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Date Posted: 09:10:51 02/23/02 Sat
Author: Jon Ralston
Subject: Mike Preston Article

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Originally Published Saturday, February 23, 2002
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Scholar and a center

By Bob Highfill

Record Staff Writer

RIVERSIDE -- When Mike Preston is old and gray, he can look back on his days at University of the Pacific with pride, knowing he didn't cheat himself.

Preston has been a mainstay in the middle for the Tigers for three-plus seasons and has set himself up for the rest of his life by taking academics as seriously as basketball.

The 6-foot-9 native of Omaha, Neb., received a District VIII All-Academic honor Thursday. He's the first men's basketball player from Pacific to receive the award since Dell Demps in 1992.

"To earn that award, number one, you have to be a great student, and Mike is a great student," Pacific coach Bob Thomason said. "Number two, you have to be a good basketball player, and he is. Then, you add the type of person he is. He is a true student-athlete."

Preston will earn a business degree this spring, then work for his father's real estate investment company in Omaha while he works on an MBA at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. In August, he'll marry his high school sweetheart, Lisa Luebbert.

"It takes a lot of work to be a basketball player, and this award just shows how hard I work off the court," Preston said. "There's always the dumb jock stereotype, but some of us work hard off the court, and it's nice to be recognized for that."

Preston also has earned recognition from his coaches and teammates for his play, especially in the last two games against taller opponents. Preston more than handled himself against 7-footer Adam Parada of UC Irvine last Saturday, and he did the same against 6-11 center Babacar Camara of Cal State Fullerton on Thursday. The Tigers (16-9, 8-7 Big West) won both and will try to extend their winning streak to three overall and two on the road against UC Riverside (8-15, 5-10) at 7:10 p.m. today.

"Mike did a great job against those guys," Thomason said. "When he uses his size and strength and smarts, and when he's big and aggressive and active, he plays his best."

Preston turned in one of his best performances this season Thursday. He scored 17 points, one fewer than his career high, on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor and 9-of-11 from the line. He grabbed five rebounds, including two on offense, and didn't commit a turnover in 31 minutes.

His counterpart, Camara, had two points and one rebound in 28 minutes.

"My defense has improved (this season), but I'm getting a lot of help from the guards doubling down," said Preston, whose assignment tonight will be 6-8 center Vili Morton, the conference leader in field-goal percentage, rebounds and blocked shots. "It's a lot harder to score against two players than one, so I have to give a lot of credit to the guards."

Thomason has witnessed improvement in another area, too.

"He's come a long way as far as his basketball IQ," Thomason said. "He's a very intelligent player."

Preston averages 8.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. His 78.6 free throw percentage is fifth in the conference. He has started all 25 games this season and scored in double figures 10 times. Preston said defense will determine the Tigers' success the remainder of the season.

"Hopefully, our defensive intensity will carry over," he said. "We did it against UC Irvine, and we did (Thursday night). Hopefully, we can maintain that intensity on the road."

* To reach reporter Bob Highfill, phone 546-8299 or e-mail bhighfil@recordnet.com

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