The Houston St. John's varsity boys basketball coach, who doubles as the high school golf coach, said he is excited that Gyasi is playing in the closest region to Houston, because he wants to see him play. Reed added that he was very happy for the Penn State team, and especially Gyasi, someone he considers a son.
"I'm extremely proud of Gyasi and what he's accomplished," Reed said.
"He really is an amazing young man and when I say that I mean a complete young man, not just a complete basketball player."
Cline-Heard, who has been tagged a late-bloomer in basketball, came to Penn State a year younger than most freshmen. Reed said that Cline-Heard's mother, who is very loving and protective, was more concerned with his progression as a person, rather than just a basketball player. Now, playing in New Orleans under the Superdome lights in his first NCAA Tournament, Reed couldn't be happier for Gyasi.
"He's just a special kid," he said. "I've been working with him since seventh grade. He grew more and more every year as a basketball player and a person. He has an unbelievably kind heart and he doesn't have some of the trappings of other athletes."
Cline-Heard is a lot more than just a basketball player. He writes poetry, tends to his dog and has even put together a couple Web sites with information about him and his life. Rarely does he talk about being a Penn State basketball player in his poems.
In the beginning of one of Gyasi's poems, he writes; "I don't know what I want, but unlike some of you, I know what to do about it."
All season long, Gyasi has been the model of consistency, scoring and rebounding fr the Lions.
His offense, and especially his free throw shooting, has improved tremendously in his senior year after working all summer, including a trip to Hawaii to attend the Pete Newell Big Man Camp, where Cline-Heard was matched up against some of the top big men in the nation. The Stanford twins, Jason and Jarron Collins and Iowa's big inside monster Reggie Evans headlined the camp, but Cline-Heard held his own the entire week.
Reed said Gyasi has been receiving loads of media attention on the radio about coming back down south for the NCAA Tournament. For Cline-Heard, an NCAA Tournament was expected. A trip so close to home is just icing on the cake.
"I was secretly hoping we were going to go to New Orleans," an excited Cline-Heard said on Selection Sunday. "I have so many people coming."
When Cline-Heard matches up with Karim Shabazz Friday night, the 6-foot-9 forward will be matched up against a 7-foot-2 tower. Shabazz will be the only player on either team with NCAA Tournament experience. As a freshman at Florida State, before he transferred north to Providence, Shabazz knows the extra effort and intensity that comes along with the urgency of the tournament structure — lose and go home.
"This is a kid that has nothing but upside," Reed said. "With him, the sky is the limit. He has the ability to jump, he's got great hands and he's got his head on square."
But on Friday night, Cline-Heard will have no one believing that he can stop Shabazz. Hardly any of the so-called experts think Penn State can beat Providence.
Just the way Gyasi would want it.
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