Steve Woodberry
July 23, 2020
David Van Dyke
- Nationality: USA
- Date of Birth: 15/04/70
- Place of Birth: Mesa, Arizona (USA)
- Position: FRD
- Height (CM): 209
- Weight (KG): 109
- Junior Assoc:
- College: Texas El Paso (1988-1992)
- NBL DEBUT: 13/04/96
- AGE AT DEBUT: 26
- LAST NBL GAME: 17/10/97
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 27
- NBL History: Newcastle 1996 | Perth 1997
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: David Van Dyke was born in Mesa, Arizona (USA).
NBL EXPERIENCE
David Van Dyke made his NBL debut with the Newcastle Falcons at 26 years of age. He scored 25 points in his first game.
PERTH WILDCATS
1997
Adelaide ended Perth’s 1996 campaign in the quarterfinals, and the Wildcats entered 1997 without Aaron Trahair (to Sydney), Pete Hansen and Matthew Earp, while Scott Fisher remained sidelined following knee reconstruction. Coach Adrian Hurley retained captain Andrew Vlahov, Ricky Grace, Todd Lichti, James Crawford, Anthony Stewart, Gavin Vanderputten, Phil Doherty and Ryan Gardiner, adding David Van Dyke (via Newcastle), Greg Brown, Scott Harkess and Nick Lackovic to the roster.
Van Dyke arrived in Perth after leading the NBL in blocked shots with Newcastle and earning All-NBL Second Team honours in 1996.
Perth opened the season at the Perth Entertainment Centre on April 11, where Van Dyke (9 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 4 blocks) made his Wildcats debut, while Stewart (17 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal) and Grace (14 points, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, and 2 steals) provided support, but Brian Tolbert (22 points and 3 steals) led defending champion South East Melbourne to a 104-84 win.
Van Dyke (14.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks across 24 games) led Perth in rebounding and blocks while shooting 52 percent from the field, with his 3.1 blocks per game remaining the highest single-season average listed by the Wildcats.
His best scoring game came against his former Newcastle club on April 26, where Van Dyke (29 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 blocks) made 10-of-17 field goals as Perth won 122-101 at the Newcastle Entertainment Centre.
On May 9, Van Dyke (14 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, and 12 blocks) set a Wildcats single-game record with 12 blocks as Perth defeated Adelaide 102-84 at the Perth Entertainment Centre. The 12-block mark remains the club record.
Van Dyke (16 points, 15 rebounds, 4 steals, and 5 blocks) produced another dominant interior performance on May 24 as Perth defeated North Melbourne 96-83, with Crawford (27 points and 8 rebounds) and Grace (16 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks) providing support, while Darryl McDonald (21 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists, and 6 steals) led the Giants. It proved Van Dyke’s final appearance for almost three months, with injury sidelining him through June and July.
With Van Dyke unavailable, George Banks (via Dinamo Sassari) joined Perth in late June as short-term injury cover. Banks (10.3 points and 7 rebounds across 7 games) appeared in seven games before his stint ended after July 19, with Van Dyke returning on August 16.
Perth closed the regular season in Townsville on September 26, where Van Dyke (8 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 4 blocks), Lichti (25 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals) and Crawford (23 points and 5 rebounds) helped the Wildcats hold off Townsville 102-100, while Derek Rucker (36 points, 7 rebounds, and 9 assists) was Townsville’s best. The win left Perth fourth with a 17-13 record.
Lichti (16.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.6 steals across 34 games) led Perth in scoring, while Grace (16.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 7.4 assists, and 1.6 steals across 34 games) directed the offence and led the Wildcats in assists. Crawford (14.7 points and 7.4 rebounds across 31 games) remained productive around the basket and appeared in his tenth consecutive NBL All-Star Game, while Vlahov (13.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.3 steals across 33 games) and Stewart (13.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.1 assists across 33 games) rounded out Hurley’s main group.
The quarterfinal series opened at the Perth Entertainment Centre on October 4, where Van Dyke (8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block), Grace (18 points, 4 rebounds, 10 assists, and 2 steals), Vlahov (14 points and 12 rebounds) and Crawford (12 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal) led Perth to an 81-79 win, while Leroy Loggins (32 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks) and Steve Woodberry (23 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals) led Brisbane. Crawford suffered an injury during the victory and did not return for the remainder of the postseason.
Game two moved to the Brisbane Convention Centre, where Van Dyke (16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks), Grace (25 points, 11 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals) and Vlahov (21 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 block) led Perth to an 88-71 win and completed the sweep, while Woodberry (21 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals, and 1 block) and Mark Dalton (16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 block) were Brisbane’s best.
With Crawford unavailable, Fisher (10 points and 5.5 rebounds across 2 games) returned from knee reconstruction for the semifinal series after missing the entire regular season, giving Perth cover in the frontcourt.
The semifinals opened at the Perth Entertainment Centre on October 13, where Van Dyke (12 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks), Lichti (20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 block), Grace (19 points and 4 assists) and Fisher (14 points and 6 rebounds) were Perth’s best, but Chris Anstey (19 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, and 5 steals) and Tony Ronaldson (18 points) led South East Melbourne to a 92-82 win.
Game two moved to Melbourne Park, where Van Dyke (13 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 3 blocks) and Grace (16 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals) were Perth’s best, while Sam Mackinnon (21 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Tolbert (19 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals) led South East Melbourne to a 96-69 win and completed the sweep. The 27-point defeat was Perth’s heaviest loss of 1997 and meant South East Melbourne had handed the Wildcats their three biggest defeats of the season.
David Van Dyke played two seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Perth Wildcats and the Newcastle Falcons. He averaged 18.5 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 49 NBL games.
CAREER RANKINGS:
– 1st in blocks per game.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 27 | Perth | 17-13 (4) | 24 | 799 | 349 | 212 | 31 | 78 | 134 | 27 | 75 | 70 | 87 | 138 | 264 | 52% | 0 | 1 | 0% | 73 | 125 | 58% | 54% | 52% | 29 |
| 1996 | 26 | Newcastle | 11-15 (9) | 25 | 1,001 | 558 | 285 | 46 | 84 | 201 | 31 | 108 | 75 | 109 | 215 | 443 | 49% | 0 | 3 | 0% | 128 | 212 | 60% | 51% | 49% | 38 | Totals | 49 | 1800 | 907 | 497 | 77 | 162 | 335 | 58 | 183 | 145 | 196 | 353 | 707 | 49.9% | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 201 | 337 | 59.6% | 53% | 50% | 38 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 27 | Perth | 17-13 (4) | 24 | 33.3 | 14.5 | 8.8 | 1.3 | 3.3 | 5.6 | 1.1 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 5.8 | 11.0 | 52% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 3.0 | 5.2 | 58% | 54% | 52% | 29 |
| 1996 | 26 | Newcastle | 11-15 (9) | 25 | 40.0 | 22.3 | 11.4 | 1.8 | 3.4 | 8.0 | 1.2 | 4.3 | 3.0 | 4.4 | 8.6 | 17.7 | 49% | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0% | 5.1 | 8.5 | 60% | 51% | 49% | 38 | Total | 49 | 36.7 | 18.5 | 10.1 | 1.6 | 3.3 | 6.8 | 1.2 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 7.2 | 14.4 | 49.9% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | 0.1 | 59.6% | 53% | 50% | 38 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 38 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 6 | 0 |
|---|
COLLEGE
Van Dyke played college basketball at Texas El Paso from the 1988-89 season through 1991-92, finishing his four-year career as one of the program’s most impactful interior defenders under head coach Don Haskins.
As a freshman in 1988-89, Van Dyke entered the UTEP rotation right away and averaged 5.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 0.2 assists per game while establishing his shot-blocking presence early, including multiple seven-block games that season and a first-year high of seven blocks against Fort Lewis on November 26, 1988 and again versus Alcorn State on December 2, 1988.
In his 1989-90 sophomore season, Van Dyke averaged 4.9 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 0.4 assists per game while continuing to anchor the paint defensively, highlighted by a six-block game against South Carolina during the year as he remained part of a frontcourt group that included Marlon Maxey, Antonio Davis, and Greg Foster.
Van Dyke’s junior year came in 1990-91, when he took a larger role in the offense and posted 9.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 0.9 assists per game, and he entered Western Athletic Conference play as one of UTEP’s key scoring options alongside Mark McCall while the Miners’ front line relied on his rim protection to set the team’s defensive identity.
As a senior in 1991-92, Van Dyke became a featured scorer and interior stopper on a UTEP team that finished 27-7, tied for first in the WAC at 12-4, and surged to a 16-1 start that carried the Miners into the Associated Press top 25, with Van Dyke averaging 13.9 points and 6.2 rebounds per game as one of the team’s three senior leaders alongside Marlon Maxey and Prince Stewart.
That 1991-92 season also produced one of the most prolific shot-blocking years in school history, as Van Dyke set a UTEP single-season record with 116 blocks, an average of 3.52 blocks per game, and he added an eight-block performance against San Diego State on January 18, 1992 to tie the program’s single-game record for blocks in a game.
UTEP’s conference tournament ended in dramatic fashion on March 14, 1992, when BYU’s Kevin Nixon hit a 54-foot buzzer-beater to win the WAC Tournament championship game 73-71, with Van Dyke involved in the final defensive possession as UTEP tried multiple late-game alignments before the long-range finish decided the title.
The Miners responded by making a deep NCAA Tournament run, opening the 1992 bracket in Dayton with a 55-50 win over Evansville, then upsetting top-seeded Kansas 66-60 to reach the Sweet 16 for the final time under Haskins, before falling 69-67 to Cincinnati in the regional semifinal.
Across those three NCAA Tournament games in 1992, Van Dyke totaled 11 blocks, which works out to 3.7 blocks per game, and he finished that postseason run as a centerpiece of a defense-first group that leaned on his rim protection while UTEP controlled tempo and kept opponents from getting easy finishes at the basket.
Van Dyke’s 1991-92 impact also included recognition as an All-WAC selection, and he was the interior presence on a team that set a UTEP single-season record with 217 total blocks while pairing his back-line shot blocking with perimeter pressure from a veteran guard group led by Stewart and junior college addition Eddie Rivera.
Beyond conference and NCAA Tournament play, Van Dyke delivered a notable tournament performance at the WestStar Bank Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational, where he was named the event’s MVP and earned all-tournament recognition as UTEP captured the championship and he helped set the tone defensively over the multi-game stretch.
By the time his UTEP career ended in 1992, Van Dyke had produced 336 career blocks to stand as the program’s career leader in the category, and his shot-blocking volume and season-by-season consistency made him one of the defining defensive big men of the Haskins era at Texas El Paso.
AWARDS
- 1x All-NBL Second Team
- 1x NBL Blocks Leader
Related
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