Maten Settling in at Georgia
November 20, 2014 | Men's Basketball
By Jack Ryan
The Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year could have stayed closer to home, but Yante Maten wanted to play his college basketball where he felt the most comfortable.
"(Georgia) felt like the best place," the 6'8" forward said. "I felt like God was telling (my mom and I) to go here. I liked the coaches and all the staff. It was just a great atmosphere. I felt like I would be my best here."
Two games into his freshman campaign, Maten is averaging 6.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game off the bench. With five blocks on the season, he may be contributing most on the defensive end, which is key for a team looking to replace the inside presence of Donte' Williams and his 136 career blocks.
After falling short against Georgia Tech on the road in the first game of the season, the Bulldogs returned to Athens for their home opener and defeated visiting Stony Brook. The win against the Seawolves was a part of the National Invitation Tournament Season Tip Off, for which Georgia will travel to New York City next week.
"The NIT is a great event. It's a historic event," said head coach Mark Fox after the win against Stony Brook. "As a coach, I treated it as though we've got to win to get to New York, even though we were going to anyway."
As the Bulldogs are preparing for their two remaining games before they meet 13th-ranked Gonzaga in New York, Maten is not stressing about the trip to the Big Apple.
"A court is a court and a ball is a ball," he said. "It's just a game. You have to take it as it is, even if it is in the biggest arena in the world. You still have to go through the fundamentals and make sure you're helping the system."
For a freshman, Maten does not seem to be too concerned about the stage that playing in Madison Square Garden presents. He is a very calm and unselfish person and it seems to translate when he is playing, as he enjoys passing more than the average forward and will do whatever it takes to help his team win.
"I think I'm fitting in pretty well," he said. "We all hang out off the court and I fit in pretty well. I come in with the mindset to always help my team out and play my best. I like to pass the ball a lot, too, for a big guy."
Doing his best to adjust to the college game's style of play, Maten is finding areas in which he can improve.
"I think I'm becoming more physical as the games go on," he said. "It's a lot different than high school, where there wasn't so much contact."
Before they head north, the Bulldogs will play two more home games at Stegeman Coliseum, with the first coming Friday against Troy at 7 p.m. On Sunday, Georgia will play host to visiting Florida Atlantic at 5 p.m.
Jack Ryan is a junior from Chatham, N.J., who is majoring in Economics. Ryan, who grew up a self-processed Notre Dame fan but is now all Bulldog, is in his third year as a student assistant with the UGA Sports Communications office.
"Coming Attractions" is a weekly feature published on georgiadogs.com spotlighting a UGA student-athlete who will be competing in a key home event during the upcoming weekend. Previous stories include:
August 28 - David Andrews (football vs. Clemson) September 4 - Carly Hamilton (cross country in Bulldog Invitational)
September 11 - Tirah Leau (volleyball in Benson Hospitality Invitational)
September 18 - Mariel Gutierrez (soccer vs. Vanderbilt)
September 25 - Toby Johnson (football vs. Tennessee)
October 2 - Emma Sonnett (soccer vs. Tennessee)
October 9 - Jared Markham (swimming & diving vs. Alabama)
October 16 - Gaby Smiley (volleyball vs. Kentucky and Tennessee)
October 23 - Bella Hartley (soccer vs. Kentucky)
October 30 - Olivia Ball & Ian Forlini (swimming & diving vs. Florida)
November 6 - Megan Spencer (volleyball vs. Arkansas)
November 13 - Kolton Houston (football vs. Auburn)
