Welcome to A10 Talk’s Top 25 Player Countdown. Each day, we publish a new article counting down the 25 best players in the Atlantic 10 this past season. Today, we feature #23 Shevon Thompson.
Shevon Thompson had a great senior season with George Mason, though his team finished at a less than impressive 11-21 and lost in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament. Regardless, Thompson has the body and the skill to play basketball at the next level.
Best Performances:
Thompson’s best performance this past season came in November when the Patriots stunned Oklahoma State in the semifinals of the Charleston Classic. He went 9-14 from the floor to score 20 points and pulled down a season-high 17 rebounds as well. George Mason took down the Cowboys 71-68 in overtime. Thompson’s 19 points and 16 rebounds also helped take down Mississippi in the first round. Though he had a great tournament, the Patriots fell short to Virginia in the championship game.
Though George Mason’s conference season was nothing to be proud of, the Patriots did manage to take down some solid A-10 teams, and Shevon Thompson was a big reason why. He scored 17 points and pulled in 12 rebounds in Mason’s 76-69 stunner over VCU back in late February. The Patriots beat Richmond twice in the regular season, and Thompson had double-doubles in both outings. His 10 points and 10 rebounds were big in helping take down Davidson in conference play as well.
Key Stats:
Shevon Thompson ranked 17th nationally in rebounds per game at 10.6 In addition, he led the conference in both offensive and defensive rebounding percentage for the 2nd straight year. Nationally, Thompson ranked 2nd in the defensive category and 7th in the offensive category. He was a key player for the Patriots as he was involved in 26.3% of their possessions (ranks 7th in the conference). Additionally, he scored 9.9 points per game on 57.7% shooting from the field.
Team Effort:
Shevon Thompson was certainly a key player for George Mason this past season, but his numbers actually went down slightly from the 2014-15 season. He scored 3 fewer points and pulled down 1 less rebound per game this year compared to last. This has to do with the acquisition of up-and-coming freshmen who are seeing more and more playing time. Jaire Grayer and Otis Livingston both had promising first years for George Mason. In addition, Thompson’s assist numbers went up slightly from junior to senior year. Though the Patriots have some strides to be made in the Atlantic 10, it seems that their young talent has them moving in the right direction.
Previously: #24 JeQuan Lewis
