Jason Clark is accustomed to labels. During his tenure at Virginia, Clark has been dubbed a warrior and a soldier -- names he accepts with his trademark beaming grin.
But his latest tag, which comes courtesy of Virginia coach Pete Gillen, has left Clark a bit baffled.
"He's a monster," Gillen said of the 6-foot-8, 240-pound Virginia Beach native. "I just love his toughness. He's unselfish. He just plays."
After a laugh, Clark modestly shrugged off Gillen's bogeyman branding.
"I just go out there and try to play both ends with a lot of intensity and a lot of emotion," he said. "A monster? That's new to me, but I take that as a great compliment coming from Coach Gillen."
All antics aside, Clark is one in a line of versatile and athletic players in the Virginia frontcourt this season who will look to help the Cavaliers through the ACC and back to the NCAA tournament.
That help comes in all shapes and sizes, the biggest being senior center Elton Brown. Gillen said that for the Cavaliers to be successful, Brown will need to be a presence in the paint and grab nine or 10 rebounds per contest. The senior tri-captain has responded accordingly thus far, recording a combined 26 rebounds to go along with 37 points in Virginia's two exhibition games, and limiting himself to only two erratic three-point field goal attempts, one of which he made.
"He's our big mouth, our big motivator," Clark said. "He's out there calling for the ball, rebounding, defending, and he's also a hard worker."
Six-foot-11-inch freshman Tunji Soroye, a slender-framed, gangly-armed native of Nigeria, has talent that can be described only as raw by his teammates and coaches.
Another freshman, 6-foot-7-inch Adrian Joseph, has been marked by Gillen as the team's "best athlete." Joseph, who is capable of playing at the two, three or four against smaller teams, won't hesitate to agree with his coach.
"I think that's a true statement," Joseph said. "I'm just trying to put it to use on the basketball court, trying to do everything the team wants me to do -- rebound, score, pass, shoot, play defense."
Rounding out the power line is forward-center combo Donte Minter, who saw action for the first time this season versus Marymount University Nov. 12. Minter suffered a minor preseason knee injury and is still not at 100 percent physically, Gillen said, but the sophomore showed signs of improvement against the Saints, going 3-3 from the field for nine points in four minutes.
"We're going to have to get him an oxygen tank because he hasn't played a lot," Gillen said. "But there are not a lot of people in the country who can score with their back to the basket, and he can do that. He's got long arms, he's gangly, he's kind of mopey up and down, but he's tough to guard inside."
To defend against the Sean Mays and Julius Hodges of the ACC, Virginia's frontcourt will not only need to use its size and dexterity, but also stay healthy and preserve its deep corps on the bench. They might even have to be monsters at times.
The Cavaliers will have an early chance at establishing themselves on the inside Sunday, when they host preseason No. 10 Arizona. The Wildcats return last year's leading big man, 6-foot-11 senior Channing Frye, and a pair of 6-foot-10 sophomores in Kirk Walters and Ivan Radenovic. Also in the mix will be defensive specialist Isaiah Fox, who returns after suffering a season-ending knee injury last year, and 7-foot-2-inch freshman skyscraper Charles Okwandu.
While the Cavaliers will face a lofty challenge from Arizona, Jason Clark already has his alter ego ready to unleash on the Wildcats.
"I guess I'll be big Jason Voorhees from 'Friday the 13th,'" he said. "Jasons got to stick together. He's my man."
But when Clark takes the court Sunday, the Cavaliers probably won't want him to resemble his monster counterpart too much -- Voorhees may have had brandished a chainsaw, but he was also a zombie.
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