Appreciating Koby McEwen

Sometimes, optimistic expectations get the best of us.

Koby McEwen is only a sophomore, yet it feels as if we expect perfection out of his play. Every drive is analyzed and critiqued. Every 3-point attempt is scrutinized. Every pass, every foul, every dribble. At times this season, McEwen’s play has perhaps warranted some of that criticism. Failing to score a point versus Utah and managing only seven at San Jose State come to mind as low points in his season.

But low points should be afforded to sophomores. Basketball is a difficult game, especially at the Division I level, and honing your abilities on the court is going to take years to accomplish. Expecting perfection from a sophomore is entirely unfair.

We should be celebrating McEwen’s awesomeness vastly more than we should be nitpicking his faults, especially considering the audacity of his awesomeness.

On Wednesday afternoon in Las Vegas, McEwen finished the game with 25 points, six rebounds and four assists while shooting over 44 percent from the field. That type of game has been recorded only 211 times in DI basketball this season before Wednesday. That may not sound impressive on the surface, but considering there are 353 teams in DI and each has played approximately 30 games this season, its impressiveness is blatant.

He’s also done it twice this season.

Sophomores are not supposed to be as productive as McEwen already is right now. What we’re seeing at Utah State is remarkable, especially when you remember fellow sophomore Sam Merrill’s success this season, too.

Are we taking McEwen’s success for granted? Does us expecting greatness from him every game blind us to the greatness he does provide? I don’t know, but I do know that this is a very special player who will be remembered forever in Aggie history.

We might have two more years to watch McEwen in an Aggie uniform. Let’s enjoy every minute of it.