Davidson College looks for national respect as it builds a program on the shoulders of a demanding schedule, quality, overlooked players, and sensational Stephen Curry
When college basketball fans briefly saw a new name in the top 25 list or checked in to see the best single game point production this season belongs to Stephen Curry of Davidson College, many went hunting their maps. Just north of Charlotte, NC, this small (1,700 students) liberal arts college best known for its academic excellence and its “college loan-free” policy has broken into the top 25 of men’s college basketball after a sterling, if ultimately losing, performance against North Carolina.
Building Basketball Excellence
Head coach Bob McKillop has been slowly building an upper tier program at Davidson, a program now ready to do more than just dominate the SoCon. It is a program that should be on the map after three straight 20 win seasons and appearances in the NCAA tournament for the last two years. It is a talented team playing what some believe is the toughest non-conference schedule in the nation. This is a team that won’t remain a secret, for it will be around in March, and it will be seen in nationally televised games as it confronts the likes of Duke (12/1), UCLA (12/8), and North Carolina State (12/21).
At the center of that talent is Stephen Curry, a 6’ sophomore guard who put in 38 points against Appalachia State, bettering the pace that placed him at 9th nationally for scoring after his freshman year. This season Curry is averaging 26 points per game, hitting 93% of his free throws and 42% from beyond the three point line. Against Appalachia State, he hit nine threes. Last year he won SoCon Freshman of the Year honors, among dozens of other awards, while averaging 21.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, and 1.8 steals, hitting 46% from the floor. Lost in the shadow of Kevin Durant at the big-time, big league Texas, Curry finished second in scoring for freshmen in Division I. He will be the dominant player among the mid-majors again this year.
Skilled in Fundamentals
Curry is the kind of player who does it all. He is a silky smooth, consummate shooter from all ranges. A hustling player who can move with or without the ball, he plays tough defense and understands that there is talent around him in quality players like Jason Richards, Thomas Sander, and Borris Meno. He chose an academically rigorous college close to his hometown of Charlotte. Some might say he was passed over or completely missed by schools with greater basketball pedigree (and ranking scouts), but it appears that with a little bit of Curry, Davidson may just be on the basketball map to stay.
