By Paul Casey Gotham
The ball glanced off the rim and came to rest, as it has so many times before, in the firm grasp of Greg Logins.
No time to pause or reflect, the senior forward moved on to the next play. He pivoted and started the Golden Griffins in transition.
Seconds later, Alshwan Hymes took the outlet pass and advanced the ball to Ashton Khan for a layup in transition.
Logins played the remaining eleven-plus minutes of the first half against Marist Red Foxes on February fourth. It was not until he returned to the locker room between halves that he could take the time to think about his accomplishment.
With the rebound, his second of the game, Logins eclipsed 700 for his career. Having scored his 1,000th point earlier this season he became one of five Golden Griffins to reach both plateaus.
“It means a lot,” Logins reflected. “Not many people can say that. It’s a good accomplishment.”
The Sodus, New York native notched career-point 1,000 with a 17-point output in an 86-74 loss at Northwestern State. He led a trio of Griffs to that plateau this season. Julius Coles (1,201) and Elton Frazier (1,006) joined Logins, and the teammates became the first in school history to surpass the 1,000 point mark in the same season.
Logins has also been part of the most impressive glass cleaners in the 108-year history of Canisius basketball. Frazier (581), Logins and fellow senior, Tomas Vazquez-Simmons (693) rank as the most prolific rebounding trio on Main Street in Buffalo, New York.
Logins stands alone as the active leader with 11 career double-doubles. His most recent came on January 28th when he scored 14 and grabbed 11 to lead Canisius over Niagara 69-54 at the Koessler Athletic Center.
“It is amazing,” Canisius coach Tom Parrotta commented. “Those are pretty staggering numbers. He’s logged a lot of games and a lot minutes.He’s one of those kids that is focused. As soon as he stepped on campus, he was locked in on being successful.”
Make no mistake. The senior captain’s contributions extend beyond his his gaudy statistics.
Despite those prolific numbers and starting 26 games in each of his freshman and sophomore seasons, Logins came off the bench for 16 games his junior year and did the same for the first seven contests this season.
The change of status might have discouraged other players. Logins took it in stride.
“It didn’t mean too much,” Logins commented about coming off the bench. “I knew I would be needed. I wanted to be ready to help my team when I was called upon.”
“If I called him right now and told him we were going to run seven miles in our bare feet,” Parrotta added. “He wouldn’t ask why. He would do it.”
Logins put an exclamation point on his time spent at the Koessler Athletic Center scoring 23 of his game-high 26 points in the second half as the Canisius pounded the Loyola Greyhounds 75-58 . The senior forward hit seven of his career-high eight treys after the break in his final 20 minutes of action on the hardwood of the KAC.
After the game, Logins deflected any praise to his teammates.
“My teammates said if you’re open, shoot it. We’re going to find you. That’s what they did. Every time they passed the ball, I just got my feet set and knocked it down.”
“I don’t want to coach against Mr.Logins anymore,” Loyola head coach Jimmy Patsos joked. “Great effort by him. I’m happy for him. He’s always been a classy kid. He keeps you awake at night. When he’s hot, he’s hot.”
With the win, Canisius clinched a bye in this weekend’s Metro-Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament. It is the first time since 1999 that the Blue and Gold has earned a first round pass.
In 122 games wearing the Blue and Gold, Logins has accounted for 1,257 points (10.3 per game) and 752 boards (6.2). He leads the MAAC hitting 47.3 percent (26-55) from behind the arc. His 136 3-point field goals tie him for seventh all-time in school history.
Logins joins Michael Meeks (1992-96 with 1,872 points and 838 rebounds), Craig Wise (1991-95 – 1,799 and 784. Hank Nowak (1954-57 – 1,449 and 880) and Darren Fenn (1997-01 – 1,414 with 852).
Meeks was inducted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame (first ballot) in 2006. He still plays professionally for BG Gottingen in Gottingen, Niedersachsen. BG Gottinger plays in Germany’s top league. Meeks second all-time Canadian scorer in NCAA history.
Wise set a school record with 32 points in the NIT semifinal game against Virginia Tech in 1995 – the most points by a Griff in a postseason game. He was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2005.
Nowak is school’s career leader in rebounds, a mark he achieved in just three years. Nicknamed “Hammerin’ Hank” for his aggressive play, Nowak avearaged more than 19 points in nine NCAA tournament between 1955-57. Nowak eventually served as an assistant district attorney and was elected to Congress in 1974. A position he held for 18 years.
Fenn helped lead the Griffs to the 2001 MAAC Championship game. He plays professionally for the Artland Dragons in Quakenbrueck, Germany.
Before Elton Frazier, Wilson was the first (and only) Canisius player to ever make an appearance on SportsCenter’s Top Play. He laces them up for the Antwerp Giants in Belguim.
Logins’s cousin, James Reaves, played professionally for the Rochester Razorsharks of the then United States Basketball League.
“Greg will get a chance to play professionally,” Parrotta commented. “He can score a lot of ways.”
Parrotta enjoyed a three-year stint playing professionally in the Portuguese Basketball Association.
Logins will earn his degree in Sports Administration. His Master’s Degree that is. He is one of five Canisius seniors (Coles, Frazier, Vazquez-Simmons and Robert Goldsberry) to earn their graduate degree in four years.
“He’s probably the most conscientious kid we have in the classroom,” Parrotta noted. That carries over to the court. Basketball is his identity. He’s been able to use it to get places. He has two degrees.”
Canisius squares off with Rider on Saturday night. The teams split the season series. Each winning on the opposing team’s home court.
On the line is a berth in the MAAC semi-final game and a career for Logins and his senior teammates.
When the season is over, don’t count on Logins sitting around and thinking about his career. He will be moving on to the next play.
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