Player Profile: Assane Sene

7’ 0” 234lbs

Center

Saint-Louis, Senegal

 

Strengths: Shot Blocking, Rebounding, Defensive Presence

Needs to Improve: Strength, Scoring Abilities, Free Throw Shooting

 

                Assane Sene is another prime example of the future talent on the UVA Men’s Basketball team. An extremely raw player, Sene averaged 2.7 points and 4.7 rebounds in 17.7 minutes per game. Slowed at the beginning of the season by injuries and other off the court issues Sene got off to a bad start, but as the season progressed he began to show flashes of brilliance. Sene is a force defensively in the paint. He lead the cavaliers with 34 blocks in only 26 games and his mere presence in the lane affected the offensive attack from opposing teams.  Sene’s raw athleticism allowed him to aggressively pursue, and occasionally over pursue, defenders in the paint. As he matures however I could see him developing into a Dikembe Mutombo type of defender that alters the game plan of every team he comes across.

                Sene does need to improve his play on the offensive end of the floor though. For as menacing as he is on the defensive side he is as unimpressive on the offensive end. His 2.7 points per game come mostly from put backs and whether or not this is a product of the offensive system or not he almost never gets any looks in the post. This can most likely be attributed to his size. Though 7 feet is 7 feet only having 234 pounds on your 7 foot frame makes you a giant toothpick, and this is evident in Sene’s play on the offensive end. Sene is defended rather easily by centers who are much shorter but heavier than he is and is pushed around. A summer in the weight room would go a long way to helping to establish him as a dominant force in the lane. Sene is still an extremely explosive and athletic players and he fits in quite well with the new athletic, up-tempo style this team has. He can run the floor and sky above the rim quite impressively for a man of his size. Just pack a little meat on them bones and watch the whole team benefit.

                My personal favorite part of Assane Sene is the kind of kid he is. I don’t know how many of you have been to JPJ and seen the open but he and the rest of the players are representing what college basketball should be like. Sene lives with Sylven Landesberg and the two of them together look like two regular kids. Even though everyone knows who they are they still don’t look down upon anyone. They truly embrace their roles as one of the faces of the university and I commend them, and all the players really, on that. It’s nice to see that such good kids can represent the student body and this university. Even if I’m wrong about the talent level of all these players, which I really don’t think I am, this team will at least be a good representation of UVA and something that we can be proud of.

 

On a different topic congratulations to Sylven Landesberg for being named ACC rookie of the year. He is the 4^th Cavalier to win this award and has an extremely bright future ahead of him.