's top two scorers this season; and Lofton, Jacolby Pemberton, and Crawford were the top three rebounders. But there's no way I could welcome them to the house this year. Maybe, hopefully next season.    

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104. The photo gallery I viewed of the game on Jan. 23 is from the El Paso Times website, so naturally most of the shots are of UTEP players on offense. Here's another one, with Souley Boum under pressure from Cobe Williams. This is a great view to see how much Cobe's dreads have grown in the 15 months (or so) since he first dyed them red. After not starting a single game as a freshman, Williams was in the starting lineup for every game during the regular season this year, increasing his minutes played average from 15 to 26 and scoring in double figures 9 times (just once last season). In this game he had 6 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists.

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105. I have no clue what's happening here, but it's sure a great look at Xaiver Armstead's dreads, as they get whacked by F Tydus Verhoeven. Maybe it's a shot of the two going for a rebound - and Armstead did get credit for a rebound of a missed 3-pointer by F Kristian Sjolund (#12) with 12:54 to play in the 1st half - but who knows. Whatever it is, Verhoeven was not called for a foul (according to the game book, although he fouled out of the game, none of his fouls was committed against Armstead). After recording no steals in his first 7 games of the season, Xaiver got a career high 3 steals in 14 minutes in this game. He also had 5 points (2-2 FG) and 2 rebounds. After losing to the Miners the night before, the Bulldogs got out of El Paso with a split, leading by 10 or more for the final 10 minutes of the game in a comfortable 73-55 win.

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106. For the Bulldogs' final 9 games of the season Xaiver Armstead discarded the rubber band and unleashed his dreads completely. Here he is trying to help Jacolby Pemberton (who had no dreads for this game) box out FAU F Jailyn Ingram on Mar. 11. After going 12-4 and finishing 1st in the CUSA West Division and getting a bye for the first two rounds of the conference tournament, the Bulldogs defeated the Owls in the quarterfinals. With Armstead contributing 3 points (1-4 FG), 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 12 minutes, LA Tech eked out a 75-69 victory to advance to the semifinals. 

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107. After breaking a finger on his left hand during the final game of the regular season and then watching the team struggle without him FAU, Cobe Williams tried to go in the semifinal game vs. North Texas. But he was able to play only 3 minutes, missing a 3-pointer (left photo) on his only FG attempt and dribbling upcourt (right photo) with senior G James Reese sneaking in from behind trying to poke the ball away. With the tournament being held at Frisco, TX, playing North Texas was like a road game for Louisiana Tech; and it did not go well. UNT led for almost the entire 2nd half and eliminated the Bulldogs. Reese who likely had the second longest dreads in Division 1 this season - although you can hardly tell from this photo - missed all 6 of his shots from the field (5 of them were 3-pointers) and finished with 2 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 blocked shot as the Mean Green advanced to the final, defeating LA Tech 54-48.  

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108. With their record at 21-7 following the loss to North Texas, the Bulldogs' next game was in the NIT, their first appearance in that tournament since the Speedy Smith-led team played in it 3 years in a row back in 2013-15. Here early in the 2nd half on Mar. 19, after shooting an air ball from the right baseline, Julius Pemberton ends up wrestling for the rebound along with Andrew Gordon and Ole Miss F Sammy Hunter. After the whistle blew and Pemberton was called for a foul, Gordon and Hunter got into a brief scuffle, with Gordon discreetly hitting Hunter with an elbow to the chest and Hunter responding angrily, shoving Gordon in the chest. Hunter, a sophomore who started to let his hair grow this season, was assessed a technical foul. Hopefully I'll be able to welcome him to the house next year. As for Gordon, this wasn't one of his better games. He had 3 points (1-4 FG, 1-2 FT) and 2 rebounds and was a -13 in his 10 minutes on the court.

Earlier in the game .....

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109. As G Austin Crowley steals the ball from him, Xaiver Armstead's dreads go so fully extended that you can almost count the number of locks he has. After Crowley knocked the ball away, it was picked up by G Jarkel Joiner, and he passed it to Crowley for an easy dunk to cut LA Tech's lead to 18-15 with 7:59 remaining in the 1st half. This was Armstead's only turnover of the game. He played only 6 minutes, also finishing with 3 points and 1 assist. Top-seeded in their quarter of the bracket, Mississippi was without two starters for this one, and the Bulldogs took advantage, defeating the Rebels 70-61 in the 1st round and advancing to the quarterfinals. But Armstead would play a total of only 6 more minutes and not score again in the Bulldogs' next 3 games. 

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110. After defeating Western Kentucky in the quarterfinals, LA Tech took on Mississippi State in the semifinals on Mar. 27. With 14:47 to play in the 2nd half (photo above), Exavian Christon drives to the basket but finds 6-11 F Abdul Ado in his way. Christon can't get the shot off and takes one in the crotch from Ado's leg for good measure as he loses control of the ball. With his dreads reduced a week after they weren't, Andrew Gordon has a chance to clean up Christon's fumble but can't, and the ball goes off him and out of bounds, with Christon being charged with the turnover. Looking on from behind the play with the dyed dread tips is 6-1 freshman G Deivon Smith. Gordon scored 2 points in 6 minutes, and Christon didn't score at all in 22 minutes. Smith had 4 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists for MSU. Mississippi State led by 10 at halftime and pulled away even further, winning the battle of the Bulldogs 84-62.

The next day, Sunday, Mar. 28, shortly after Mississippi State was defeated by Memphis in the NIT championship game, a new pair of nets were attached to the rims in Frisco, TX, and Louisiana Tech and Colorado State took the floor to meet in the 3rd place game; and with 8 minutes to play in the 1st half Cobe Williams (right photo), with his dreads reduced, draws two defenders to him as he drives along the baseline. The possession ended with a turnover, as Williams tried to hit Kenneth Lofton next to the basket but had his pass stolen easily by F David Roddy (#21), keeping the score at 22-18 in favor of CSU. The play came in the middle of a 100-second span of futility in which the teams combined for no points and 6 turnovers and also included Williams achieving a rare hat trick ... missing all 3 free throws after being fouled on a 3-point attempt. Cobe finished with 6 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3 turnovers, and 3 fouls in 29 minutes. The Bulldogs won 76-74 on a layup by Lofton with 0.3 seconds on the clock. 

Finishing 24-8 this season, the Bulldogs posted a winning record for the 10th straight year, in 8 of which they've won 20 or more games; but that bid to the NCAA Tournament remains as elusive as ever. Their last one was in 1991. Maybe next year. But if it is next year, it will be without Gordon (4.8 PPG, 4.0 RPG this season) and Armstead (3 PPG), who are not listed on the team's current roster but might end up playing on some other team. Williams (8.6 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 2.7 APG) and Christon (3.3 PGPG, 32.7 FG%) will be back along with at least one new player with dreads. So after not taking the time to watch any of their games this season, I'll make sure the 2021-22 Bulldogs make it to my television more often.

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A couple of photos ago I mentioned the name of Speedy Smith, as in Kenneth "Speedy" Smith. As you may or may not remember, he turned into one of Louisiana Tech's best players ever during his four seasons in Ruston. But what has he been up to since he starred for the Bulldogs from 2011-15 and was not picked in the 2015 NBA Draft? Well, the closest he has gotten to the NBA was for a handful of games in the NBA Summer League during the summers of 2018 and 2019. But he's still dreaming, still trying to make it.

Smith began his pro rookie season in the country of Latvia playing for VEF Riga. But after only 11 games he came back to the USA and was signed by the South Bay Lakers of the G-League. After finishing the season with them (averaging 13 minutes per game for a team that lost in the G-League finals) he actually went back to Riga for a couple of games before calling it a season. The next three 3 years he was in the G-League entirely, spending another season as a reserve with South Bay before being traded to the Grand Rapids Drive, where he was a part-time starter, averaging 8.0 points and 7.7 assists in 2017-18 and 9.2 and 7.5 in 2018-19. 

Then it was back over to Europe, and the 2019-20 season was his best statistically, although the level of play might have had something to do with that. He began the season in the Hungarian League, averaging 11.4 PPG and 7 APG for Szolnoki Olaj. After 12 games with them, he moved to Belgium and starred for Spirou Charleroi, averaging 11.8 PPG and 8.4 APG and shooting a career best 48% from the field, only to have the last 3 months of the season wiped out by the pandemic. He finished the season in Israel, averaging 14.6 PPG and 7.6 APG for Maccabi Haifa in 8 games after the Israeli League resumed play last summer. For all three teams he played for last season Smith led his team in assists in nearly every single game. Which brings us to this season .....

111. Back in Belgium for the start of the season and now playing for the Antwerp Giants, Speedy Smith dribbles while being defended by former Wyoming star G Josh Adams (left photo) of Virtus Segafredo Bologna (from Italy) during a Eurocup game on Oct. 27. Smith had 16 points and 10 assists, but Antwerp was outshot 60%-37% and fell to 0-5 on the season, losing at home 95-76. Despite no success in Eurocup, Antwerp started 3-0 in the Belgian League; but a couple of weeks before Christmas Smith was off to France to play for Limoges CSP in the Pro A (and also known as the Jeep Elite) league, one of the best leagues in Europe. On Mar. 16 (right photo) he drives in for a layup against Boulogne-Levallois. Speedy had 16 points, 9 assists, and 4 steals to help Limoges to an 85-79 home win.    

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112. Here are a couple of shots of Smith from Limoges' game against ASVEL on Mar. 13. Playing the hands-on defense in the left photo is G Matthew Strazel. Speedy had just 3 points and 3 assists in this one as Limoges lost at home - badly - 83-60. Back when he was at LA Tech Smith never had his dreads reduced; but they're so long now that he just keeps them reduced for every game.

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113. In Jersusalem on Jan. 26 Speedy Smith finds himself in a tug of war for possession with his own teammate, 6-8 C Jerry Boutsiele. Whether the ball was in the hands of Smith or Boutsiele, it was a good thing for Limoges in this game. Smith had 10 points and 13 assists, while Boutsiele tied for the team lead with 19 points (8-12 FG) as Limoges picked up an 88-83 road win over Hapoel Jerusalem in the Basketball Champions League Europe. Boutsiele led Limoges in rebounds this season, averaging 7.4 per game and was second in scoring at 13.5 PPG. Limoges finished tied for 9th place in the Pro A league with a 17-17 record, missing the playoffs by 2 games. Smith was a starter in 25 of his 31 games for Limoges and averaged 7.1 PPG and 4.8 APG and also led the team in steals. Before that he was in the starting lineup for all 12 of his games for Antwerp and averaged 15 PPG and 6.5 APG. 

In his first game for Limoges on Dec. 19 Smith already endeared himself to his new teammates, dishing out 8 assists and hitting this game winning basket: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXqTuqjtpMs

I like the way #23 disgustedly punts the ball into the air. Too bad there weren't any fans there. 

Will we ever see Speedy in the NBA? I'd have to say it's doubtful. But he will certainly improve his chances if he can impress in this year's NBA Summer League, which begins on Aug. 8. I don't know if he has been invited to play or not; but as well as he has played the last couple of seasons, you'd think he'd at least get a look. We'll see.  

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114. A little while ago I mentioned that you couldn't tell that North Texas G James Reese had the second longest dreads in Division 1. Well, last season you could. Just take a look at the photo on the left. Reese already had long dreads when he was a freshman for Buffalo in 2017-18. Then, after a year in junior college, he showed up with his dreads this long for his first road game in a Mean Green uniform on Nov. 8, 2019, as he watches VCU G Issac Vann shoot a layup. Reese led his team in shots attempted that night with 12 but made only 3, finishing with 9 points and 2 blocked shots in 34 minutes as UNT lost to VCU 59-56. All good things came to an end however, this season, as James - sadly - kept his dreads folded into a bun - and often had them reduced too - for every game, including the Nov. 28 game at Arkansas (right photo) as he shoots against G Jalen Tate. Reese again led his team in shots attempted in the first road game of the season, going 2 for 12 from the field and finishing with 5 points and 5 rebounds in the Razorbacks' 69-54 win. Tate, by the way, cut his dreads off in the middle of January, and G JD Notae (#1) didn't have his hair in dreads for every game.

After defeating Louisiana Tech, North Texas went on and won the CUSA Tournament, making it 4 wins in 4 days with an overtime victory over Western Kentucky in the championship game, blowing an early 17-0 lead and then finishing the 2nd half on a 7-0 run to tie the score. Reese's 2 free throws with 2.5 seconds left iced the 61-57 win. James played at least 35 minutes in all 4 games. Seeded 13th in their region of the NCAA Tournament, the Mean Green in their next game picked up the school's first ever victory in the Tournament, with Reese scoring 13 points in the 78-69 overtime win over #4 seeded Purdue. But the party ended two days later with the loss to Villanova in the 2nd round.

After averaging 8.6 and 10.9 PPG in his two seasons as a starter for UNT, Reese, a slender 6-4, 167-pounder, will be playing for his 4th team in 5 years next season. He's doing the Anthony Duruji move from CUSA to the SEC, transferring to South Carolina for his second senior season.

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Having mentioned that Reese had the second longest dreads in Division 1, I suppose it wouldn't be right if I finished this DG without letting you know whose dreads were the longest. So without any further delay .....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

115. First, a disclaimer/admission. I didn't see all of the teams in Division 1, so I can't say for sure that these were the longest dreads this season. But if you know of any that are longer than this, please let us know. You already got a taste of Colin Slater's dreads in DG172, when he was a freshman at Tulane. And now here they are 4 years later. After playing his first two seasons for Tulane, Slater, a 6-1, 190-pound G, transferred to Long Beach State for his last two. And after he averaged a career high 10.2 PPG as a junior in 2019-20, it looked like we were going to have to wait until 2021-22 for his senior season. But after announcing he was opting out of the 2020-21 season, he suddenly opted back in about halfway through the season. And he opted back in with his dreads at Reggie Nelson length - I'm talking about the 2015 version of Nelson, during his final season with the Bengals before his dreads were slightly shorter after he signed with the Raiders. In Long Beach's final game of the regular season Slater (left photo) celebrates after hitting a 3-pointer for the second possession in a row vs. UC-Irvine. Slater entered the game for the first time at the 13:46 mark with the Beach trailing 10-2 and hit his first two shots, at 13:05 and 12:27, to make it 10-8. He ended up leading the team with 15 points, but UC-Irvine won easily 73-58. You can see highlights of the game on the link below. But if you don't have the patience to view the entire 3-minute, 19-second video, with the exception of a brief Slater sighting at the 0:22 mark (where Colin is standing next to another LBSU player with dreads who is fiddling with one of his locks), you can skip ahead to the 1:13 mark of the video, with his celebration in the photo above at 1:24 ......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eU8Hb7bdbU4

In the right photo, you get a great look at Slater's awesome dreads as he attempts a shot from right in front of the photographer during the Beach's game in the 1st round of the Big West Tournament on Mar. 9. Slater scored 10 points in an easy 85-63 win over Cal State-Northridge. Two days later Colin tied his career high with 20 points as the Beach scared regular season champ UCSB in the quarterfinals. But LBSU fell short, losing 95-87 to end their COVID-ravaged season with a 6-12 record. Slater played in 9 of the 18 games and averaged 8.9 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists. Having not played during the 2018-19 season due to his transfer, Colin has already been in college for 5 years; so it's doubtful he'll be back for another year.

While there are more basketball players with dreads than ever, it seems there are fewer than ever with really long dreads; so these days it's a rare treat when you get to see someone like Slater. Hopefully this won't be the last we see of him.