On Monday night the men’s basketball team blocked 13 shots — one shy of its all time record. Of those 13 rejections, six of them came from one man: sophomore forward Shonn Miller.
In the 2011-2012 campaign Miller made his presence known on defense blocking more than forty shots and setting the team’s all time record for blocks from a freshman. His total of forty-six was second in the Ivy League. Miller also finished the season with 170 rebounds and averaged 1.3 steals a game.
“He’s just a tremendous defender,” says head coach Bill Courtney. “He can guard one through five position-wise, he can rebound the basketball, [and] obviously his shot blocking is unbelievable.
Last season, Miller picked up Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors five times and eventually took home the Ivy League Rookie of the Year award. He also ranked among the top 10 freshman scorers in school history with his 250 points, averaged 8.9 points per game, and recorded three double-doubles last season.
“If it wasn’t for other people to set me up, I would not have gotten [the Ivy League Rookie of the Year Award],” Miller said.
And according to Courtney, he’s “continuing to get better.”
Though he matched his point-scoring average from last season with 9 points in the team’s opener against Western Michigan, Courtney says he can be even more productive this season.
“He didn’t have the offensive game that he’s been having in scrimmages for us. We know he’s going to pick that up also.”
With tremendous skills on both the offensive and defensive ends, Miller has one big goal in mind for his career on the hill.
“I would like to be known as one of the best guys to play [at Cornell].”
Original Author: Skyler Dale