On Selection Sunday, the Red Storm watched the television anxiously from a room on the 10th floor of the New York Athletic Club, awaiting the announcement of their seeding in the NCAA Tournament. Nestled comfortably at Central Park South in mid-town Manhattan, the athletic club is at the center of a city of nearly 8.4 million people, 25 blocks from the World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden.
On this same Selection Sunday, 679 miles away in Rochester, Michigan sits the Oakland University Men’s basketball team, surrounded by their fans, watching the selection show from the school’s gymnasium. Rochester, with an estimated population of 11,000, is 30 miles north of downtown Detroit. It is a suburb with low-lying buildings, famous for their annual “Bright Lights Show”, when the entire downtown is illuminated with decorative lights for the holiday season.
These are the contrasting environments Larry Wright has seen during his college basketball career.
Wright, a native of Saginaw, Michigan, was a guard for the Red Storm for two seasons from 2006-2008 before transferring to Oakland after his sophomore year. He shot over 40% from distance in his two seasons at St. John’s, with his best season coming as a sophomore when he averaged 9.1 points in 19 minutes per game.
Now, in his second season with Oakland, Wright and the Golden Grizzlies hear their name called as a #13 seed on Selection Sunday, slated to play Texas in the first round Friday.
But, Wright’s story is unlike many other transfers.
After starring at Saginaw High School, averaging 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals, he decided to come to St. John’s under head coach Norm Roberts.
“I went on a visit there. They took me around Manhattan,” Wright said of Roberts recruiting him. “I really connected with the coaching staff and the Garden was a big thing, to be able to play at the Mecca of college basketball.”
As a member of Norm Roberts’ third recruiting class as Red Storm head coach, Wright was part of the strong core that was supposed to build the foundation for the rebuilding efforts in Queens. But, along with Avery Patterson, Derwin Kitchen, and Qu’rraan Calhoun, who came in that same third recruiting class, Wright transferred away from the program.
When many other players transfer schools over lack of playing time, displeasure with the coaching staff, or displeasure with the program, Larry Wright transferred to make his way back home. After his mother slipped a disc in her back, the travel between Michigan and New York to watch his games became too difficult.
He summed up his reason for transferring in simple words: “I wanted [my mother] to see me play college basketball.”
“I wanted to cry, I was sad, but I was happy at the same time because I was going back home,” Wright said of deciding to transfer. “[Coach Roberts] didn’t want me to leave and tried to convince me to stay. But, he respected my decision. He was a great coach for me, but he knew I had to be there for my mom.”
Even after transferring, he remains friends with current Johnnies, including Malik Boothe, Sean Evans, Justin Burrell, and DJ Kennedy. He gave Boothe a call on Selection Sunday to congratulate him on their seeding in the tournament.
“I just wished them best of luck this year and continued success.”
Looking to choose a college close to his hometown of Saginaw, Michigan, Wright chose Oakland University in 2008. He was familiar with head coach Greg Kampe coming out of high school and was recruited by former Oakland point guard and Wright’s AAU teammate, point guard Johnathon Jones.
“[Jones] recruited me like a coach,” Wright said with a laugh. “He was like ‘You gotta come here, you gotta come here’.”
Wright bonded quickly with his new teammates, part of a quality incoming class for the Golden Grizzlies that season.
“Being a team from a smaller conference, we were happy just to be [in the tournament]. Now we’re battle-tested.” -Larry Wright
“I’m very excited that [Larry] decided to come to Oakland and play, because he could have gone to a lot of other schools,” said Kampe after Wright’s commitment. “Most of the time when you get transfers, they are leaving because they are unhappy with playing time, but he was getting all the playing time in the world, he just wanted to come home.”
After sitting out a season because of transfer rules, Wright averaged 11 points and 2.5 rebounds in 25 minutes per game in 2009-2010. He was named to the Summit League All-Newcomer Team and was key in the Golden Grizzlies finishing 26-8 and winning the conference’s regular season and conference tournament titles.
As a #14 seed, they lost to #3 seeded Pittsburgh in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, 89-66.
This season, Wright came out with a new energy, with his team poised for another NCAA run.
“Being a team from a smaller conference, we were happy just to be [in the tournament],” said Wright. “Now we’re battle-tested.”
Coming off the bench this year, he averaged 9.8 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, earning himself the Summit League Sixth Man of the Year Award. Oakland lost just one game in conference play and swept through the conference tournament, clinching their second straight automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.
In a big non-conference win on the road against #7 Tennessee, Wright had 19 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds, including a clutch 3-pointer with 40 seconds remaining to seal the victory.
“A win like that gives us a lot of confidence going into the tournament,” said Wright of the win over the Volunteers.
Oakland will try to ride that confidence to a victory over nationally-ranked Texas. The Golden Grizzlies are as close to an offensive clinic as can be found in Division I, ranking 2nd in the entire country as a team in points per game and shooting percentage. They also rank 14th and 17th respectively in the country in team rebounds and assists per game.
And this is where the road has led Larry Wright.
From Saginaw, Michigan to the bright lights of Madison Square Garden, back home to the lights of the much smaller Athletics Center O’Rena in Rochester, Michigan, he is home once again. He is home once again to help Oakland make a run in the Big Dance.
“We look forward to putting on a show.”