Busting Brackets
Fansided

Big West Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

By Joey Loose

Mar 14, 2019; Anaheim, CA, USA;Cal State Northridge Matadors forward Lamine Diane (35) lets out a yell after scoring past UC Santa Barbara Gauchos forward Amadou Sow (12) and guard Ar'Mond Davis (1) during the first half of the quarterfinals of the Big West conference tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 14, 2019; Anaheim, CA, USA;Cal State Northridge Matadors forward Lamine Diane (35) lets out a yell after scoring past UC Santa Barbara Gauchos forward Amadou Sow (12) and guard Ar'Mond Davis (1) during the first half of the quarterfinals of the Big West conference tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
17 of 26
Next
Big West Basketball UCLA Bruins guard Jules Bernard (1) and Long Beach State 49ers guard Colin Slater Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Big West Basketball UCLA Bruins guard Jules Bernard (1) and Long Beach State 49ers guard Colin Slater Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

10. Colin Slater

It was a long and winding road for Slater, a 6’1 combo guard from New Orleans who actually stayed at home and played for Tulane at the start of his career. He was just a bench piece with a limited role with the Green Wave back when Mike Dunleavy was head coach and decided to transfer in 2018. After sitting out the next season, he was on court for Long Beach State for the next three years.

As a junior in the season eventually stopped by the pandemic, Slater averaged 10.2 points per game and found his footing with the Beach. He would opt out of the beginning of his senior season due to the pandemic, but did come back late and played a handful of games. His fifth and final collegiate campaign featured a big bounce back, averaging 14.4 points per game and leading Long Beach State to a Big West regular season title. Despite a career-high 30-point effort in a win over UC Santa Barbara in the conference tournament, Slater settled for the NIT to finish things off.

Slater may have put down better numbers overall had he spent more than two full seasons as a starter, but that last season was pretty sweet. He was not just the league’s top 3-point shooter and one of its leading scorers, he was also named Big West Player of the Year and earned All-Tournament honors as well. There is no question that Slater was vital in that regular season crown for the Beach and his role in the backcourt was missed last season.