EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Chris Porter-Bunton came up one rebound shy of being Austin Peay State University's third player with a double-double in its quarterfinal victory against Morehead State in the Ohio Valley Conference Men's Basketball Championship.
Considering he eclipsed the 1,000-career point mark on the night with a smooth step-back, mid-range jumper in the second half, one might think he'd be OK with missing out on that double-double.
"(Jabari McGhee) took a couple of my boards," Porter-Bunton joked after the game, as McGhee finished the night with 14 points and 16 rebounds. To the surprise of no one, Terry Taylor finished the night with 28 points and 10 rebounds.
But take a quick scan across the box score of Thursday night's contest, and it's impossible to miss the huge stat line Porter-Bunton put forth: a career-high 27 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals. However, it's the plays that don't always show up in the box score that have helped him become an invaluable piece to the roster.
In the first half, Porter-Bunton dove out of bounds on the left sideline to save a loose ball, allowing the Govs to retain possession. Not three minutes later, he sprinted into the backcourt to recover a loose ball knocked backward and headed toward a potential fast break attempt for the Eagles.
It's these hustle plays and his willingness to hit the floor for a loose ball or to take a key charge that has continued to impress head coach Matt Figger.
"It's something he's done for us for a while," Figger said. "When I got the job here, he was really the only guy that I had in my locker room that had any experience. Early on, he felt like he had to be the point and rebound guy, and he went on to become the guy who was the tough, nasty, dirty guy who was going to do all the things we needed to do to win. A lot of the things that don't get seen in the stat sheet, he's done all those things."
Figger would go on to tell an anecdote to the assembled media in the postgame press conference about the Govs' trip to Oklahoma State the season before and a certain play that stood out in his mind. Porter-Bunton, go figure, dove after a loose ball, laying out 15 feet to grab it. He secured it and threw it up for a dunk. Unfortunately called for a travel, the play still resonated with Figger.
"It was a defining moment where I could say, 'That's my dude right there,' and he's been like that the rest of the way," Figger said.
While Porter-Bunton has continued to hit the floor on a regular basis and give maximum effort on the defensive end, the senior has developed into a legitimate second scoring threat for the Governors. During the first three years of his career, he averaged 6.1 points per game, and now he's putting up 13.4 points per game in his final campaign.
That heightened scoring ability has not only allowed him to become the 37th Governor to eclipse 1,000 career points, it also came in handy in the early going as Morehead State made every effort to take Taylor away on the offensive end.
No matter. Porter-Bunton scored 13 of the Governors' first 23 points in the game.
"I just let the game come to me," Porter-Bunton said. "Coach always talks to me about, 'Don't force things, just let it come,' and I just played ball."
Early in the second half, the Govs increased their lead to as much as 22, but the Eagles sliced it down to nine with 9:35 left in the game. On the ensuing possession, Porter-Bunton took the ball in the left corner, faced up his defender, feinted toward the bucket and pulled up for three to put the Govs back up double digits.
That shot was the catalyst for a 14-5 run over the next four minutes of game time. During that run, Porter-Bunton put his versatility on full display, driving hard to the basket, drawing two defenders and kicking out to Taylor who drained a wide-open three.
With a clock stoppage in the final minute of play and the Govs comfortably ahead, Porter-Bunton came off the floor to a well-deserved standing ovation from the red-clad faithful in the Ford Center for both his effort in the game and his heart and hustle during an impressive Austin Peay career.
Don't get it wrong, Porter-Bunton understands how special the 1,000-point milestone is, but he's focused on something even bigger.
"It's an amazing feeling," Porter-Bunton said. "I got that monkey off my back. I'm just blessed, but that's just something personal. We've got a team goal and that's to keep winning and get that championship."
