Facing his final college recruitment process, 6-foot-5, 210 Caleb Asante's sense tilted heavily towards remaining in California for his upperclassmen years, and that was fine with him, a continuation after four years at Leigh High in San Jose and two attending Saratoga's West Valley College.
But a call from the NCAA D2 Southern Nazarene University (SNU) coaching staff last September after he participated in JUCO showcase, morphed into a visit to SNU in Bethany, Oklahoma (a city of 20,000 and part of the Oklahoma City metro area).
That trip broadened Asante's horizons. "I visited and the people at the school were so nice and welcoming," Asante recalled. "I also got to see the athletic facilities, they told me about their future plans and I saw the city."
Combining that with being told what the coaching staff liked about his game plus what he could add to their program, and Asante was sold. Now he will be part of the Southern Nazarene Crimson Storm basketball team this coming school year.
Asante averaged 11.4 points per game in 26 contests/24 starts this past season at West Valley while shooting a team best 57% from the floor, 44% on three-point attempts and 66% at the foul line. He grabbed 4.4 rebounds nightly alongside dishing out 1.4 assists and this production earned him All Coast Conference South honors. He also nabbed that status as a freshman.
Regarding what Asante does best on the basketball court, he explained, "my ability to get to the basket, to create for others, my rebounding and leadership." Regarding the latter, "I lead more by example but I'm working on getting more verbal like pulling teammates aside and giving them tips I learned when I was in their position."
Asked if he had a West Valley College best basketball moment in mind, Asante offered, "I would say winning the NorCal (Regional Final) championship this year (against Yuba College) when we were spraying our coaches with water afterwards in the locker room." It was a 75-58 victory for the Vikings.
Asante as a freshman
What's fascinating is that coming out of high school, Asante initially preferred to attend a community college out of the Bay Area in order to gain a different experience. But once he talked with the West Valley College coaches, he was all in for heading the five miles to Saratoga.
After posting a 3.8 grade point average while at Leigh High and repeating that mark during his two-year tenure at West Valley College, Asante is looking to major in economics at SNU with the idea of possibly entering the real estate field upon graduation.
He expressed gratitude to the multitude of those who have aided his hoops journey thus far. "I want to thank Coach Yosh (WV Head Coach Danny Yoshikawa), (his assistants) Coach Trent, Coach Dustin, Coach Patrick, Coach Jackson and Coach Sean as well as (the West Valley trainers) Gianluca, Steven, and Katie." He also thanked "my parents, my brothers, my (personal) trainers Coach Ameer Shamsud-din (Elite Basketball Performance) and Coach Ant (Anthony Gardner), my teammates and my friends for all their help and support."
Asante back in his Leigh High days
Asante's goals over the remainder of the summer include "getting better by (practicing) shooting a lot, working on my speed and my weight. I've got to get my body into tip top shape because it's going to be a long season. I'm working as hard as I can." His sense is "I’ll still be playing wing/forward but playing more like a 3 guard" and that the opportunity for court time is available to be earned as the team has graduated a number of seniors.
Once he arrives in Oklahoma, it's going to be "I just want to win and be a leader." But also with these challenging additions: "Being named to the conference first team and the most valuable player because our team wins the conference and the national championship."