ShanQuan Hemphill burst onto the national college basketball stage in a big way last week in Green Bay’s 83-72 loss at Oregon.
The 6’6” junior college transfer from Gary, Indiana threw down a thunderous dunk putting Oregon’s 6’9” forward Kenny Wooten on poster and creating a viral clip that was shared across social media and made an appearance on that night’s SportsCenter Top Ten list.
“That was an unbelievable dunk,” head coach Linc Darner said Tuesday night on the Green Bay Basketball Coaches Show on WDUZ.
The extremely athletic Hemphill has already provided several highlight reel dunks so far this year and we are only six games into the young season. But beyond dunks the junior forward has been a consistent contributor on both sides of the floor this season for a team that is looking for dependable production.
Hemphill is currently third on the Phoenix in both scoring and rebounding at 12.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. He has started all six of Green Bay’s games so far this season and ranks second on the team in minutes behind only first team All-Horizon senior Sandy Cohen.
He’s an efficient scorer that can get to the rim. He currently boasts the Horizon League’s fourth best field goal percentage shooting 55.4% from the floor thanks to nearly 68% of his shots being taken at the rim, according to Hoop-Math.com. He is also getting to the free throw line but has struggled to convert so far, making just 38.7% of his attempts to date.
“He’s a difficult matchup for teams because of his athletic ability and how quick he can get to the rim and how quick he can jump,” Darner said.
Photo via @gbphoenixmbb
Hemphill has also been one of Green Bay’s best and most versatile defensive players this season. He drew the assignment of guarding 7’2” Bol Bol against Oregon last week and will continue to matchup with taller players this season, especially when the Phoenix opt for a smaller lineup.
“Those are things he’s going to have to do,” Darner said. “He’s going to have to go guard 6’7”, 6’8” guys.”
Green Bay will need continued production from Hemphill, especially this week with two tough mid-major teams coming to the Resch Center starting with Northern Illinois on Wednesday night. Belmont, which is 5-0 and currently ranked #3 on this week’s Mid-Major Top 25, comes to the Resch Center on Saturday afternoon.
“It’ll be two great tests for us,” Darner said. “These are probably two as good of teams that we’ve played non-league that aren’t a Power Five team since I’ve been here.”
Categories: By The Numbers
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