Giant killer
Terrence Oglesby is making his mark as the Clemson Tigers' sharp-shooting-last-second-scoring machine. For Terrence and the Tigers, the best is yet to come.
By Michael J. Pallerino
They call him the “gym rat.” Late at night, when most college students can be found almost anywhere, Terrence Oglesby frequents the place he feels most at home on campus – Littlejohn Coliseum. Sure, the sophomore guard knows there are players who stand much larger than his 6-foot, 2-inch frame on the point – players who frequent the Dickie V exclamation point club.
But that just makes Terrence Oglesby (he also answers to “TO”) work harder. Besides, Dickie V has already called Terrence’s number. That last second shot to cap off a 20-point comeback win against Maryland. Those crucial three-pointers in wins over Florida State and Maryland. The Clemson freshman record for three-point goals (85). And those amazing treys he drained against North Carolina.
Oh my, baby, can TO just get a little love?
Ask Terrence about that gym rat moniker and he just laughs. He agrees. In fact, in some ways, he’s not sure why every basketball player doesn’t hunt the gym to practice hitting an endless number of shots from everywhere and anywhere on the court. When most kids at Bradley Central High School in Cleveland, Tenn., were hanging out or messing around, Terrence was honing his shot. Maybe that’s why he left the school as its all-time leading scorer – 2,256 career points, to be exact. Maybe that’s why he was a finalist for the 2007 Tennessee Mr. Basketball Award at the Class AAA level.
The accolades are many. And why wouldn’t they be? We’re talking about a player who was so fearless as a middle schooler that his coach gave him an eternal green light. “Yeah, that was Coach [Bill] Delozier,” Terrence recalls. “He was always there for me. I remember him saying, ‘get Terrence the ball.’ He gave me that competitive edge and the cockiness I needed when I went to high school.”
Terrence Oglesby comes from basketball stock. His father, Tony, played professional ball in Norway, Australia and Holland. Those were the days when Terrence was the little kid on the bus with basketball in hand – always. At 3 years old he was playing in a league with 5 and 6 year olds. In the sixth grade he was playing with the eighth grade team. And when he was a freshman, he was playing with the seniors. “Playing with the older kids made me better, so I did it.”
Color him confident
When you talk basketball with Terrence, you’ll find that he tends to apologize for speaking frankly about his ability to hit the “big” shot. In fact, he doesn’t even view those “big” shots as “big.” To Terrence, they’re just shots.
Terrence is the first to admit that he has never seen a shot he doesn’t like. “You prepare for that last second shot days before it ever happens. I have the confidence to know that I’ve prepared for that shot every day. Hit it or miss it, I’ve worked hard to take it. And I always like my chances. I know that may sound cocky, but I work hard to get that feeling.
“You can be a hero or you can be a goat,” he adds. “I’ve been fortunate to hit those shots. When I hit them, it’s great. If I don’t, well, there’s always the next one. I’m not afraid to fail. If you miss, you move on to the next game.”
Clemson Head Coach Oliver Purnell likes that attitude in Terrence. That’s why he and the Clemson coaching staff jumped at the opportunity to make him a Tiger. “There are two things that really stand out about Terrence. He is an outstanding shooter, and he is a gym rat. He’s a young man who is going to continue to work, not only at shooting, but all parts of his game.
“That’s why he signed on with Kevin [Cantwell at the Suwanee Sports Academy in Suwanee, Ga.] this [past] summer,” he adds. “He wanted to improve the other parts of his game. As a coach, that’s something that’s near and dear to my heart. Here you have a young man who does something better than 98 percent of the other players in the country, but he still wants to improve those other areas.”
As with any college student-athlete, athletics isn’t the only measuring stick for success. As Coach Purnell says, there’s more to a player than a jump shot. “We are always going to recruit a Clemson guy. Terrence fits our mold. He’s a player who cares about his education. He cares about the team. He cares about his family. And he wants to be the best he can be. I think all these things go hand in hand.”
Kevin Cantwell, director of player development for On Court Player Development®, agrees. He first worked with Terrence the summer before his freshman year at Clemson. After putting him through some tough drills, Cantwell noticed the kid’s drive. Everything he did was to perfection. He didn’t know any other way.
“I could see where his heart wanted to go. I could see that he wanted to be the best he could be,” Cantwell recalls. “[Honestly] I wasn’t optimistic about his playing time his freshman year, because after being in the league 15 years the learning curve is very hard. But Terrence’s desire proved me wrong. He didn’t just play minutes. He was a factor in some of their wins. He’s a complete overachiever, and is headed to a very good college career.”
And how was his summer this year? Try all business. “Players are made during the summer,” Terrence says. “That’s where you get all your individual work in. That’s where you become who you are. I put all my work in during the summer. I hope this season that all the hard work shows.” |
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