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The Sports Xchange

OVERVIEW

Trent Plaisted earned All-Mountain West Conference honors in each of his last three seasons and was named the MWC's Freshman of the Year, in addition to garnering Freshman All-American accolades.

The Economics major went on to rank 14th in school history with 1,372 points scored. In each of his three seasons as a starter, Plaisted shot more than 52 percent from the field (52.2 percent as a redshirt freshman, 54.6 percent as a sophomore and 54.2 percent as a junior), closing out his career by making 513-of-958 field goals (53.5 percent).

At Clark High School, Plaisted earned first-team Class 5A Texas All-State honors. The McDonald's All-American nominee averaged 22.0 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2.2 blocks and 2.3 assists as his team achieved a 27-10 record his senior season and he picked up District and City MVP accolades. That year, he exploded for a career-high 43 points in a game.

As a junior, Plaisted led Clark High to the 2003 District 28-5A title and the regional quarter-finals in Texas' largest classification. He averaged 12.5 points and 5.5 rebounds as the only junior named to the All-District 28 first-team while helping his squad compile a 31-7 record.

In summer league competition, Plaisted earned MVP honors at numerous tournaments and averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds during his 2003 AAU season, playing for the San Antonio Bulls where he was given the opportunity to play more on the perimeter. Prior to his prep senior year, he was rated the 10th-best player in Texas after impressing at the Texas Elite Camp and making a national name for himself at the 2003 Kingwood Classic in Houston.

Plaisted was heavily recruited by Florida State, Stanford, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Utah, Washington State, Texas A&M, Arkansas, New Mexico, Texas Tech and Vanderbilt before deciding to enroll at Brigham Young in 2004-05. He appeared in just five games before a knee injury vs. Southern California forced him to miss the final 24 contests. Granted a medical hardship, he scored three points on 3-of-6 free throws, attempted three field goals and had eight rebounds.

In 2005-06, Plaisted earned Freshman All-American second-team honors from Scout.com and was one of only three freshman nationally to earn All-District honors, being named to the USBWA District VIII Team. He was named Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year and second-team All-MWC. He led the team in scoring with 13.6 points per game, ranking eighth in the league. He paced the Cougars with 6.9 rebounds per game, fifth in the MWC. He ranked sixth among conference players in field-goal percentage (.522) and scored in double figures in 25 of 29 games.

As a sophomore, Plaisted picked up All-MWC second-team honors. He was bothered early in the season by an ankle sprain, but averaged 12.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, both second on the team, as he helped BYU win the outright Mountain West Conference title with a 25-9 overall record. He also led the Cougars with 1.4 blocks per contest. He scored in double figures 21 times, topping the 20-point mark on six occasions, while posting three double-doubles on the year. The Cougars were 17-4 when he scored in double figures.

Plaisted received All-MWC and All-District first-team honors in 2007-08. He ranked second on the team with an average of 15.6 points per game, shooting 54.2 percent from the field. He topped the Cougars with an average of 7.7 rebounds per game, as he also blocked 34 shots, handed out 54 assists and had 15 steals, scoring in double figures in 27 contests.

After the season, Plaisted, who was married in 2007, decided to enter the 2008 NBA Draft.

"Trent has decided he wants to begin his professional career, and he feels signing with an agent gives him the best opportunity to do that," BYU coach Dave Rose said. "We wish Trent the very best as he pursues his professional career and appreciate what he has done for our program. He has been a big part of our success over the past three seasons. His departure creates opportunities for other players, and we expect them to respond very well."

ANALYSIS

Positives: Very physical playing in the paint and will get aggressive battling for boards ... Keeps the defense off-balance, as he can put the ball on the floor with his left hand, pull up and get a high release over his shoulder to elevate the ball over the outstretched arms of the defender ... Explosive jumper who knows how to use his length to extend over smaller forwards when attacking the boards ... Has the foot speed to handle action on the fast break ... Has a quick and compact shooting motion, doing a good job with his arm slot and elbow bend to see the ball feather off his fingers ... Knows how to keep defenders off balance with quick spin and pivot moves ... One of the fastest frontcourt players in the game, as he was recently timed at 4.47 in the 40-yard dash, using that speed effectively on the few times that he will bring the ball up the court and keeps defenders guessing with good head and shoulder fakes ... Has a quick drop step and will consistently reach into his "bag of tricks" (hesitation moves, pump fakes, spin moves, etc.) while showing good ability to angle to the basket, needing just the slightest of creases to fly through traffic on the way to the rim ... Stays low in his stance and has good vision, doing a nice job of getting out the pass on a fly or one bounce to an open shooter rather than try to force an ill-advised shot ... Combines speed with good strength and leaping ability to create mismatches when matched up vs. smaller opponents driving into the lane ... Does a good job of taking his man off the dribble ... Quick athlete who gets up and down the court well, showing the foot speed to cover two-type guards for a few minutes ... Deft passer who knows how to push the ball to an open target when double teamed ... His footwork and ability to widen his body gives his guards an inviting target on catch-and-shoot situations ... Does a very good job of framing the ball with his body before turning and driving on his man ... Pulls up nicely to set his feet before executing a soft floater with high elevation ... Uses his body well to gain separation from a pressing defender in order to get off a clean shot ... Also has a good feel for rebounding and position ... More comfortable with his back to the rim, but when facing the basket, he has the range to make his shot from 10-12 feet away ... With his wing span (83 inches), standing reach (8'9 1/2") and vertical jump (35 1/2 inches), he gets more than enough of a high release point when executing his mini hook shot ... Very effective post player who is very alert to the defense rotation, using his body effectively to push the opponent out of the paint.

Negatives: Despite his quickness, he is not built like an NBA center and will have to move to the four spot at the next level, where he will still need to bulk up ... Seems very reluctant to take shots from the perimeter and while he is good at drawing contact, he does not show the same arm positioning and release point when attempting free throws, making them at just a 54.7 percent success rate ... Not the type that can consistently finish after contact and with his poor free-throw shooting, he could be a major liability at the charity stripe ... Poor perimeter defender, does not always face up to the shooter and quicker guards have good success weaving past him ... Has an aggressive attitude toward smaller opponents, but will quickly bounce out of the paint if a more physical forward starts attacking him (will back away from contact) ... Needs to improve his strength and maintain his focus better on the court, but does have decent basketball IQ (disappears and coasts for long stretches) ... Good passer, but does put the ball on the floor too long and must be more alert to thieves when getting into the lanes to cut down on his high turnovers ... Must harness his aggression, gets his hands too out of control, resulting in a high amount of hacking charges ... Needs to do a better job of distributing the ball away from the defender rather than challenging the man to attack it.

Compares To: CHANNING FRYE-Portland ... Plaisted will be moving to power forward at the next level, where his quickness and wingspan should give him an advantage. He is still a work in progress with his face-the-basket game, but has very good footwork running the floor and good touch working around the rim. He will back off from physical contact by the bigger frontcourt types and needs to improve his focus, as he does disappear for long stretches. He is a marginal perimeter defender considering his length, foot speed and lateral quickness. He is poor finishing after contact and opponents will want him at the line. If he returned to school, developed anything resembling an outside game and bulked up, he could have been a first-round pick in 2009. This year, he appears to be a second-round target.

CAREER NOTES

Ranks 14th in school history with 1,372 points scored (13.3 per game), hitting on 513-of-958 field goals (53.5 percent) and 346-of-633 free throws (54.7 percent) ... Totaled 686 rebounds (6.7 per game), with 123 assists (1.2 per game), 42 steals (0.4 per game) and 107 blocked shots (1.0 per game) in 103 games ... Had 213 turnovers and 301 personal fouls.

2007-08 SEASON

All-Mountain West Conference first-team selection ... Added All-District VII first-team honors from the USBWA and NABC All-District XIII accolades ... Named MWC Player of the Week three times and was a Las Vegas Invitational All-Tournament Team pick ... The team captain started all 35 games, as the power forward/center ranked second on the squad in scoring with 545 points (15.6 per game) ... Made 54.2 percent of his field goals (202-of-373) and 54.2 percent of his free throws (141-of-260), but did not attempt any 3-point shots ... Grabbed a team-high 269 rebounds (7.7 per game), with 75 offensive boards ... Handed out 54 assists (1.5 per game), as he collected 15 steals (0.4 per game) and 34 blocked shots (1.0 per game) ... Had a career-high 84 turnovers and was charged with 82 personal fouls, fouling out of one game ... Scored in double figures in 10 conference games and scored 20 or more points in seven games, including six of the last nine outings ... Grabbed double-digit rebounds in five games while recording a team-leading four double-double games ... Led BYU in scoring seven times, rebounding five times, steals four times and blocked shots five times.

2007-08 GAME ANALYSIS

Recorded 13 points, five rebounds and two assists in 29 minutes vs. Texas A&M in the NCAA Tournament...Contributed 19 points, three rebounds, two blocks and one assist vs. San Diego State in the MWC Tournament semifinals...Tallied 11 points, three assists, two rebounds, two blocks and one steal vs. Colorado State in the MWC Tournament quarterfinals...Posted his eighth double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds while adding two steals, one block and one assist vs. Wyoming...Went 7-for-11 from the field to score 20 points vs. Air Force and scored 23 points, including 17 after halftime, while posting six rebounds and five blocks in 35 minutes at New Mexico...Drained two free throws with five seconds left in overtime to give BYU the 70-69 win...Scored 22 points vs. Nevada-Las Vegas while adding seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block in 29 minutes...Went 9-for-9 from the field to score 21 points at Colorado State while adding five rebounds and one steal in 22 minutes despite being limited by foul trouble...Tied his career high with 27 points vs. Texas Christian on 10-for-14 shooting from the field and a 7-for-9 mark from the free-throw line, as he recorded a season-high 17 first-half points...Posted his seventh double-double with 17 points and 10 boards at Wyoming, as he went 7-for-11 from the free-throw line...Added nine points and 10 rebounds in 19 minutes at Air Force despite battling illness that almost kept him out of the game...Had his second straight double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds vs. New Mexico...Made his 14th career double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds vs. San Diego State while tallying two blocks, one steal and one assist in 33 minutes, scoring the first six points of the second half to turn a 27-28 deficit into a 33-28 Cougar lead...Scored a season-high 25 points on 11-for-15 shooting vs. Colorado State, tying his career high in field goals made while adding 5 rebounds...Contributed 12 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal in 23 minutes vs. Loyola Marymount...Had a team-high 9 rebounds with 12 points and 2 assists in 32 minutes at Boise State...Added a game-high 9 rebounds with 11 points, 2 blocks and 1 assist in 24 minutes vs. Southern Utah ... Tied his career high with 18 rebounds vs. Pepperdine to go along with 2 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals in 33 minutes...Contributed 22 points on 7-for-10 shooting from the field while adding 7 rebounds and tying his career high with 5 assists in 27 minutes vs. Lamar...Became just the 37th Cougar in program history to score at least 1,000 career points with a bucket at the 14:10 mark in the second half, as he led BYU with 17 points on 7-for-13 shooting from the field while recording a team-high 8 rebounds in 37 minutes vs. Michigan State...Had an outstanding defensive game vs. Weber State, tallying 15 rebounds, including 12 on the defensive end, and 5 blocks while contributing 14 points and 2 assists in 26 minutes...Continued his double-figure scoring streak with 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field at Portland to go along with a team-high 8 rebounds and 2 assists in 26 minutes...Earned high praise from ESPN analyst Dick Vitale and North Carolina head coach Roy Williams as he posted game highs of 24 points and 17 rebounds vs. the top-ranked Tar Heels while adding a team-best 2 assists and 1 steal in 36 minutes, as he scored eight of BYU's first 10 second-half points during a 13-4 Cougar run that gave BYU the lead...Topped the 20-point mark for the second time this season with 21 points vs. Louisville, going 10-for-16 from the field while pulling down 12 rebounds to record his first double-double of the season...Tied his career highs with 8 free-throws made and five assists while recording 16 points and 7 rebounds in 26 minutes vs. Hartford...Scored a season-high 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the floor and 5-of-6 accuracy from the line in 19 minutes vs. Jackson State...Totaled 17 points vs. Idaho State on 5-for-9 shooting from the field and a 7-for-8 mark from the free-throw line while adding eight rebounds and one assist in 28 minutes...Posted 12 points, two assists and one rebound in 19 minutes at Long Beach State.

2006-07 SEASON

All-MWC second-team selection, adding MWC All-Tournament honors ... Member of the BYU Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team ... Bothered early in the season by an ankle sprain that forced him to miss most of the Idaho State clash ... Averaged 12.6 points (430) and 6.2 rebounds (210) per game, both second on the team, and helped BYU win the outright Mountain West Conference title with a 25-9 overall record...Led the Cougars with 1.4 blocks per contest (46)...Scored in double figures 21 times, topping the 20-point mark on six occasions, while posting three double-doubles on the year...Led the Cougars in rebounding 12 times, scoring eight times and assists twice...The team compiled a 17-4 record when he scored in double figures...Also credited with 56 turnovers, 40 assists (1.2 per game) and 15 steals (0.4 per game).

2006-07 GAME ANALYSIS

Scored nine points while adding five rebounds, one assist and one block in 28 minutes vs. Xavier in the NCAA Tournament...Posted seven points, three rebounds and two assists in 34 minutes at UNLV in the MWC Tournament Championship game...Tied his career high with 27 points, the third-most in BYU MWC Tournament history, on 10-for-13 shooting from the field while posting his third double-double of the year with 10 rebounds vs. Wyoming in the MWC Tournament...Led all scorers with 22 points on 9-for-12 shooting from the field vs. TCU in the MWC Tournament quarterfinals while coming one rebound away from a double-double with nine boards and adding two blocks in 31 minutes...Scored 13 points vs. Utah to go along with three rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 22 minutes...Posted 10 points, five rebounds, three blocks and 1 steal in 36 minutes at Air Force...Tallied 10 points, three rebounds, one block and one steal in 25 minutes at San Diego State...Recorded eight points, two rebounds and one steal in 37 minutes vs. Colorado State...Scored 14 points on 6-for-9 shooting in 28 minutes vs. New Mexico to go along with seven rebounds, one assist and two blocks...Had 11 points and four rebounds at TCU, despite playing only 17 minutes due to foul trouble...Recorded 13 points, a team-high seven rebounds and one assist in 34 minutes at Wyoming...Came one rebound away from a double-double with 11 points and a game-high nine rebounds vs. Nevada-Las Vegas while adding two assists and two blocks in 34 minutes...Had nine points on 4-for-6 shooting from the floor, two rebounds, one assist and one steal despite playing just 19 minutes at Utah due to foul trouble...Scored a game-high 22 points vs. Air Force on 9-for-12 shooting from the field while adding seven rebounds, one assist and one block in 36 minutes, as he drained two free throws with 35 seconds remaining to give BYU a 56-51 lead...Posted 11 points, 4 rebounds, three assists and one block in 24 minutes at New Mexico...Set career highs with 27 points, 11 field goals made and 16 field goals attempted at Colorado State, as he also added 4 rebounds, two blocks and one steal in 30 minutes while recording 4 dunks...Posted 15 points, five rebounds, one block and one steal in 33 minutes vs. Wyoming...Had 13 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks in 37 minutes at Nevada-Las Vegas...Produced 13 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist and a career-high 6 blocked shots in 30 minutes vs. San Diego State...Had 9 boards, a career-high 5 assists, 6 points, 1 block and 1 steal in 29 minutes vs. Seton Hall...Averaged 9.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 1.7 assists during the BYU Holiday Classic...Had a second double-double vs. Oral Roberts with 12 points and 11 rebounds...Came 1 board away from another double-double vs. Liberty as he contributed 11 points and 9 boards... Grabbed a game-high 8 rebounds with 6 points, three assists, two blocks and one steal in 19 minutes vs. Western Oregon...Posted a game-high 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field to go along with 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks and 1 steal in 36 minutes vs. Utah State...Scored a career-high 23 points vs. Michigan State, making his first eight shots from the field and marking the first time in his career he has recorded 20+ points in back-to-back outings, while posting a team-high 7 rebounds in a 37 minutes of action...Broke out for 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting vs. San Jose State while adding a team-leading 8 boards despite being hampered by early foul trouble...Contributed nine points, six rebounds and two assists at Weber State...Scored eight points while grabbing four rebounds and dishing out 1 assist in 27 minutes at Boise State while being hampered by foul trouble...Returned to the starting lineup with a game-high 19 points and 12 rebounds while adding two steals and one assist vs. Southern Utah, as he made 9 field goals while going 9-for-12 from the floor in 27 minutes...Did not start while nursing an ankle injury vs. Portland, scoring six points with four rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench...Posted six points, five rebounds and two blocks vs. Idaho State but was hobbled by an ankle injury suffered early in the game...Contributed seven points and a team-high four rebounds at UCLA despite being constantly double-teamed.

2005-06 SEASON

Scout.com Freshman All-American second-team selection, adding USBWA All-District VIII honors ... Named MWC Freshman of the Year and All-MWC second-team ... Chosen National Freshman of the Week (three times; Dick Vitale, CBS.Sportsline, Rivals.com) ... Led the team in scoring with 394 points (13.6 per game), eighth in the MWC, and rebounding with 199 (6.9 per game, fifth in the league)...Ranked sixth among MWC players in field goal percentage (.522)...Scored in double figures in 25 of 29 games and led BYU in scoring in 10 games, as the Cougars were 19-6 when he scored in double figures and 1-3 when he did not.

2004-05 SEASON

Granted a medical hardship after seeing limited action in five of the team's first six games before a knee injury would sideline him for the final 24 contests ... Scored three points on 3-of-6 free throws, missing all three field goal tries ... Added one assist and eight rebounds.

INJURY REPORT

2004-05: A knee injury suffered vs. Southern California (12/04) would sideline him for the final 24 games. 2006-07: Missed a good portion of the Idaho State game (11/18) with an ankle sprain.

SUMMER BASKETBALL

Earned MVP honors at numerous tournaments and averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds during his 2003 AAU season, playing for the San Antonio Bulls where he was given the opportunity to play more on the perimeter ... Prior to his prep senior year, he was rated the 10th-best player in Texas after impressing at the Texas Elite Camp and making a national name for himself at the 2003 Kingwood Classic in Houston.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Clark (San Antonio, Texas) High School, earning first-team Class 5A Texas All-State honors ... The McDonald's All-American nominee averaged 22.0 points, 2.2 blocks, 10.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists as his team achieved a 27-10 record his senior season ... Picked up District and City MVP accolades ... That year, he scored a career-high 43 points in one game ... As a junior, Plaisted led Clark High to the 2003 District 28-5A title and regional quarterfinals, as he averaged 12.5 points and 5.5 rebounds as the only junior named to the All-District 28 first-team while helping his squad compile a 31-7 record.

PERSONAL

Economics major ... Married in the summer of 2007, wife's name is Lacey ... Youngest of five children of Sherry and John Plaisted...Born 10/01/86 ... Resides in San Antonio, Texas.