Patrick TrautfieldWith less than half the season left, Cal Poly men’s basketball standout Dawin Whiten is looking to finish strong.
“I’m working on getting my shooting percentage up,” said Whiten, a junior shooting guard. “I am a much better shooter than what my current percentage indicates.”
Whiten has been a strong asset for the Mustangs since his freshman year starting in the backcourt.
“He brings everything to the game,” Cal Poly head coach Kevin Bromley said. “He is not just specialized in one area. Our stopper on the perimeter, he is a great on-ball defender that has become a great team defender.”
In the 2004-05 season, Whiten was named to the All-Big West Conference Freshmen Team and as a sophomore to the All-Big West second team. He averaged 11.5 points per game in those two seasons.
Whiten is tied for second on the team in scoring average this season at 10.9 points per game, helping Cal Poly to an 11-9 start. He is shooting .355 from the floor, but a solid .330 from 3-point range and .740 from the free-throw line.
Whiten leads Cal Poly in assists (2.9) and steals (1.3) per game.
As one of the team’s strongest defenders, Whiten challenges himself and his teammates to constantly improve on their skills.
“I’m looking forward to pushing my game up to the next level,” he said. “I also am trying to get more rebounds at the guard position, and stretch the gap between assists and turnovers.”
Whiten’s skills on the court developed long before his time at Cal Poly. As a member of the Monroe High basketball team, Whiten averaged 16.2 points per game his senior year.
His time at Cal Poly has allowed the recreation administration major to grow and strengthen his abilities.
Whiten is the first to admit, however, that he definitely had to develop and change his game coming into college play. After three years on the team he believes his growth is evident.
“I am more mature now,” he said. “I look to my teammates more and together we are better.”
Bromley agreed.
“He has come a long way in the maturity and teammate part of the game,” Bromley said. “His game has improved incredibly.”
Whiten has had plenty of memorable moments playing for the Mustangs, but his favorite came Jan. 20 when Cal Poly won 71-61 at UC Santa Barbara. It was the Mustangs’ first win in the Thunderdome since 1998 and only their second there since 1959.
“Whatever the game demands from him, he is ready to give,” Bromley said of Whiten. “He is an incredible young man – mature beyond his years.”
As Whiten prepares for the rest of the season, he is challenging himself and his team to reach their goal of advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the program moved to Division I in 1994.
“It’s tournament time so we have to step it up,” Whiten said.