Max Abmas
Abmas with Oral Roberts in 2020
No. 3 – Texas Longhorns
PositionPoint guard / shooting guard
LeagueBig 12 Conference
Personal information
Born (2001-04-02) April 2, 2001 (age 22)
Rockwall, Texas, U. S.
Listed height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High schoolJesuit Dallas
(Dallas, Texas)
College
Career highlights and awards

Maxwell Abmas (/ˈeɪsməs/ AYSS-məss;[1] born April 2, 2001) is an American college basketball player for the Texas Longhorns of the Big 12 Conference. He previously played for four seasons at Oral Roberts.

High school career

Abmas attended Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas.[2] He joined the varsity team in his sophomore season.[3] As a senior, he averaged 19.1 points and 3.7 assists per game.[4] He was named District 9-6A co-MVP.[5] Abmas competed for 3-D Sports on the Amateur Athletic Union circuit.[6] He was lightly recruited and committed to playing college basketball for Oral Roberts over offers from Army, Navy, Air Force and Marist.[7]

College career

As a freshman at Oral Roberts, he was a regular starter and averaged 14.4 points, earning Summit League All-Newcomer Team honors.[8][9] On December 8, 2020, he recorded 36 points, nine assists and six rebounds in an 83–78 loss to Oklahoma State.[10] On February 13, 2021, Abmas scored a career-high 42 points in a 103–86 win over South Dakota State.[11] Two days later, he was named Lou Henson National Mid-Major Player of the Week.[12] On February 27, Abmas scored 41 points in an 85–81 victory over Western Illinois.[13]

At the close of the 2020–21 season, Abmas was named the Summit League Player of the Year and first-team all-conference.[14] He helped his team win the Summit League tournament, where he was named MVP, and earn an NCAA tournament berth.[15] In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, he led 15th-seeded Oral Roberts to a 75–72 upset win over second-seeded Ohio State in overtime, scoring 29 points.[16] In the second round, Abmas scored 26 points to help upset seventh-seeded Florida, 81–78.[17] In the Sweet 16, Abmas scored 25 points in a 72–70 loss to Arkansas.[18] With this performance, Abmas became the first player to score at least 25 points in each of the first three rounds at a single tournament since Stephen Curry at the 2008 NCAA tournament.[19] His play at the tournament has led many to draw comparisons between him and both Curry and Jimmer Fredette. On May 9, 2021, he declared for the 2021 NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility.[20] He withdrew from the draft on the day of the deadline.

As a junior, Abmas was named to the First Team All-Summit League.[21]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
* Led NCAA Division I

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Oral Roberts 31 31 29.5 .411 .366 .830 2.2 1.4 1.0 .2 14.4
2020–21 Oral Roberts 28 28 37.0 .477 .429 .890 3.2 3.8 1.5 .2 24.5*
2021–22 Oral Roberts 30 30 36.8 .422 .389 .850 3.4 3.7 1.0 .1 22.8
2022–23 Oral Roberts 34 34 36.0 .436 .373 .919 4.4 4.0 1.1 .2 21.9
Career 123 123 34.8 .437 .388 .883 3.3 3.2 1.1 .2 20.8

See also

References

  1. ^ Javad, Jonah (March 25, 2021). "Remember the name: Dallas Jesuit star Max Abmas leading Oral Roberts to historic March Madness run". WFAA8.
  2. ^ Haisten, Bill (January 7, 2021). "Max Abmas is a Golden Eagle guard defined by dazzling creativity". Tulsa World. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  3. ^ "Max Abmas - 2020-21 - Men's Basketball". Oral Roberts University. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  4. ^ Corrales, Jack (March 4, 2019). "Varsity Basketball's Playoff Run Comes to an End as Comeback Falls Short". Jesuit Roundup. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  5. ^ Welch, Matt (March 2, 2019). "Boys Basketball: Allen's Stevens, Jesuit's Abmas split MVP nod in 9-6A all-district team". Allen American. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  6. ^ Blum, Sam (March 26, 2021). "How Jesuit's Max Abmas went from overlooked prep star to this year's NCAA Tournament darling". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  7. ^ Beard, Aaron (March 18, 2021). "Abmas leads crop of potential mid-major NCAA bracket busters". Associated Press. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  8. ^ Jorgenson, Todd (December 1, 2020). "Ex-Jesuit Sharpshooter Making Immediate Impact at ORU". People Newspapers. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  9. ^ Gregory, Dekota (November 6, 2019). "ORU at OSU: Freshman Max Abmas emerges on team full of veterans". Tulsa World. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  10. ^ "Cade Cunningham's late offensive outburst keeps Oklahoma State unbeaten against Oral Roberts". The Dallas Morning News. Associated Press. December 8, 2020. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  11. ^ Lewis, Barry (February 13, 2021). "Max Abmas scores career-high 42 to lead ORU past Jackrabbits". Tulsa World. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  12. ^ "ORU's Max Abmas named national player of the week and Summit League player of the week". Tulsa World. February 15, 2021. Retrieved February 23, 2021.
  13. ^ Lewis, Barry (February 27, 2021). "Max Abmas takes NCAA scoring lead, rallies ORU past Leathernecks". Tulsa World. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
  14. ^ "Oral Roberts' Abmas collects #SummitMBB Player of the Year honors" (Press release). Summit League. March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  15. ^ Zimmer, Matt (March 9, 2021). "Oral Roberts survives NDSU rally, wins Summit League men's tournament". Argus Leader. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  16. ^ Hoyt, Joseph (March 19, 2021). "Oral Roberts stuns Ohio State in first round, but the win was no surprise to Max Abmas' former Jesuit coach". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  17. ^ "Sweet 16 bound: Ex-Jesuit star Max Abmas helps Oral Roberts knock off Florida 81-78". The Dallas Morning News. Associated Press. March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2021.
  18. ^ "ESPN - Oral Roberts vs. Arkansas".
  19. ^ SportsCenter [@SportsCenter] (March 28, 2021). "Max Abmas is the first player since Steph Curry in 2008 to score 25 points in each of his first three #NCAATournament games. Put himself on the map 👏 @ORUMBB https://t.co/ePLsoKBBXX" (Tweet). Archived from the original on March 28, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2022 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ "Oral Roberts men's basketball sophomore Max Abmas enters NBA draft, but keeps eligibility". ESPN. May 9, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
  21. ^ "SDSU's Scheierman tabbed #SummitMBB Player of the Year" (Press release). Summit League. March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.

External links

Summit League Men's Basketball Player of the Year
NCAA Division I men's basketball season scoring leaders
Lou Henson Award winners
Categories