Portland knows Wilson's smile goes a long way
Posted at 11:04 AM, Mar. 3, 2006
At the lowest point of the University of Portland's basketball season, Donald Wilson figures, he spent at least an hour sitting in the locker room talking with Pooh Jeter about what had to come next.
Finally, Wilson got up, went home and went to bed.
When he woke up, it was a new day. He went back to work as if nothing had happened.
I try not to let a lot of things get to me," Wilson said.And if that 24-point loss at the Chiles Center to Santa Clara on Feb. 6, a loss that felt more like 42 points, didn't get to Wilson, probably not much can.
There were five games left in the regular season at the time, but the Pilots looked done. The thing is, Wilson doesn't believe in done. He doesn't even believe in frustrated. He believes in work and lessons learned and fun.
As the Pilots head to Spokane for tonight's first-round West Coast Conference tournament game against -- look at that -- Santa Clara, they've won three of four, and Wilson has led the way in the way that he does. He scores. He rebounds. He makes big defensive plays -- against the other team's best players.
"We ask for everything from him," UP coach Michael Holton said.
For that reason, Wilson might be the hardest player on the roster to replace next season. There have been times in Wilson's career -- and certainly this season -- when he has been overshadowed by not only the offensive pyrotechnics of Jeter, but those of Darren Cooper, too.
Wilson averaged 11.9 points his freshman season and 12.8 as a sophomore and has never matched that. Jeter said he's always telling Wilson to shoot more, a statement Wilson backs up.
