University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols' Asumnu Driven By Faith
February 28, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 28, 2004
When the Tennessee players leave the locker room to walk onto the Thompson-Boling Arena floor, every one of them slaps an orange state-shaped cutout that reads "There's nothing stronger than the heart of a Volunteer."
There is, however, something stronger for Stanley Asumnu.
When he attended Westbury Christian School in Houston, his team slapped a similar sign above its door to keep the players' minds focused on not only a game, but life as well. It read "Matthew 6:33."
The Bible verse, in essence, says to put God above all and everything else will fall into place. Not a problem for Asumnu. It's always been that way for him and his family.
"When we were younger, my parents started me off in Sunday school and we went to church every Sunday," he said. "I went to a public school until my sophomore year when I transferred to a private Christian high school (Westbury). I enjoyed it."
Even Asumnu's orange and white Tennessee uniform carries a symbol of his faith. The sophomore wears No. 3 to recognize the three Bible passages he reads every day and before each basketball game - Psalms 23, Matthew 6:33 and James 4:3.
The passages have helped keep Asumnu focused while playing college basketball during his two years at Tennessee. Regular visits with sports psychologist Joe Whitney have helped, too.
Asumnu began talking with Whitney last year when he struggled on the court. He even went so far as to ditch his traditional tightly braided hair for a comfortably loose Afro against Kentucky last year and had a breakout game. The next game, against Mississippi, he hit the game-winning bucket.
He entered Tennessee as a potent scorer, but his transformation to college basketball is not yet complete.
"I've always had a scorer's mentality," Asumnu said. "I had to play a role my freshman year, and that was the hardest part because I wanted to do so much to help the team. I put pressure on myself. I'm a scorer, and I've let that get by me. I'm trying to get back to where I was before I got here. I believe I'll get back to it."
He's already shown signs of a return with his explosiveness to the basket and his ability to live life above the rim. But once the ball touches Asumnu's hands, the Rick Pitinos, Tubby Smiths and Billy Donovans are already yelling "driver." That's not a problem for Asumnu, either.
"Not really because even though they know I'm a driver, I'm still beating them to the basket," said Asumnu, who's been a defensive specialist while averaging 5.9 points. He's also been the first man off the bench nearly all season until recently edging his way into starting assignments.
"I've just got to relax a little bit," he said, hinting of an encore appearance of the Afro. "I've got to have fun and let God take care of everything."
Josh Pate
