ST. BONIFACIUS, Minn. --- After 10 years at the helm of the Crown men's basketball program, we've had some incredible players here. We thought it would be fun to release a list of the Top 10 as selected by the coaching staff and relive some of their accomplishments and performances and celebrate the impact they made on Crown Basketball.
Before we even start to talk about players, it is important to note that there is no (good) objective way to rank players. Any sports fan will tell you that arguments comparing different players, in different periods, is part of the fun of sports. Who scored more points, had more rebounds, or dished out more assists IS part of the story, but it's not the whole story. There is no way to create a list that everyone will agree with, and no matter how large you make it, someone will feel snubbed.
We'll look at statistics, awards, accomplishments, records, and the more subjective "impact" a player had on the program. Most importantly, however, we'll celebrate what made these players so fun to watch, coach, cheer, and play with.
When starting to discuss this list, one thing that was important to us was to include longevity in the conversation. We wanted a player's career to matter when talking about the impact they had on the program. Every player's career looks a little different and can be affected by opportunity as much as anything, but we made the decision to require that a player was active for at least two seasons to be considered for the "Top 10". We've had quite a few incredibly talented players who, for various reasons, contributed for only a single season and who would no doubt be considered among the most talented players to ever play for Crown, much less in just the past 10 years. For this reason, we're starting off our weekly list with a group of players who deserve recognition for their incredible single seasons with the Storm.
*Note – all statistical rankings will be from Crown's NCAA-era, which began with the 2008-2009 season. Our current online record book reflects this as well, for many reasons, not least of which is a lack of consistent record keeping before the NCAA-era and a normalization of schedules and opponents that came with membership in the NCAA.
Top Ten Honorable Mentions: One-Year Wonders
RJ Walker: RJ was, and is still, one of the more unique athletes to play for Crown basketball. Standing 6'3, but with a measured 6'10 wingspan, RJ could do things that were as unexpected as they were, well, majestic. In one of the team's first scrimmages, he caught a pass just past half court and took a long dribble toward the rim. A defender tried to cut underneath him and RJ pulled off a behind-the-back transfer, took two steps, and easily laid the ball over the front of the rim. A versatile defender, RJ could also contribute in multiple ways on the offensive end and played in a number of positions for coach Herbert's first-year team. He finished the season averaging 14.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, with a team-high 16 blocks. He shot 46.9% from the field and 39.3% from beyond the arc, before transferring to Division II Morehouse College.
Seth Moan: Seth was a transfer from AFLBS, who had only a year to finish his undergraduate degree, so he was essentially a senior for his one year with the Storm. Seth still holds the single-game record (in a tie) for points, with 40, a feat he accomplished by scoring 36 points in the second half and overtime, including 14 of Crown's last 17 in the game, in a heartbreaking 109-105 loss at Morris.
His best performance, however, came in a wild 117-113 double-overtime win at Martin Luther. Moan had 36 points on 12-18 shooting (4-7 3pt, 8-11 FT) with five steals, but came up big when Crown needed him the most. After hitting a free throw with under a minute left in the first overtime to give the Storm a one-point lead, Moan twice hit field goals to pull Crown from a deficit with under 30 seconds left. After an MLC stop gave them possession up one with 25 seconds remaining, Moan stole the ball and glided in for the go-ahead layup. After MLC once again took a one-point lead, Moan stepped behind a ball screen and sunk a deep three with just seven seconds remaining to push Crown to a two-point advantage. However, the Knights would once again tie the game at the buzzer, forcing a second overtime.
In that second OT period, Moan led the Storm comeback again with a three-point shot at the 1:58 mark that took Crown from down two to up one. After MLC tied the game again at the 31-second mark, the senior point guard scored what would be the final field goal of the game to give Crown a 115-113 lead. Needing a stop to secure the win, Moan somehow beat everyone on the court to a loose ball, diving to secure a steal and possession, even having the presence of mind to shovel the ball to a teammate who hit both free throws to seal the wild victory.
Seth averaged 13.6 points and 3.1 rebounds on the season, starting all 25 games and recording a team-high 37 steals. After graduation he returned to complete seminary, leaving quite a legacy in his one year with the Storm.
Keegan Oyugi: A transfer from Yellowstone Christian College, Keegan arrived with only one year of eligibility remaining but was unfortunately unable to use it in his first year on campus due to ongoing recovery from an ACL tear. What seemed like an incredible hardship initially, turned into a huge blessing as Oyugi returned for the 18-19 season and helped lead Crown to their best record in the NCAA-era and a home playoff win.
Oyugi burst onto the scene, scoring in double figures in each of his first five games, and eight of his first nine, including an 18 point performance in a season-opening win over Hamline, and a 27 point outburst in an away win at Macalester.
His performances were only outdone by his personality, which is as big and charismatic as anyone who has worn a Crown uniform. Late in a road win over North Central, Coach Herbert called for a series of isolation opportunities for the guard, who took full advantage, scoring three layups and converting on three free throws in the final five minutes. After the second consecutive possession of having his number called and converting at the rim, he wheeled away and shouted, "Thanks Coach!" to the bench.
Nearly impossible for defenders to handle one-on-one, Keegan started all 27 games of the campaign and averaged 27.2 minutes per contest, just a year after having to sit out with major knee issues. He earned an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) All-Conference Honorable Mention award and finished the season averaging 11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds while shooting nearly 50% from the field and 80% at the foul line. Maybe more impressive were his 114 total assists, the second-best single-season mark in Crown's NCAA-era.
Keegan finished his spring with perhaps his biggest accomplishment, graduating from Crown and earning his diploma.
Anthony DiLoreto: Standing 7'1, DiLoreto's single season with the Storm produced some things you would expect, like a record for blocks that stood for years as both the single-season AND career mark, along with a host of other season and single-game records.
Anthony was also an extremely smart player, serving as a student assistant coach during his first year on campus when he was ineligible due to NCAA transfer rules. He was a good teammate and finished second on the team in assists.
There were many games that stuck out during his one season in uniform, and it would be hard to pick a "best" performance, but one that seems to rise above the others was a 38 point, 15 rebound, five-block line in a 72-69 win on the road at Bethany Lutheran. DiLoreto went 13-16 from the field, including 1-1 from deep, and 11-17 at the line, most remarkably hitting on all nine field-goal attempts in the first half. He would hit his first 12 shots for the game, in what would be his top-scoring game for the year.
Another example of his impact was in Crown's win over NCAA Division II Minnesota-Crookston. DiLoreto again went 13-16 from the field (including 2-2 from 3pt range) and added eleven boards and four blocks over all 40 minutes as Crown earned a famous 56-55 victory.
At the end of the season, DiLoreto was named First Team All-Conference, and to the UMAC All-Defensive Team, setting numerous season and single-game records, five of which still stand. Many of his averages would be good for career records, but protocol dictates that a player must have completed for at least two seasons to qualify for those. Notably, he pulled down 25 rebounds in a game against Grinnell and had seven blocks against Martin Luther. Over a season, he still holds the record for blocks (87) and rebounds (276, 11.0/game).
Bryce Williams: The last member of our one-year wonder group is the most highly decorated. Earning a First Team All-Conference selection and the UMAC's Player of the Year Award, Bryce Williams had a season for the ages, leading Crown to the UMAC tournament championship game. He played in all 27 games, scoring double figures in every one of them, including eclipsing the 20 point mark 13 times and the 30 point plateau twice. He was also named to the NABC West District Second Team, D3Hoops.com Third Team All-West Region, and D3 News Honorable Mention All-American Team.
Williams still holds single-season records for field goal attempts (467), three-pointers attempted (246) and three-pointers made (89), and held double-digit season and single-game records after his one season at Crown.
Maybe the best example of Bryce's dynamic abilities was his second-half performance in the UMAC semi-final win over Minnesota Morris. After trailing by 10 points with three minutes remaining in the first half, Crown closed the gap to just two points at the half. Coming out of the break, Williams scored the Storm's first 17 points, on his way to 27 in the second half and finished with 31 points, seven rebounds, four assists (with zero turnovers) and two steals. The 97-95 win was Crown's first playoff win in the NCAA-era.
For the season, the sophomore guard averaged 20.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, and almost four assists per game. After that season, Williams left for NCAA Division II St. Leo University.
The Crown Men's Basketball team will release a new player each week as we progress through the summer months.
