[MoonlightGraham]

2015/16 Senior Tribute

VENCESLÁS CASTILLO

If Venceslás Castillo's parents hadn't given him such an interesting first name, I would have nicknamed him the Man of La Mancha. That's the region of Spain from which he hails. When we recruited him, I predicted this two-star recruit would become "an outstanding shooter and a tough defensive player." We got an All-Conference player who lived up to his billing.

#25 SF Venceslás Castillo - Lafayette - Senior
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 Height:       6-8
 Weight:       250
 High School:  
 Hometown:     Alcazar de San Juan, Spain
 
 Attributes:
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 Type       INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK QKN STR JMP STA    
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 Current:    51  62  49  50  18  33  89  62  53  52  17  29  47  76  49 100    
    2014:    45  61  48  48  17  31  77  56  47  49  16  26  46  73  48 100    
    2013:    40  57  47  45  16  29  67  51  45  44  15  25  45  71  48 100    
    2012:    35  53  46  42  15  27  57  46  42  38  14  23  44  69  48  99    
    2011:    31  49  44  40  15  25  49  42  40  34  12  21  43  65  46  91    
 Potential:   C   B   C   C   F   D   A   C   C   C   F   D                

 Health:      Good                                           
 Scholarship: Yes
 Status:      Active Roster                                  
 Academics:   89
 
 Stat Averages:
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 Season   G  GS  MIN  PTS  ORE  REB  AST   TO   A/T  STL  BLK   PF
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   2012  33  33 26.0  8.5  1.4  4.9  1.8  2.2  0.82  0.5  0.2  2.5
   2013  33  15 23.2  7.6  1.8  6.0  1.4  1.4  1.00  0.5  0.3  2.3
   2014  33  33 27.4  8.8  3.1  7.5  1.2  1.5  0.78  0.4  0.3  2.7
   2015  28  28 27.2 11.1  3.1  7.2  1.4  1.9  0.77  0.6  0.2  2.6
 Career 127 109 25.9  8.9  2.3  6.4  1.4  1.7  0.77  0.5  0.3  2.5

 Shooting Averages:
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 Season  FGM  FGA   FG%  FTM  FTA   FT%  3PM  3PA   3P%  PPS   +/-
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   2012  3.2  7.0  .459  1.2  2.0  .612  0.9  2.8  .315 1.22  1.70
   2013  2.7  6.1  .448  1.5  2.1  .696  0.7  2.5  .293 1.25  3.91
   2014  3.0  6.8  .439  2.1  2.9  .716  0.8  2.6  .306 1.30  7.15
   2015  3.9  9.3  .423  1.6  2.6  .630  1.6  4.9  .333 1.20 12.21
 Career  3.2  7.2  .442  1.6  2.4  .668  1.0  3.1  .315 1.24  6.01
 
 Stat Totals:
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 Season   G  GS  MIN  PTS OREB  REB  AST   TO  STL  BLK   PF
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   2012  33  33  857  282   45  163   61   74   18    8   84
   2013  33  15  767  252   59  198   45   45   18   10   75
   2014  33  33  904  290  102  249   38   49   13   11   89
   2015  28  28  762  312   88  202   40   52   16    5   72
 Career 127 109 3290 1136  294  812  184  220   65   34  320

 Shooting Totals
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 Season  FGM  FGA  FTM  FTA  3PM  3PA  +/-
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   2012  106  231   41   67   29   92   56
   2013   90  201   48   69   24   82  129
   2014   98  223   68   95   26   85  236
   2015  110  260   46   73   46  138  342
 Career  404  915  203  304  125  397  763
 
 Career Highs:
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 Type      Pts OReb  Reb  Ast  Stl  Blk   TO  FGM  FGA  FTM  FTA  3PM  3PA
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 Season     22    7   13    4    2    3    6    8   15    6   10    5   10
 Career     22    9   13    4    2    3    7    8   18    7   10    5   10
 
 Awards & Achievements:
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 Season   Award
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 All      Player of the Game: 15
 2011     High School: Rated ** and #692 overall by the FBCB scouting service.
 2015     1st Team All-Conference (Patriot League)

The arrival of other talented offensive players meant we didn't end up relying on the Good King as a primary scoring option, although he did score over 1000 points in his career. He gained nearly 30 pounds of muscle as a collegian, which enabled us to use him as a stretch four or, more often, as a powerful not-so-small forward. Venceslás was comfortable starting the game or coming off the bench, a role he played very effectively as a sophomore.

Perhaps it's a case of selection bias, but it seems to me that very few players contributed to wins in more timely ways than the Good King. If we needed scoring, he dropped 15. If we needed rebounding, he pulled in a dozen. If we needed shut-down defense, he held his man to seven shots and five points. His selection to the All-Patriot League first team was a well-deserved capstone to a first-rate career.

No wonder Castillo was such a fan (and forum) favorite.

Thanks for the memories, Venceslás.