Spring Break
Adrien reaches milestone 1,000th rebound
Men's Basketball Notebook
Kevin Duffy
Issue date: 2/9/09 Section: Sports
Down eight points as the final seconds ticked off the clock, Michigan's Manny Harris hoisted a desperate shot that clanked off the rim and bounced towards the sideline.
UConn's Jeff Adrien quickly snatched it out of the air and then dropped it once the buzzer sounded. At the time, it was just another example of Adrien's non-stop, play-till-the-very-end motor. But about 10 seconds later, as Adrien and his teammates walked in the locker room, Adrien found out it was the 1,000th rebound of his career.
"I had no idea, obviously, until they said something," said Adrien.
The rebound made Adrien just the fifth UConn men's basketball player to ever reach the 1,000-point and 1,000 rebound milestone. Emeka Okafor, Art Quimby, Corny Thompson and Tony Kimball are the others.
"Just to be mentioned in the same breath as Emeka Okafor is an honor," Adrien said. " It shows the hard work I've put in, day in and day out. I'm proud of myself and there's still more to go."
Michigan coach John Beilein was quick to compliment the 6-foot-7-inch, 245-pound power forward, who along with Hasheem Thabeet, was chosen as one of 30 finalists for the Naismith Trophy, annually given to the National Player of the Year.
"You can box him out, you can do whatever you want, he is on a mission to get the ball," Beilein said. "He just rebounds the ball. I remember him when I was at West Virginia and he was a freshman. We couldn't stop him then and now he's dieseled up even more."
Dyson takes one for
(and from) the team
With five minutes and 19 seconds remaining in the second half, Jerome Dyson hit the floor after taking a charge from Harris. As if Dyson didn't receive enough contact on the charge, Hasheem Thabeet accidentally stepped on his chest while he was on the ground. Dyson stayed on the floor, wincing in pain, for close to a minute before he gingerly walked to the bench.
The injury, which turned a raucous Gampel Pavilion crowd to dead silence and required the assistance of the team physician, appeared to be much more serious than it actually was.
UConn's Jeff Adrien quickly snatched it out of the air and then dropped it once the buzzer sounded. At the time, it was just another example of Adrien's non-stop, play-till-the-very-end motor. But about 10 seconds later, as Adrien and his teammates walked in the locker room, Adrien found out it was the 1,000th rebound of his career.
"I had no idea, obviously, until they said something," said Adrien.
The rebound made Adrien just the fifth UConn men's basketball player to ever reach the 1,000-point and 1,000 rebound milestone. Emeka Okafor, Art Quimby, Corny Thompson and Tony Kimball are the others.
"Just to be mentioned in the same breath as Emeka Okafor is an honor," Adrien said. " It shows the hard work I've put in, day in and day out. I'm proud of myself and there's still more to go."
Michigan coach John Beilein was quick to compliment the 6-foot-7-inch, 245-pound power forward, who along with Hasheem Thabeet, was chosen as one of 30 finalists for the Naismith Trophy, annually given to the National Player of the Year.
"You can box him out, you can do whatever you want, he is on a mission to get the ball," Beilein said. "He just rebounds the ball. I remember him when I was at West Virginia and he was a freshman. We couldn't stop him then and now he's dieseled up even more."
Dyson takes one for
(and from) the team
With five minutes and 19 seconds remaining in the second half, Jerome Dyson hit the floor after taking a charge from Harris. As if Dyson didn't receive enough contact on the charge, Hasheem Thabeet accidentally stepped on his chest while he was on the ground. Dyson stayed on the floor, wincing in pain, for close to a minute before he gingerly walked to the bench.
The injury, which turned a raucous Gampel Pavilion crowd to dead silence and required the assistance of the team physician, appeared to be much more serious than it actually was.
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