Bottle up Richie Saunders and sell the potion.
You’d make a bundle.
Who wouldn’t want a kind of atomic mushroom event at your disposal in the middle of a game?
That’s what Saunders has become for BYU Mark Pope.
If you need spring-loaded rebounding in a stretch, Saunders has it.
If you need someone to stick his mug into the face of a hot player and pester him like the plague, Saunders can do it.
If you require a few steals, some offensive glass work, someone to dive for loose balls and generally become a nuisance for an opponent, dial 800-Richie.
It was very evident Saturday night in BYU’s comeback from the living dead to beat TCU in the Marriott Center. You know, the gas on the fire during a complete game reversal after being down 17. Saunders has been doing this all season, as well as during his freshman year.
His energy level is remarkable. It’s as if he’s more wound up than anybody else on the court when he comes in off the bench. It shows up in effort plays, especially rebounding, a skill significantly based on attitude and exertion.
Saunders’ contributions are becoming a consistent feature on this BYU team, a button Pope can push as needed and then watch the fun.
It’s kind of like a video game cheat.
CBS Sports analyst Jon Rothstein called Saunders “one of America’s best glue guys.”
BYU has returned from being behind a combined 29 points against No. 9 Kansas and TCU in consecutive wins, which bodes well for the Cougars heading down the stretch in the Big 12.
The Cougars are 21-8 and 9-7 in league play. They can earn a No. 4 seed in the league’s tournament in Kansas City if they can sweep No. 6 Iowa State on the road and take care of business against Oklahoma State at home. They would also need to have Texas Tech lose one of its two remaining games against Oklahoma State and Baylor.
BYU is ranked 16th in KenPom, just ahead of Kansas, Kentucky and San Diego State, but dropped from No. 10 to 12 in the NCAA’s NET rankings after Saturday’s win over TCU.
Saunders reminds me of a shorter version of former Mountain View High, BYU, Atlanta Hawk second-round pick and European League star Travis Hansen. He’s athletic, driven, gets it done on both ends, and can elevate and stay in front of his man.
I asked Hansen, who Saunders reminds him of. His response? “If Bobby Hurley and Tyler Hansbrough had a baby mixed with a little Alex Caruso and some Johnny from Karate Kid.”
Hansen and former Naismith Award winner Danny Ainge were sitting by each other during the TCU game and high-fived each other every time Saunders made a great play.
“We must have high-fived 15 times. He’s so fun to watch and he’s easy to cheer for. All he wants to do is win, no personal agenda, doesn’t care about individual stats, just wants to win and will do anything to help his team compete,” said Hansen.
Saunders ranks 28th nationally in KenPom’s ORtg ranking, which rates players on points produced for 100 possessions.
KSL game broadcast talent Mark Durrant, who has watched Saunders courtside all over the country against the best talent in the land, said the Energizer Bunny wishes it had Richie’s motor.
“I get tired just thinking about how hard he plays. To play with that level of intensity so consistently is remarkable. He’s the guy you love to have on your team, but absolutely hate playing against,” he said. “His effort is contagious and his drive is relentless. I’d like to say he reminds me of myself, but the reality is he is much more talented than I ever was and he’s just now tapping into the player he will be.”
Jonathan Tavernari, the Brazilian Bomber who played at Nevada’s Bishop Gorman High in Las Vegas, BYU and the European League, is impressed with how Saunders has matured.
“From last year to this year, it’s unbelievable,” said Tavernari. “He gave an interview early in the season after one of the first games that has stuck with me. In essence, he talked about how much they learned from their mistakes from the previous year and how eager they all were to get going so they could start competing and applying all of the things that they worked on all off-season.
“Jackson Emery is one of my all-time favorite teammates because of how hard he played. Richie reminds me a lot of him. Richie is one of those guys I would have loved to play with, because of how multidimensional he is.”
