A Chip on His Shoulder: An MVP Story
By Hannah Tonti
When the timer in Lawlor Events Center struck zero, the buzzer ringing throughout, the Nevada Wolf Pack basketball team had won the CBI World Championship 85 to 82 against Morehead State. Teammates and coaches swarmed the court to celebrate the grueling overtime win. Once the excitement had settled, the committee for the CBI World Championship named senior guard Tyron Criswell as MVP.
Becoming MVP does not come easy to any athlete. The constant struggle of being overlooked on the court seemed to be the pattern in Criswell’s athletic career. Along with the sudden death of his father, the emotional turmoil Criswell undertook as a junior in high school, turned into a motivational attitude that resided with him every time he stepped on the court.
“Around the house it became really depressing,” Criswell described. “My brother and I, we had to be strong for my mom. From that point in time, I knew I needed to do something with sports so I could make some money and support my family in the future.”
Going straight to a division one or two college out of high school was not in the cards for the future of Criswell’s athletic career, as he only received junior college looks. In order to reach his goal of going division one, Criswell decided to attend and play two seasons at Central Community College in Columbus, Neb. Throughout his two seasons at Central, Criswell was named the NJCAA Division II Player of the Year after he averaged 20 points and 7 rebounds per game.
“After those two seasons, a lot of division one schools started looking and contacting me. When Nevada contacted me, I came to tour the school, loved it, then chose Nevada as my new team,” said Criswell.
When he joined the Wolf Pack, Criswell took on the task of being a full time athlete and full time student. During prime basketball season, the basketball team can sometimes have three away games in a row and up to two weeks on the road, which means the student athletes are missing crucial in-class material. Luckily, the university noticed the demanding schedule of sports and classes by giving the student athletes resources to succeed.
“What helps is our academic advisor will travel with us and he’ll make sure we are always on top of our homework, even on the road we will have a study hall for two or three hours, it really helps a lot,” Criswell said.
Managing athletics and school can be a difficult task to take on for anyone, even more so, with a positive and inspiring mindset. Cameron Oliver, a freshman forward for the Wolf Pack basketball team, talked highly of his teammate and friend.
“He is not a guy of many words, but with his energy and efforts it makes him a great person. He never complained about any task that needed to be done. With the coaches, he never had a droopy attitude. He always is uplifting, ready to get something done and with his leadership he has always been really inspiring,” Oliver said.
Head coach of Wolf Pack basketball, Eric Musselman, also described Criswell as inspiring to his teammates on and off the court.
“TC was the ultimate leader by example. He was not the most vocal guy on our team, but our players had great respect for him because of how he carried himself on and off the court. He gave 100% at all times. TC was great for our locker room and teaching our young guys how to compete,” Musselman said.
Throughout the two seasons Criswell played for the Wolf Pack, the 2015–2016 season was their best season. This was the result of the bonding the team had done off the court before the season started. “A close knit family,” is how Criswell described the relationship with his team. Taking bonding trips to Lake Tahoe for a few days, gave the team a better understanding of who each other was off the court.
“Last season we did a couple bonding things, but it wasn’t to the point where we had the chemistry,” Criswell said. “This season we really had the chemistry and I felt like that is the reason we had a better season.”
The Wolf Pack basketball team won 24 out of the 38 games they played in the 2015–2016 season, including the CBI World Championship. This was the game that made the hardships of Criswell’s athletic career and life events worth it all. Winning the MVP award and team trophy have become the highlights of Criswell’s time here at Nevada, moments he will never forget.
“Winning that award, there were a lot of emotions, especially when my mom came and ran down the court to me. All my life I’ve had a chip on my shoulder, with being overlooked constantly throughout high school and junior college, and to get an award like that makes me realize that hard work really does pay off,” said Criswell.
Criswell still has his goals set high for his future in basketball. He recently signed with a scouting agent to assist him in making his dream of being in the NBA, into a reality. While Criswell’s time here at Nevada has come to end, he had one piece of advice for prospective basketball players in the future.