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Men's Basketball Mark McGee

Spotlight getting brighter for Asadullah

With apologies to the writer of the Certs mints jingle Ahsan Asadullah is "two, two, two players in one".

At 6-foot-8, 260 pounds Asadullah is a force to be reckoned with under the basket as a scorer and rebounder. But his vision of the court and his willingness to pass to an open teammate, make him just as efficient as any point guard.

"He is almost like a point-center," Lipscomb men's basketball head coach Lennie Acuff said. "He is a very physical low post player. He can score around the goal with either hand. But also, because of his passing ability, he can really change a game in more ways than just scoring."

Defensively, Asadullah is equally effective. He is a stronger rebounder on the defensive end of the court, but his lateral movement is the key to his ability to defend.

"He has better defensive lateral movement than you would think," Acuff said. " He is really good at pick-and-roll coverage and now that is such a big part of the game. He sets a ton of ball screens."

Asadullah was already on the team when Acuff took over the Bisons. After redshirting due to a knee injury, Asadullah earned ASUN All-Freshman Team honors. As a sophomore many thought he performed well enough to be the ASUN Player of  the Year, but did not receive the honor.

"He was a big  part of the NIT drive his freshman year," Acuff said. "He was playing big, big minutes down the stretch. He really started to show what kind of player he was."

As the new coach Acuff knew one thing he had to do was to place Asadullah in a leadership role.

"Last year when we took over there was such an avalanche of guys who were gone," Acuff said. "He basically became option 1 and option 1A. He touched the ball more than any post player in the country last year. A lot of that was because of ability and some of it was because of need. He really came through.

"He obviously had an amazing year for us last year and was instrumental in all the success we enjoyed. We rode Ahsan a long way and it is a credit to his teammates of how unselfish they are and how much they believed in him and were willing to get him the ball."

Asadullah finished with one of the strongest seasons by any player in the history of Lipscomb basketball. He became only the second player since 1992-93 in NCAA  Division I to average 18.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists. 

He was the first ASUN player since 2007-08 with at least 450 points, 250 rebounds and 100 assists in a season. He was tops in the conference with 252 total field goals (sixth in Division I), 312 total rebounds (229 defensive). He finished first in scoring, second in rebounding and second in assists, the only player in the conference to finish in the top three in those categories.

PASSING FANCY
Acuff watched game videos of Asadullah in action before taking over the team, but he was more concerned with what was inside more than his physical talent.

"Any time you are dealing with a player, it is much more about who they are as a person," Acuff said. "The first time I met him I was extremely impressed. You could tell he was a young man of character. He is a good student. He is well-behaved and very soft-spoken. He has this humility to him.

"He has been great to work with from the start. He has really bought into what we are doing. I think he is comfortable with our system.  What we do on offense really fits him."

Film doesn't lie. Acuff was immediately impressed with what he saw from Asadullah as a freshman player during those video sessions. Asadullah's performance  last season only solidified Acuff's initial analysis.

"When I started watching him play on film, you could tell he was really talented," Acuff said. "He was much more athletic than I thought. His feet were better than I thought."

But it was Asadullah's ability to use his tattooed arms to make pinpoint passes to open teammates that really hooked Acuff.

"The thing that just jumped out at me like crazy was his ability to pass," Acuff said. "He is an outlier because of his ability to score combined with his tremendous passing skills. 

"At times he can be too unselfish. He does a really good job of helping our other guys get shots because he commands so much attention."

His 122 assists last season placed him second nationally in NCAA Division I for centers and forwards. Acuff adds Asadullah was the assist leader nationally from the No. 5 position on the court.

Asadullah credits natural ability and his familiarity with his teammates for his ability to distribute the ball.

"I have played basketball for so long and seen so many different sets," Asadullah said. "The more you know about your team, the more you know everyone's tendencies.

"Sometimes when I have to make a pinpoint pass, I have a split second to think about it, but I know my teammates and I know where they are going to be. If I can set up one of my teammates to take the shot, that is just as good as me making a shot."

Asadullah's skills fit in perfectly with Acuff's approach to the game offensively.

"We ask a lot of our five-man as far as passing and getting our offense going," Acuff said. "I think he has enjoyed the opportunities we have given him."

Acuff takes no credit for Asadullah's uncanny ability to see the court and find the open man. Asadullah has the innate ability to do both.

"I think the two toughest things to teach in basketball are feel and vision and he has both," Acuff said. "He has great vision. He sees things before they happen.

"There are really talented players who don't make the guys around them better. Ahsan does that. We really believe in him and his abilities."

COVID-19 SETBACKS
Acuff is expecting great things from Asadullah again this season but admits it has been a rocky start for his center. Through the first 10 games Asadullah is averaging 11.1 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. He has 46 assists, 40 turnovers and six blocks.

Two incidents of COVID-19 exposure forced him to spend four weeks in quarantine.  He eventually contracted the virus which put him on the sidelines for two-and-a-half weeks.

"He really has not practiced a lot," Acuff said. "He has missed over two months. It is going to take him some time to get his timing back.

"He is human. He is going to have some games when he does not meet his expectations or our expectations. I am anxious to see, now that we are able to practice, what that is going to turn into."

Like any player Asadullah can improve his overall game. Acuff would like to see improvements in Asadullah's assist-to-turnover ratio as well as more consistency as a free throw shooter.

"He has had a few bumps in the road with his assist-to-turnover ratio, but that is because he touches the ball so much," Acuff said. "I am really proud of how he has improved his free throw shooting. He is not at 50 percent yet, but he has been in the 20s. He is listening to what we are telling him and is working on his free throw shooting."

Asadullah is going the extra mile to catch up to his teammates in terms of conditioning and overall training, but he admits it has been a challenge.

"I have been working out to get back in season shape," Asadullah said. "It has been a little bit of a struggle, but I am not using it as an excuse because other teams don't care about that."

THE WEIGHT
Last season Asadullah was showered with honors. He was named All-Conference First Team and NABC First Team All-District and was named to the ASUN All-Academic and All-Tournament teams.

The Bisons are the preseason favorite to win the ASUN title this year. Based on his numbers from last season, Asadullah was named Preseason Player of the Year and was a unanimous pick for the preseason All-Conference team.

In addition, he is one of 20 centers, one of only eight from a mid-major team, to be named to the preseason watch list for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award.

Acuff makes no bones about the importance of Asadullah if Lipscomb is going to make it to its fourth-straight ASUN title game.

"We probably rely on him as much as any team in the country relies on one player," Acuff said. "That's for sure. And he has delivered. We need him to keep doing that. 

"If we are going to have a chance to make another run at the conference title this year, it will be because he plays well."

Asadullah seldom thinks about his importance to the team's success, but at times the realization does enter his mind. It is good he has big shoulders because it is a lot of weight to carry.

"Coach Acuff talks to me a lot about not letting the pressure get to me," Asadullah said. "These are my brothers. They are like my family.  My teammates depend on me to be a leader. 

"They react to the way I react. If I have a lot of energy or if I am down, they are going to be the same. Coach Acuff talks to me about being positive because the team is going to feed off the energy I have. I can't let it show when I am upset."

A HOOPS FAMILY
Asadullah recalls he was four years old when someone first put a basketball in his hands. At five he was playing on his first team. He isn't sure how tall he was at the time, but he admits he was usually the tallest player on his teams.

He grew up in a family basketball atmosphere in Atlanta, Georgia. His father, Jalal Asadullah, played for Akron. His oldest brother, Marcus-Georges Hunt, was a standout at Georgia Tech and plays professionally in China. The middle brother, Jalal Johnson, attends Lindenwood University and was part of many games on the family's court.

"I saw my brothers playing," Asadullah said. "I used to go to their games when I was younger. I would go out on the court and shoot at halftime. I just fell in love with it."

He picked up a variety of skills playing against his brothers. They were not power forwards or centers, so they brought different approaches to the game. Jalal was a point guard-shooting guard.  Marcus was a wing.

"We were all different heights," Asadullah said. "I learned how to read the floor and play in different areas. We played and trained a lot together. My father also played with us a lot."

Asadullah credits his father with providing him guidance as he developed as a post player.

"He taught me pretty much everything I know," Asadullah said. "The main thing he taught me to do was to have short-term memory. When I was younger, I would let my mistakes get to me. He taught me to move on to the next play. That can sometimes be hard to do."

SEASON GOALS
Asadullah is a team player, but he admits a personal goal for him would be to earn ASUN Player of the Year. 

"I just play as hard as I can and do the best that I can," Asadullah said. "It is all about us being a championship team. If I am the Player of the Year, then it is meant to be."

Asadullah doesn't think he has to be as dominant this year for the team to be successful.

"I want to do what I have to do for us to win," Asadullah said. "We had a good team last year, but now we have so many more options and so much more depth.

"We have a lot of guys who can shoot and score. I don't have to score the most. I just have to facilitate at times. A lot of teams are doubling on me this year. I didn't face a lot of that last year. If I have to pass it first, that works for me."

Despite his successes, Asadullah knows he has areas to work on this season. 

"I want to work more on my guard skills if that makes sense," Asadullah said. "I want to work on my shooting and dribbling and guarding not only my position but other positions as well."

Asadullah will complete his bachelor's degree in finance this spring. Acuff is hopeful the center will be back as a graduate student for his senior season.

"He deserves all  of the accolades he has received," Acuff said. "We really believe in him and his abilities. I am excited about what is in front of him on and off the court."


 
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Players Mentioned

Ahsan Asadullah

#23 Ahsan Asadullah

Center
6' 8"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Ahsan Asadullah

#23 Ahsan Asadullah

6' 8"
Junior
Center
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