Caris LeVert
No. 23 – Michigan Wolverines | |
---|---|
Position | Shooting guard |
League | Big Ten Conference |
Personal information | |
Born | Columbus, Ohio | August 25, 1994
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Pickerington Central (Columbus, Ohio) |
College | Michigan (2012–present) |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Caris Coleman LeVert (born August 25, 1994) is an American college basketball player for the Michigan Wolverines who has completed his sophomore season for the 2013–14 team. As a freshman for the 2012–13 team, he nearly redshirted but earned a key role off the bench as the team went on to finish as runner up in the 2013 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. As a sophomore, he became an regular starter and was selected as a second team 2013–14 All-Big Ten player for the outright Big Ten regular season champions. During his first two years at Michigan, he was notable as the training partner of back-to-back Big Ten Players of the Year Trey Burke (also national player of the year) and Nik Stauskas. He was a 2012 Associated Press All-Ohio Second Team high school basketball player and the 2012 Columbus Dispatch Metro Player of the Year for the 2012 Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Division I state champion Pickerington High School Central in Ohio.
Early life
LeVert grew up in Northeast Columbus but moved to nearby Pickerington in second grade.[1] He committed to play basketball for John Groce and the Ohio Bobcats men's basketball program in November 2011.[2] Meanwhile, when future teammates Mitch McGary and Stauskas joined Glenn Robinson III by committing to Michigan in November 2011, Michigan became the fifth best recruiting class in the country.[3][4] When Groce got hired by Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball in March 2012, LeVert got lost in the shuffle and decided to commit to Michigan.[2][5] Ironically, Groce's 2011–12 Ohio Bobcats' upset of the 2011–12 Michigan team in the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament was probably the reason that Groce was hired by Illinois and LeVert withdrew his National Letter of Intent to play for Ohio.[6] As a high school senior, he led Pickerington High School Central to a 26–2 record and the 2012 OHSAA Division I state championship.[1] LeVert was a 2012 Associated Press All-Ohio Second Team high school basketball player and the 2012 Columbus Dispatch Metro Player of the Year for Pickerington High School Central.
Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
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Caris LeVert SG |
Columbus, OH | Pickerington High School Central (OH) | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | May 12, 2012 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:![]() ![]() | ||||||
Overall recruiting rankings: ESPN: 67 (SG), 11 (OH) | ||||||
Sources:
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College
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/20130323_Caris_LeVert.jpg/220px-20130323_Caris_LeVert.jpg)
LeVert arrived at Michigan weighing 152 pounds (68.9 kg).[5] As a freshman, he began the year behind Stauskas, Robinson, Tim Hardaway, Jr., and Matt Vogrich on the depth chart for the shooting guard/small forward positions and did not play in the first six games as a result.[7] LeVert was a part of an incoming class that included McGary, Stauskas, Robinson, and Spike Albrecht.[8] Eventually, Michigan head coach John Beilein decided that LeVert had value as a perimeter defender and decided to play him rather than redshirt him.[7] On December 1 against Bradley Beilein juggled his lineup: Stauskas made his first career regular season start and LeVert saw his first action.[9][10] By late December, LeVert became the one-on-one partner for Burke after practices.[11] LeVert averaged 2.3 points in under 11 minutes of play per game.[8] He never scored in double digits as a freshman,[5] but he scored 8 points each in conference wins over Illinois and Michigan State as well as the 2013 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament final four victory over Syracuse in 21 minutes of play.[5][7]
LeVert's classmates all made names for themselves as freshmen.[8] During the Spring and Summer semesters (the offseason) of 2013 LeVert and Stauskas trained together on the court and in the weight room.[12] He followed fellow Columbus native and National Player of the Year Burke as a key contributor to Michigan basketball as a sophomore.[5] After opening the season with career-highs of 17 points and 5 rebounds on November 8 against UMass Lowell,[13][14] he posted 24 points on November 12 against South Carolina State.[15][16] When Michigan played (#10 AP Poll/ #8 Coaches' Poll)[17] Duke in the ACC–Big Ten Challenge on December 3, LeVert again posted 24 points, including a 7–7 free throw performance.[18][19] On January 18, Michigan defeated (#3 AP/#3 Coaches)[20] Wisconsin at the Kohl Center for the first time since the 1998–99 team did so on February 27, 1999.[21][22] It was the highest ranked team Michigan has ever beaten on the road.[23][24][25] LeVert contributed a career-high 4 steals and 20 points.[21][26] LeVert posted his first double double on January 30 at home against Purdue with a career-high 11 rebounds and 14 points.[27] On February 16, Michigan lost to (#21/21)[28] Wisconsin, despite a career-high 25 points from LeVert.[29] He was a 2014 second team 2013–14 All-Big Ten selection (coaches and media).[30][31] On March 11 LeVert was named to the all-District V (OH, IN, IL, MI, MN, WI) team by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).[32][33] The 2013–14 team was eliminated in the elite eight round of the 2014 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament by Kentucky.[34] LeVert and teammate Stauskas, joined Julius Randle, Aaron Harrison and Marcus Lee on the All-Midwest Regional team.[35]
On May 12, LeVert underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his foot. He was expected to be sidelined for 8–10 weeks, but be available for the team's August trip to play in Europe.[36] LeVert returned to action just before the team's August 15–24 10-day, 4-game trip to Italy.[37][38]
Personal
LeVert is the son of Kim and Darryl LeVert and has 1 sibling, Darryl, who is his junior by 11 months.[1] His mother is a Columbus City Schools first grade teacher. His father, who was a graphic designer, died on April 4, 2010 at the age of 46. As of February 2014[update], his brother, Darryl, played basketball for Connors State College .[1]
References
- ^ a b c d Quinn, Brendan F. (2014-02-28). "The untold story of Michigan's quiet Caris LeVert". MLive.com. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ a b Dauster, Rob (2014-03-03). "Caris LeVert would be at Illinois if John Groce had picked up the phone". NBC Sports. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ Jordan, Jason (2011-11-03). "Mitch McGary commits to Michigan". ESPN. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
- ^ Baumgardner, Nick (2011-11-03). "With Mitch McGary in tow, Michigan basketball now has a top five class for 2012". AnnArbor.com. Retrieved 2011-11-18.
- ^ a b c d e Jones, Todd (2014-02-16). "Men's basketball: Caris LeVert is latest overlooked player to take his talents to Michigan". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ Eisenberg, Jeff (2014-02-23). "Caris LeVert's development has Michigan on the verge of a Big Ten title". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ a b c Kahn, Andrew (2014-01-07). "Rising Star: Michigan Guard Caris LeVert". KYW-TV. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ a b c Payne, Terrence (2014-02-28). "Assigned Reading: Caris LeVert's defining moment". NBC Sports. Retrieved 2014-03-14.
- ^ "(3) Michigan 74 (7-0, 1-0 away); Bradley 66 (5-2, 3-1 home)". ESPN. 2012-12-01. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #3 Michigan 74, Bradley 66". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2012-12-01. Retrieved 2012-12-02.
- ^ Baumgardner, Nick (2012-12-22). "Michigan's Columbus connection: Trey Burke taking frosh Caris LeVert under his wing this season". MLive.com. Retrieved 2014-03-15.
- ^ Rothschild, Neal (2013-11-20). "Summer of labor propels Stauskas and LeVert to next level". Michigan Daily. Retrieved 2014-03-15.
- ^ "UMass Lowell 42 (0-1, 0-1 away); (7) Michigan 69 (1-0, 1-0 home)". ESPN. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #7 Michigan 69, UMass Lowell 42". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Caris LeVert drains six 3's as No. 7 Michigan breezes". ESPN. 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #7 Michigan 93, South Carolina State 59". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-11-12. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Tuesday's #B1GACC Results". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2013-12-07.
- ^ "No. 10 Duke rebounds from Arizona loss to grind out win vs. Michigan". ESPN. 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #10 Duke 79, #22 Michigan 69". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Saturday's Men's Basketball Results". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-18. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ a b "Michigan hands No. 3 Wisconsin second-straight loss". ESPN. 2014-01-18. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ "Michigan-Wisconsin Preview". ESPN. 2014-01-18. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ Snyder, Mark (2014-01-18). "Nik Stauskus keys Michigan to upset win over No. 3 Wisconsin". USA Today. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ Rothschild, Neal (2014-01-18). "Neal Rothschild: Validation for a team with everything to prove". Michigan Daily. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ Baumgardner, Nick (2014-01-18). "Michigan's win over No. 3 Wisconsin officially the top road victory in program history". MLive.com. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: Michigan 77, Wisconsin 70". MGoBlue. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-18. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
- ^ "Postgame Notes: #10 Michigan 75, Purdue 66". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-01-30. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "Sunday's Men's Basketball Results". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-02-16. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
- ^ "Frank Kaminsky shines as Wisconsin beats Michigan". ESPN. 2014-02-16. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
- ^ "Big Ten Announces 2014 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors: Michigan's Stauskas named Big Ten Player of the Year". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
- ^ "Stauskas Big Ten's Top Player; Beilein Coach of the Year". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
- ^ "USBWA Names 2013–14 Men's All-District Teams". United States Basketball Writers Association. 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2014-03-12.
- ^ "Beilein, Stauskas, LeVert Earn USBWA District V Awards". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. 2014-03-11. Retrieved 2014-03-12.
- ^ "(8) Kentucky 75 (28-10, 12-6 SEC); (2) Michigan 72 (28-9, 15-3 Big Ten)". ESPN. 2014-03-30. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
- ^ Engel, Mac (2014-03-30). "Mom has to leave, but Kentucky's Randle is headed home". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Retrieved 2014-03-31.
- ^ Borzello, Jeff (2014-05-13). "Michigan's Caris LeVert out 8-10 weeks after foot surgery". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2014-05-13.
- ^ Borzello, Jeff (2014-08-14). "Michigan guard Caris LeVert returns to action after ankle injury". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2014-08-25.
- ^ "Michigan Men's Basketball in Italy". MGoBlue.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2014-08-24.
External links
- LeVert stats @ ESPN
- LeVert archives @ ESPN
- LeVert @ CBS Sports
- LeVert @ MGoBlue.com