NCAA Basketball: 10 best players from state of Louisiana of last decade

4. Mark Vital – Baylor

Not all 6’5 forwards are built the same, but this one was certainly built for success. Vital was a top 100 recruit from Lake Charles who left Louisiana to play for Scott Drew at Baylor. While his offensive stats never looked impressive, Vital was known for his impressive defensive play. He also helped the Bears win the national championship in his senior season.

After working his way into the starting lineup as a freshman, Vital had a great defensive impact for most of his career. He averaged more points than rebounds in each of his final three seasons, with career-highs in both categories as a sophomore, averaging 7.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. He had a 17-point effort in a Tourney loss to Gonzaga as a sophomore but started all six Baylor victories en route to winning the 2021 NCAA Tournament, including a 6-point, 11-rebound effort against those same Bulldogs.

Named to the Big 12 All-Defense team on three occasions, Vital was certainly the most impressive defensive piece of that title-winning team. He led the Big 12 in a myriad of categories, including steal percentage as a junior and defensive rating as a senior, starring on that side of the basketball for a team with plenty of offensive firepower. Surprisingly enough, Vital switched to football after his collegiate career and has spent time on the offseason rosters of multiple NFL teams as a tight end.