Baskin will be Bobcats' early

By David Borges Register Staff

HARTFORD -- Just before Christmas, after sitting out the season's first handful of games, Tevin Baskin will be able to suit up and play for the Quinnipiac men's basketball team.

Sound familiar?

Baskin, indeed, faced the same scenario last season. After being forced to sit out the first semester, the 6-foot-6 product of Stamford's Trinity Catholic High was due to start practicing for the Bobcats on Dec. 20 and start playing on Dec. 23.

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However, the NCAA clearinghouse swooped in and frowned upon some of the online courses, unaffiliated with Quinnipiac, that Baskin had taken that summer and fall. The NCAA ruled that Baskin would have to wait at least another year. He'd be eligible to play after the first semester of this upcoming season, provided his grades were in order.

"It was extremely disappointing," Baskin said. "I did my part, and the ruling came down to the fact that they felt that I needed to be in class for a full year. It was disappointing, but as a student- athlete, I got to experience a semester in the classroom, and also got to see what it's like to be a Bobcat. At the end of the day, it came out for the best."

Still, it wasn't without hard times for Baskin, who at times felt extremely lonely.

"It was a horrible time being by myself," Baskin said. "Everything was by myself. I couldn't attend team activities, I couldn't attend road games, I was in my dorm by

See Baskin, D2

Continued from D1 myself. (At home games) I was in the stands saying, 'That's supposed to be me out there.'"

He also learned, however, who his true friends are in life. His family, friends and Tom Moore's coaching staff stuck by him through those tough times, for which Baskin is very grateful.

Baskin insists he doesn't do so, but it's hard not to think of what Quinnipiac could have accomplished with him in the lineup for the Northeast 10 season last year. That heartbreaking, 52-50 home loss to Robert Morris in the conference championship game may have turned out birkenstock arizona sandals differently, and the Bobcats may have been the state's lone representative in the NCAA tournament.

"That night, we just needed to be a point better," said Baskin, who watched the game in the stands like thousands of his fellow students. "It came down to, the ball was on the rim, and it fell for Robert Morris. It just happens."

It should be different this season. As long as his grades are good (and Baskin says they are), he'll be good to go on Dec. 22, when the Bobcats travel to Niagara University.

A glimpse of Baskin in action Monday night at the Greater Hartford Pro-Am, during which he scored 18 points in Club Palace Slamm's overtime loss to Fairview Capital, shows just what he can add at Quinnipiac this winter. During one sequence, he drove down the lane to throw down a monster dunk, and soon afterward double- pump head-faked a defender out of his shoes for another slam.

That womens watch sale type of athletic ability is a staple of Baskin's game -- or at least it used to be.

"I still have it," Baskin said with a smile, "but I'm becoming more of an all-arReplica Watches
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