Marcus Colbert
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Colbert Bolsters Bobcat Backcourt
1/8/2013 5:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MSU's freshman guard has played with savvy beyond his years
Call it on-the-job training, or a high-profile apprenticeship. Or it might be that the presence of a freshman point guard is simply parented by necessity.
In whatever light the early months of Marcus Colbert's career as Montana State's point guard are viewed, it would be hard to see it as anything but successful.
Montana State's seventh-year head coach Brad Huse has been impressed. “Marcus is learning, he's conscientious, he's trying really hard,” Huse says. “At the same time he's learning to play, he's becoming a little more relaxed. He's making good decisions. I like how attentive he is. He's fun to coach, easy to coach. He wants to do well.”
The son of a coach – his father coached basketball at North Idaho College – Colbert said that experience has shaped his life and his game, and not just the time he spent in the gym with his dad. “I always had high expectations on me,” he says with a smile. “The coaching didn't stop on the court, either. It went home with me.”
Huse praised Colbert for his characteristics common to many with his background – instincts, court vision, quick reactions on the floor. “The one thing we ask a point guard to do is make good reads within the system,” he said. “Marcus is young, but he's really working hard to do that the right way. When you're at the point you can't predict what's coming. You have to read what's happening.”
Making Colbert's transition more impressive to Huse is the number of new player's in MSU's rotation this season. “We have a lot of new pieces, which complicates things even more for Marcus. And it's not an easy transition anyway. But it's getting smoother and smoother all the time.”
Below is a closer look at MSU guard Marcus Colbert:
Q: You finished your first game as a Bobcat with six turnovers and no assists. What do you remember that game?
MC: I remember when I was going into that game and playing in that game, all I was thinking about was not messing up. When you play hesitant you mess up more. That's why I had six turnovers, I didn't play with confidence.
Q: What's been different as the season has progressed?
MC: I feel like I'm a lot more confident. Coach (Huse) expressed to me that he has confidence in me, and when a coach has confidence in a player he has more confidence in himself.
Q: What's surprised you the most about playing Division I basketball?
MC: I knew it would be a lot more physically and mentally demanding, but I thought it would be more physical than mental. But to play you have to be mentally prepared every day. That's been the biggest difference.
Q: You grew up in Post Falls at a time when Rodney Stuckey played at Eastern Washington, and Gonzaga has been a powerhouse for many years. Did you follow Eastern or Gonzaga when you were growing up? Who was your favorite college basketball team?
MC: I didn't really follow Eastern very close. I talked to their coaches once in a while. I knew who Rodney Stuckey was, though. I didn't really follow anyone in college basketball very close. I followed Maryland more than anyone, because that's where my Dad is from and he always watched their games.
Q: How long have you been growing your hair out, and how much care does it take?
MC: About a year-and-a-half. You have to keep twisting it all the time for the growth so it keeps dredding. It takes about three hours (at a time), maybe once or twice a month.
Q: Are the dreds permanent or do you see a haircut in your future?
MC: They're permanent. I'll be bald on top (when older) but I'll have the dreds growing long.
In whatever light the early months of Marcus Colbert's career as Montana State's point guard are viewed, it would be hard to see it as anything but successful.
Montana State's seventh-year head coach Brad Huse has been impressed. “Marcus is learning, he's conscientious, he's trying really hard,” Huse says. “At the same time he's learning to play, he's becoming a little more relaxed. He's making good decisions. I like how attentive he is. He's fun to coach, easy to coach. He wants to do well.”
The son of a coach – his father coached basketball at North Idaho College – Colbert said that experience has shaped his life and his game, and not just the time he spent in the gym with his dad. “I always had high expectations on me,” he says with a smile. “The coaching didn't stop on the court, either. It went home with me.”
Huse praised Colbert for his characteristics common to many with his background – instincts, court vision, quick reactions on the floor. “The one thing we ask a point guard to do is make good reads within the system,” he said. “Marcus is young, but he's really working hard to do that the right way. When you're at the point you can't predict what's coming. You have to read what's happening.”
Making Colbert's transition more impressive to Huse is the number of new player's in MSU's rotation this season. “We have a lot of new pieces, which complicates things even more for Marcus. And it's not an easy transition anyway. But it's getting smoother and smoother all the time.”
Below is a closer look at MSU guard Marcus Colbert:
Q: You finished your first game as a Bobcat with six turnovers and no assists. What do you remember that game?
MC: I remember when I was going into that game and playing in that game, all I was thinking about was not messing up. When you play hesitant you mess up more. That's why I had six turnovers, I didn't play with confidence.
Q: What's been different as the season has progressed?
MC: I feel like I'm a lot more confident. Coach (Huse) expressed to me that he has confidence in me, and when a coach has confidence in a player he has more confidence in himself.
Q: What's surprised you the most about playing Division I basketball?
MC: I knew it would be a lot more physically and mentally demanding, but I thought it would be more physical than mental. But to play you have to be mentally prepared every day. That's been the biggest difference.
Q: You grew up in Post Falls at a time when Rodney Stuckey played at Eastern Washington, and Gonzaga has been a powerhouse for many years. Did you follow Eastern or Gonzaga when you were growing up? Who was your favorite college basketball team?
MC: I didn't really follow Eastern very close. I talked to their coaches once in a while. I knew who Rodney Stuckey was, though. I didn't really follow anyone in college basketball very close. I followed Maryland more than anyone, because that's where my Dad is from and he always watched their games.
Q: How long have you been growing your hair out, and how much care does it take?
MC: About a year-and-a-half. You have to keep twisting it all the time for the growth so it keeps dredding. It takes about three hours (at a time), maybe once or twice a month.
Q: Are the dreds permanent or do you see a haircut in your future?
MC: They're permanent. I'll be bald on top (when older) but I'll have the dreds growing long.
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