Bendall eager to hit the hardwood
Aggie coaches, teammates and fans all agree: Nate Bendall is a powerhouse of a man both on and off the court.
“Nate has a certain amount of physicality and ruggedness,” said Tarvish Felton, assistant coach for the men’s basketball team. “He brings maturity and experience to the team.”
Bendall, a senior forward for the Aggies, has been playing basketball since he was little.
“Just like everyone else, I started by playing Jr. Jazz,” he said.
However, growing up, he said soccer was the main sport in his life. It wasn’t until his sophomore year at Skyline High School that he really got into basketball.
“I didn’t eat, sleep and drink it like most the other guys up here,” he said.
Bendall said he never saw himself playing at the college level.
“I was just tall and lanky. I was a lurp.”
Like many athletes, Bendall had a high school coach that inspired and encouraged him.
“He taught me how to really appreciate and respect the game,” Bendall said. “He made me realize that playing basketball was a privilege. He made me work at it.”
Injuries have taken their toll on Bendall’s career. He missed both of USU’s tune-up games this season, and it will probably be another two weeks before Aggie fans see him on the court in a game.
Bendall has a chronic stress fracture in his foot that he is working on getting back up to a level he can play with. He started the season not practicing at all, but as the weeks go on, he is participating more. This week he was able to practice without wearing a boot on his foot.
The stress fracture is on the navicular bone, one of the bones that forms the top of the arch, in Bendall’s foot. The original fracture happened while Bendall was playing at Salt Lake Community College (SLCC), but he said that the injury been a long time in the making.
“I’ve always had flat feet. It’s a genetic thing.”
For now, Bendall said he’s just going to take it a day at a time and get back to playing.
“I’m going to be back as soon as I can and just get after it.”
“We’re nursing it back to health, but it’s very day-to-day,” Felton said. “He wants to be out (t)here, we just have to get there.”
If he’s anxious to get back onto the court, it’s because Bendall’s road to the 2010-11 season has taken many twist and turns. After high school, he came to Utah State where he completed a year of school and played basketball before serving a one-year service mission in Nauvoo, Ill. for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
When he got back, he spent the 2008-09 season at SLCC. That year, he helped lead the Bruins to win the NJCAA championship and to an overall 31-6 record. The next season, Bendall returned to Logan and the Aggies.
“I knew Coach Morrill and his reputation,” he said. “Plus, my mom got her master’s degree here, so she kind of pushed me in this direction.”
At the end of the 2009-10 season, Bendall was named to the WAC All-Newcomer team after starting all 33 games he played. This year, he was named to the preseason second team all-WAC.
Bendall said one of the things he loves most about basketball is the real-life applications it has.
“At its core, basketball teaches you that hard work gets you rewards,” he said. “It teaches you to appreciate success, form incredible bonds and friendships, and to appreciate all other aspects of your life.”
Bendall said Morrill really pushes his players in sticking to core values.
“He teaches us to work hard and to understand that things aren’t just given to us,” he said.
While many basketball players look up to an NBA player and may model the way they play after them, Bendall chooses other examples.
“The people you play against have the biggest impact on you,” he said. “You learn to model after them.”
Bendall also said it’s important to find the balance between athletics and academics.
He will graduate in May with a degree in finance and economics. Eventually he said he wants to get his MBA and get a job in the finance field.
During preparations for this season, Bendall developed an interesting perspective on the team dynamics of the sport by watching a lot more of practice.
“We have great potential, but we need to develop more than just potential,” he said. “We have great, solid men on the team, we’re just trying to find our cohesiveness.”
Finding that cohesiveness will be huge for the team, he said.
“You have to appreciate everyone for who they are both on and off the court. That brings a whole other element to the game that a lot of teams can’t beat,” he said. “If you can find the balance of off and on the court, you won’t have as many problems.”
One thing the team needs to work on is their urgency, Bendall said.
“That’s what will win us games.”
The new members of the team, such as Brockeith Pane and James Walker, are all a part of the potential the team has, Bendall said.
“They just need to get comfortable in our system,” he said. “Eventually they’ll realize they can play to Coach’s style, and still play the game they’ve always played.”
On a personal level, Bendall said one of his biggest goals for the season is to work on improving his low post defense as well as scoring.
“You can always get better on defense,” he said.
Like any other player who plays or has played in the Spectrum, Bendall said it is a magical place.
“We have the most creative student section there is. It makes it the Spectrum,” he said. “It’s something we’ll all always remember.”
Through his career, Bendall has had some great accomplishments.
“It’s tough to pick a proudest moment,” he said. “Beating BYU last year was great. Playing in the NCAA tournament was a dream come true. One of the biggest though, was winning the NJCAA championship while I was playing at SLCC.”
Once Bendall builds up the strength he needs, the coaching staff hopes to see him pick up where he left off last season.
“He’ll be another threat on the floor, and just be Nate,” Felton said.
“Nate really is the glue that holds the team together,” teammate Brady Jardine said. “He works hard and leads by example.”
– megan.allen@aggiemail.usu.edu