The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
James Thomas (2001-04)
06.22.2006 | Men's Basketball
Four-year starter at center ... tenacious inside presence who finished his career as the all-time leading rebounder in UT history (1,077 rebounds) ... ranks No. 18 on the school's all-time scoring chart (1,149 points) ... became the second player in school history to record both 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds, joining LaSalle Thompson (1980-82; 1,463 points, 1,027 rebounds) ... shares school records for career games played and consecutive games played (134) with Brian Boddicker ... ranks fifth in UT history in career double-doubles (28) ... recorded 41 career double-figure rebounding efforts.
As a Senior in 2003-04
Honorable mention All-Big 12 selection (coaches) ... battled injuries to his back and lower body during preseason conditioning and throughout the season ... played in all 33 games, making 18 starts at the center position ... second on the squad in rebounding (5.8 rpg) and third in blocks (24) ... eighth on the team in scoring (5.5 ppg) ... led the team in rebounds seven times ... paced the squad in blocks on seven occasions ... opened the year with seven points and a career-high 19 rebounds against Brown (Nov. 17) ... tallied 13 points (4-of-5 FG) against Centenary (Nov. 29)...became the 24th member of the school's 1,000-point club against Wofford (Dec. 4) ... had 13 points (5-of-8 FG) and a team-high nine rebounds against No. 24 Oklahoma State (Jan. 24) ... with his defensive board at the 4:17 mark of the second half against Oklahoma (Feb. 8), he became just the second player in UT history (LaSalle Thompson; 1,463 points, 1,027 rebounds; 1980-82) to record 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds ... had eight points, nine rebounds and a season-high four blocks at Baylor (Feb. 10) ... posted six points and a game-high 12 rebounds at Oklahoma (Feb. 21) ... on his second rebound of the game at Oklahoma (18:12 mark of the first half), he eclipsed LaSalle Thompson's 22-year-old school record for career rebounds ... tallied nine points, six boards and three blocks against No. 20 Kansas (Feb. 23) ... recorded nine points and six rebounds in the Big 12 Tournament championship game against No. 7 Oklahoma State March 14) ... posted seven points (3-of-4 FG) and five rebounds in just 12 minutes in the NCAA Second Round win against No. 18 North Carolina (March 20).
As a Junior in 2002-03
First-team NABC All-District 9 choice ... second-team All-Big 12 selection (by league's coaches and media) ... one of five players named to the Big 12 All-Defensive team (by league's media) ... started all 33 games at the center position ... one of only two players in the Big 12 Conference (Lawrence Roberts, Baylor) to average a double-double (11.1 ppg, 11.1 rpg) for the season ... led the conference and ranked 10th nationally in rebounding ... led the team and tied for second in the Big 12 in double-doubles (16) ... ranked second on the team in field goal percentage (.514) ... second on the team in blocks (24) and third on the team in scoring ... his 363 rebounds rank third on the school's single-season list ... led or tied for the team lead in rebounding in 26 of UT's 33 games ... reached double figures in rebounding in 19 games ... grabbed at least 15 rebounds in a game 10 times this season ... reached double figures in scoring in 21 contests (third-best on the squad) ... recorded a career-high 26 points (10-of-11 FG) and 10 rebounds against George Washington in the opening round of the BB&T Classic (Dec. 7) ... had 20 points and 12 boards at No. 1 Arizona (Dec. 15) ... posted 10 points and 14 rebounds at No. 12 Kansas (Jan. 27) ... registered 13 points and 16 boards in the home win against No. 9 Oklahoma State (Feb. 1) ... tallied 11 points and 16 rebounds in the home victory against No. 5 Oklahoma (Feb. 10) ... recorded 21 points (9-of-12 FG) and tied his career high with 17 rebounds at No. 16 Oklahoma State (Feb. 22) ... posted 15 points and tied his career high with 17 boards in the home win against Baylor (Feb. 26) ... registered 22 points (8-of-13 FG) and 15 rebounds in the home win against Kansas State (Mar. 4) ... had 11 points and 12 rebounds during the NCAA Second Round victory against Purdue (Mar. 23) ... recorded 13 points (9-of-13 FT) and 15 boards during the NCAA Sweet 16 win against No. 23 Connecticut (Mar. 28) ... posted 13 points (4-of-7 FG) and nine rebounds (five offensive) in 25 minutes during the NCAA Semifinal loss to No. 13 Syracuse (Apr. 5).
As a Sophomore in 2001-02
Starting center who took his game to another level following the season-ending injury to Chris Owens (Dec. 30) ... averaged 12.0 ppg and 10.4 rpg following the Owens injury ... recorded a team-best 11 double-doubles on the year... second-team All-Big 12 selection (Austin American-Statesman) ... third-team All-Big 12 pick (by league's coaches) ... honorable mention All-Big 12 choice (by league's media) ... earned a place on the five-man Big 12 All-Defensive team (by league's media) ... shared team MVP honors (player vote) with T.J. Ford ... played in all 34 games (25 starts) ... started the final 23 games of the season ... led the team in rebounding (8.9 rpg) and blocks (25) and ranked fourth in scoring (10.7 ppg) ... ranked second on the squad among regulars in FG percentage (.545) ... his 302 total rebounds ranked sixth on the UT single-season list ... led or tied for the team lead in rebounds in 25 games ... led the team in rebounds in 20 of the last 23 games to end the year (following the Owens injury) ... reached double figures in rebounding in 15 of those final 23 games ... reached double figures in scoring in 18 games, including 12 of the last 19 to end the season ... posted 12 points (6-of-6 FG) and nine rebounds vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (Dec. 5) ... was 9-of-10 from the line on his way to scoring 17 points vs. Jacksonville (Dec. 15) ... registered team highs in points (12) and rebounds (nine) at Utah (Dec. 29) ... posted his first doubledouble of the season with 19 points (7-of-11 FG) and 12 rebounds vs. Texas- Pan American (Jan. 2) ... scored 13 points (5-of-7 FG) and grabbed seven boards in the Big 12 opener vs. No. 5 Oklahoma State (Jan. 5) ... registered a career-best 17 rebounds and added nine points vs. Providence (Jan. 7) ... pulled down 11 boards and contributed eight points vs. Baylor (Jan. 12) ... recorded his second double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds at Texas Tech (Jan. 14) ... posted back-to-back 15-point outings vs. Nebraska (Jan. 19) and Texas A&M (Jan. 23) ... grabbed 16 boards at Baylor (Jan. 26) ... scored a career-high 20 points and added 10 rebounds at Kansas State (Jan. 30) ... recorded his fifth double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds vs. No. 6 Oklahoma (Feb. 2) ... registered back-to-back double-doubles with 18 points (7-of-9 FG) and 11 boards vs. Colorado (Feb. 9) and 16 points (8-of- 10- FG) and 12 rebounds vs. No. 2 Kansas (Feb. 11) ... posted 14 points (5- of-7 FG) and 11 boards at No. 6 Oklahoma (Feb. 23) ... scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds vs. Texas Tech (Feb. 26) ... registered his ninth double-double of the season with 17 points (5-of-7 FG) and 13 rebounds at Iowa State (Mar. 2) ... tallied his 10th double-double with 11 points (4-of- 8 FG) and 10 boards vs. Missouri in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals (Mar. 8) ... averaged 10.3 ppg and 9.3 rpg during UT's NCAA Tournament run and earned NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament team honors ... posted a team-high 15 points (7-of-13 FG) and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes during the Sweet 16 loss to No. 11 Oregon (Mar. 22).
As a Freshman in 2000-01
Starting center who earned a spot on the six-man Big 12 All-Freshman team ... played in all 34 games (20 starts) ... started the final 15 games to conclude the season ... ranked second on the team in rebounding (6.5 rpg) and blocks (28) and fourth in scoring (7.0 ppg) ... his 6.5 rebound average ranked fifth on the Texas freshman season list ... second on the squad among regulars in FG percentage (.484) ... led or tied for the team high in rebounding in 12 games ... led or tied for the team high in blocks in seven games ... reached double-figure scoring in nine games, second-most among the freshman class (Brian Boddicker, 10) ... posted five double-digit rebounding performances ... started the first five games of the season at center, before moving to the sixth-man role during the middle part of the year ... became the first Texas true freshman to start in a season opener since Terrence Rencher (Nov. 20, 1991 vs. Washington) ... posted 11 points (5-of-6 FG), nine boards, two blocks and two steals in 21 minutes in the Preseason NIT opener vs. Navy (Nov. 13) ... his nine rebounds against Navy tied for the third-most boards in a freshman debut in school history ... had 11 points (4-of-8 FG) in the NIT third-place game vs. Indiana (Nov. 24) ... recorded his first collegiate double-double by posting 14 points (5-of-11 FG) and 14 rebounds in the win over Southwest Texas (Dec. 2) ... registered seven points and nine boards in the upset of No. 5 Illinois (Dec. 23) ... produced seven points and 10 boards in the Big 12 opener vs. Oklahoma State (Jan. 6) ... had nine points and 10 rebounds vs. Kansas State (Jan. 10) ... posted back-to-back 10-point outings vs. No. 15 UConn (Jan. 15) and at Texas A&M (Jan. 17) ... tied his season high with 14 points (6-of-7 FG) in the loss at Oklahoma (Jan. 24) ... recorded 13 points and six boards vs. Texas Tech (Feb. 13) ... registered 11 points (4-of-8 FG) and six boards at Texas Tech (Mar. 3).
High School
Attended one year of prep school at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va. (head coach Kevin Keats) ... averaged 18 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks per game during his season at Hargrave ... led Hargrave to the Virginia prep school title, posting 22 points, 12 boards and six blocks in the championship game ... rated as the No. 2 leaper in the country among prep school seniors by Brick Oettinger of The Sporting News ... had 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting and 12 rebounds in the ACC/USA All- Star Classic on April 16 in Winston-Salem, N.C. (postseason All-Star game featuring top ACC recruits against top national recruits) ... rated as one of the top five prep players in the country by Bob Gibbons' All-Star Report heading into his year at Hargrave ... ranked as the 24th-best prospect nationally by Prepstars ... ranked as the 40th-best prospect in the nation by The Recruiting Beat ... spent his senior year of high school at Milford Academy in Milford, Conn. ... averaged 14 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks per game as a senior at Milford ... played at the prestigious Nike All- America camp in Indianapolis during the summer following his senior season.
Personal
Full name is James D. Thomas, Jr. ... son of James, Sr. and Rachael Thomas... born Nov. 22, 1980 in Schenectady, N.Y. ... majoring in youth and community studies.