Kihei Clark Brings An Edge To Virginia Backcourt

By Scott Ratcliffe

Virginia freshman point guard Kihei Clark has always played with an added edge, a desire to prove he belongs with the big boys. Officially listed at 5-foot-9 and 155 pounds, Clark is often oversized, but don’t get it twisted — this kid can ball.

“I never pass the eye test, so I always play with a chip on my shoulder and that’s why I came here,” Clark said at UVa media day last week. “I just wanted to prove to everybody that I could play with the best.”

Known mostly as a quick, scrappy defender, the California native can also score and find the open man, and could easily follow in the footsteps of former Cavalier guard London Perrantes as an overlooked, underrated star in the making, the kind of guy Coach Tony Bennett is famous for molding.

Bennett compared Clark’s on-ball defense to that of former Wake Forest and NBA star guard Muggsy Bogues, as the two were teammates in the early ‘90s with the Charlotte Hornets.

“I played against Muggsy Bogues, so I know about somebody who is up under you and can always be a problem,” Bennett said.

Clark, a three-star out of Taft Charter HS in Woodland Hills who originally committed to UC Davis closer to home, says he wouldn’t necessarily consider Bogues an idol of his, “but I definitely know who he was and I know how he played,” he explained. “[Bogues] was a bulldog on the ball and he didn’t back down from anybody, so I kind of had to implement that into my game as well.”

When asked if there’s any current player that he’d compare his game to, Clark said he’s a one-of-a-kind type of guy.

“I think just being my size, I think I’ve got a unique set because I don’t think a lot of guys go out and pressure the ball like I do,” he said, “but I think offensively I’m able to use the ball screens and make smart decisions as well, so I think I’m a little different.”

The first-year guard, who includes playing chess among his hobbies, is expected to relieve starter Ty Jerome as needed, and could even be in the lineup at the same time depending on how Bennett chooses to tinker with all the pieces. One thing that is for certain is that Clark is expected to be a significant contributor throughout the season.

Clark has spent the past few months going up against Jerome in practice, learning as much as possible as he prepares for life in the meat-grinder that is ACC Basketball. He says there’s really no one better to show him the ropes than one of the top floor generals in the country.

“He’s taught me a lot, offensively and defensively just being able to pick his mind, and through practice he shows me things where I could get better or maybe change some things or get a different look,” Clark said of Jerome’s guidance. “Just being able to pick his mind is helping me a lot.”

As for defending the 6’5” Jerome on a daily basis, Clark says it’s been “very difficult,” but that it’s only going to help him when he’s asked to defend other talented ACC guards down the road.

“I don’t think I’m ever going to play against a guard that big anywhere else, but if I do, he’s one of the best guards I’ve probably guarded, so it’s good for me going up against him every day,” admitted Clark. “It gives me confidence definitely, just knowing that if I could play defense against him and get stops, I could probably do it against anybody.”

Jerome is eager to help, and knows that Clark has a chance to be something special for the ‘Hoos this season and for years to come.

“He’ll definitely add a lot to our defense,” said Jerome. “His energy — to our defense and our offense, really — his energy during whatever his role is this year will be tremendous for us.”

Getting adjusted to playing in the Pack Line defense is a tall task for every player in their first year in Bennett’s system, and it hasn’t been any different for Clark. His unique skill set and abilities have helped him get acclimated, knowing what he can offer in the grand scheme of things.

“It took me a while to adjust to the defense,” Clark said, “but being able to pressure the ball is something I do well. So just being able to implement that to the guys so they know that I can pressure the ball, that allows them to beat screens and get over picks, so I think that’s what helps them.

“I think [learning the defense] was harder than I expected — it’s really difficult. It took a lot of practices and a lot of repetitions to learn it.”

When Clark’s AAU team surprised everyone to win the annual EYBL Peach Jam in the summer of 2017, it proved to Clark that he could hang with the best players in the country. Clark says he and his father, Malik, who played at D-II University of Hawaii at Hilo, had always agreed that Charlottesville would be a good fit, but that at first, Bennett and his staff didn’t have him on their radar.

He decommitted from UC Davis in August of 2017 because he decided he wanted a better chance to play at the highest level possible. Then, a few weeks later when UVa began to show more interest, becoming a Wahoo became more and more of a possibility, and eventually a reality.

Clark remembers clearly the moment everything came together, on Oct. 2 of last year.

“I was eating sushi with my Dad and Coach Bennett called and offered me, so that’s when I committed,” Clark said, adding that it was the success of the program, the staff and “just the vibe, the close-knit family” atmosphere that sold him on Virginia.

“I think just him being Tony Bennett — we all buy into the system,” said Clark. “I think that’s a big part of it and he recruits guys that buy into the system, and that will follow him and guys like Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy that lead the team and just communicate his message to us of what we have to do to win.”

Clark begins his collegiate career Tuesday night at 7 against Towson at John Paul Jones Arena.