NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Arizona of last decade
By Joey Loose
3. Brandon Clarke – San Jose State / Gonzaga
Born in Vancouver, Clarke and his family moved to Phoenix when he was very young, and the young forward starred in the state at the high school level. Clarke found his way into the college game at San Jose State in 2015, spending a pair of seasons with the Spartans before transferring to Gonzaga for this third and final season. He may have only had a couple of impact seasons, but they were unforgettable for both schools.
The MWC Sixth Man of the Year in 2016, Clarke’s contributions at San Jose State were impactful, working his way into a starting and starring role in his sophomore year. He’d average 17.3 points and 8.7 rebounds per game for the Spartans, leading the Mountain West in field goal percentage.
After sitting out the next season, Clarke headed to Gonzaga and become a vital piece on a Bulldogs squad that won 33 games and made the Elite Eight, averaging 16.9 points and 8.6 rebounds per game and leading the nation in blocks. Among those performances was a career-high 36 points against Baylor in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Clarke was named WCC Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and was an obvious choice for the All-WCC First Team. He was among the top players in the country, not just the WCC, and his impact at Gonzaga was certainly felt on a team that also had Rui Hachimura and Zach Norvell. After the season, Clarke was drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft and has been a member of the Memphis Grizzlies for the last three seasons.
Had he stayed for his final season, he likely would have been a favorite to be an All-American, but he did some pretty incredible things in the brief time he had in the college game.