Dave Neal saw this coming –even if very few did.
He was one of the area’s top players at Bishop O’Connell High in Arlington, Va., where he dominated the Washingon Catholic Athletic Conference, a league that’s regarded as one of the nation’s best.
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There were so many nights when Neal turned the gymnasiums filled with capacity crowds into his personal playground, as he averaged 20.2 points and 13.3 rebounds for a team that finished 31-3.
“He could just flat-out score,” Joe Wootten, Neal’s high school coach, said. “He had a great natural feel for the game. He did it against some of the best players in the country.”
The problem?
“He was only 6-foot-7,” Wootten said. “If he was 6-foot-10, he would have had plenty of offers.”
But instead of being bombarded with scholarship like fellow members of the Class of 2005 like Dante Cunningham, a Prince George’s County native who is prospering at Villanova or Jessie Sapp, who is now starring at Georgetown or Michael Beasley, who is now making millions in the NBA, Neal felt slighted.
A scholarship to Loyola? No way. How about one Manhattan or Holy Cross or American? Thanks, but no thanks, Neal said. He turned them all down his senior year because he felt he could play with the country’s elite in the Atlantic Coast Conference, specifically Maryland.
In April 2005, Neal got his chance to make it happen. He and his dad, Dave and mom, Kathy, visited Coach Gary Williams in College Park.
He arrived hoping he’d be a Terp.
He left with a scholarship offer.
The Neals drove to their home in McLean, Va., with tears rolling down their cheeks knowing Dave would play at a place very few envisioned.
“I’m going to get home and call him and tell him I’m coming,” Neal told his parents. “That’s where I wanted to go all my life.”
It has taken more than three years, but Neal finally has blossomed into a player capable of competing in one of the nation’s best conferences.
“He’s had a shoulder problem every year,” Williams said. “He’s never had a chance to play without an injury. He knows the game. He’s a great passer for a big guy. The skills he brings any team would like to have. He’s really helped us quite a bit.”
Neal has averaged 7.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 21.7 minutes per game for the Terrapins (13-5, 2-2 ACC), play at second-ranked Duke (17-1, 4-0) on Saturday at noon at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
“Dave’s got a lot of YMCA moves,” Williams said. “He’s got that step-back jump shot, the flip underhand and that guys pick up after they’re done playing college basketball.”
But Neal doesn’t want to trade his jersey for a suit when he’s expected to graduate this spring. He want to keep playing –for whatever team in whatever league in whatever country that will pay him.
“I’ve been talking to a couple people, and if I keep playing well, averaging 25 minutes a game in the ACC, averaging seven points and four rebounds, you’re definitely going to be able to find a job over there,” Neal said. “It’s something that has been coming across more now since I’m playing more and looking better out there. It’s an opportunity I’m probably going to pursue if there’s something after this that’s worthwhile. I’m going to keep looking.”
But just not right now. He’s too busy helping the Terrapins remain in the hunt for a berth in the NCAA Tournament. In the opening minutes of his team’s victory over Virginia on Tuesday, Neal sustained a cut above his left eye when he was struck by elbow while trying to grab rebound. Ninety minutes and 15 stiches later, Neal returned to the court and helped secure the win by making a three-pointer with 4:52 remaining.
“He’s a leader,” freshman Sean Mosley said. “I follow leaders even though I’m a leader myself. He’s got a positive mind frame, and he’s focused.”
