1  Donta Richardson
	Class: Senior Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colo. High School: Liberty HS Last College: Sheridan CC, Wyo. Height / Weight: 6-2 / 170 Position: Guard

Pronounced: DON-tay

2002-03 (Senior): Donta Richardson returns for his senior season after starting 26 of 31 games in his first year with the Cowboys in 2001-02. Richardson will be a leading All-Conference candidate this season after earning Third Team All-Mountain West Conference honors last season from MWC head coaches. He is a big reason why The Sporting News has ranked Wyoming's backcourt among the Top 20 backcourts in the nation entering the 2002-03 season. Richardson was one of only 16 junior-college transfers nationally to be named to CollegeInsider.com's All-JC Transfer Team at the end of the 2001-02 season. He also was named to College Basketball News Mountain West Conference All-Newcomer team at the conclusion of the 2001-02 season.

2001-02 (Junior): Richardson had an outstanding first season at Wyoming. He ended the season ranked No. 2 on the team in scoring behind Marcus Bailey. His 11.9 point-per-game average also ranked 16th in the MWC. Richardson ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West Conference in FT% (.890), No. 13 in assists (2.71), No. 13 in steals (1.29) and No. 13 in threes (1.29 pg). Nationally, he ranked No. 13 in the NCAA in FT% for the 2001-02 season. With 39 consecutive free throws made during the 2001-02 season, Richardson set a Mountain West Conference record. That 39 free throw streak without a miss stretched over an 11-game span, beginning with two made free throws in the fourth overtime against Air Force on Jan. 28, 2002, and ending when he missed his third free throw attempt against Air Force on March 7 in the First Round of the MWC Tournament. During that 11-game streak, he had two games in which he hit 10 of 10 free throws -- at Colorado State on Feb. 9, 2002 and vs. San Diego State in Laramie on Feb. 18. Richardson fell short of the Wyoming school record of 42 consecutive made free throws, set by Jeron Roberts in the 1997-98 season. He led the Pokes in total threes with 40 made three pointers. Richardson scored a personal best 27 points at Colorado State on Feb. 9, 2002. He pulled down a career best nine rebounds against Alaska-Anchorage, and handed out a personal best seven assists versus Portland State. In a four overtime victory against Air Force on Jan. 28, 2002, Richardson played 58 of the 60 minutes in the game. He scored in double figures in 19 of 31 games as a junior. Four times he scored 20 or more points -- 20 at Texas Tech, 22 vs. New Mexico, 27 at CSU and 20 vs. UNLV. Prior to the start of the 2001-02 season, Athlon Sports College Basketball Preview named him the Mountain West Conference's Best Newcomer. Street & Smith College Basketball selected him one of the "Top Five Jucos in the West."

2000-01 (Sophomore at Sheridan CC): Richardson averaged 27.3 points per game his sophomore season as he led Sheridan College to a 26-7 record and a No. 11 NJCAA national ranking. He led Region IX in scoring as an individual (27.3 ppg), and he keyed a high-powered Sheridan offense that led Region IX in scoring as a team, averaging 91.7 points per game. A First Team NJCAA All-American as a sophomore, Richardson scored a season high 51 points against Cincinnati State in a 95-91 victory. He scored over 40 points two other times -- 45 in a 125-67 win over Western Wyoming and 41 in a 117-74 victory over Miles Community College. For the season, he scored 30 or more points nine times. Twice during his sophomore season, he was named Region IX Player of the Week. Richardson was not only a scorer for Sheridan. He ranked 14th in Region IX in assists, averaging 4.1 per game, and he ranked fifth in steals, averaging 2.90 steals per contest. He hit 82.0 percent of his free throws to rank No. 10 in the region. He was also an All-Region selection, team MVP and team captain. During his two seasons at Sheridan College, the Generals posted a record of 56-9 (.862). Coming out of junior college, Richardson chose Wyoming over Auburn, Colorado State, UNC-Charlotte and Utah State. His junior college coach was Brian Marso.

1999-2000 (Freshman at Sheridan CC): As a freshman at Sheridan College, Richardson was elected a team captain, and went on to lead the team in scoring (22 points per game). He earned All-Conference and All-Region accolades, and was selected Sheridan's MVP. Richardson also averaged 4.0 rebounds per game and 7.0 assists per contest. Sheridan College enjoyed an outstanding season, posting a 30-2 record and achieving a No. 7 national ranking.

High School/Personal: An outstanding player at Liberty High School in Colorado Springs, Colo., Richardson led his high school team to the 1999 4A State Championship in Colorado. He averaged 20.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, while shooting 91 percent from the free-throw line. He was named Mr. Basketball in Colorado his senior season of 1998-99, and was also selected 4A Player of the Year. Other honors included: First Team All-State, All-Metro and All-Conference. His high school coach was James Chapman.

Born March 5, 1981, he is the son of Cheryl and Robert Richardson. He has two older brothers who both played basketball in college -- Rob, who played at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colo.; and Josh, who played at Sheridan College and later at the University of North Texas. Richardson is majoring in social sciences.

Career Statistics