Big fella’, big game

When he was at Ellender Memorial High School, Gibby Talbot was a near-unstoppable force.

At 6-foot, 10-inches and nearly 300 pounds, he was simply too big and too gifted for the average team to handle throughout a 32-minute game.

Guess what? At the college level, not much has changed.

Now a senior at LSU-Alexandria, Talbot is still dominating – so much so that he recently earned the highest honor for excellence among players in his league.

Talbot was named the NAIA National Player of the Week last week after he posted 35 points and 32 rebounds for the Generals over a two-game stretch.

Talbot was also named Conference Player of the Week last week – honors that he said have jump-started his already-strong senior season.

The Patriots graduate averages 11 points and 7.4 rebounds per game for an LSU-Alexandria team that is unbeaten on the season in 25 games – a real contender to win the national championship.

“My senior year is going well,” Talbot said. “The start of the season was kind of up and down as everyone was trying to figure out their role and I was one of them. Lately, I’ve been able to turn it on and play really well, so I’m happy about that.”

To say that Talbot has played “really well” is perhaps a bit of an understatement.

Talbot has been brilliant in the post for the Generals in the past few weeks – a rock in the paint for a team that’s oozing with talent.

After a jittery start to the season, Talbot has dominated in 2017, averaging 14.3 points per game in 11 games since the holiday.

In that span, Talbot has been the peak of efficiency, shooting 57-of-81 (70 percent). In that span, Talbot has also boosted his rebounding, including an 18-rebound game against LSU-Shreveport on Feb. 1 – a game that helped him earn Player of the Week.

Talbot said the honor is one of the greatest he’s ever gotten in his long basketball career.

He said he didn’t believe the news when he first heard it, and thought it was a practical joke among his coaches and teammates.

“I thought my coach was joking,” Talbot said with a laugh, relaying when he found out the news. “Later, I started getting congratulations on social media, and it kind of hit me that it was true. It’s an awesome honor to be the National Player of the Week – especially because I’m the first one to ever do it at LSU-Alexandria. But that all wouldn’t be possible without my teammates and coaches, so the award is for all of us – not just me.”

Now, Talbot said he’s focused on another honor – winning championship rings.

Talbot’s collegiate career has been filled with jewelry, and he’s won a conference championship ring in literally every, single season of his career – dating back to his days at Louisiana Tech, where Talbot started his career and played for two seasons.

Talbot said he thinks the Generals have all of the talent and coaching necessary to win the national championship – the one honor that’s eluded LSU-Alexandria in their short, but highly successful existence.

The former Patriot said his preparation for the season started over the summer when he shed several pounds and got into the best shape of his career.

Talbot said his No. 1 focus in any game is to be a good teammate – on and off the floor. He said all of the stats are just secondary

“My goals were to just be a great teammate and to really give everything I had in this last year,” Talbot said. “That’s why I worked so hard this summer by losing that weight and getting into the shape I’m in now. I just wanted to be able to leave everything out on the court for my brother and to be in a position to win the conference, then the national championships.”

And by doing so, Talbot is also making himself valuable to coaches at the next level, as well.

Talbot said he’s eyeing professional basketball – a dream he’s had for his entire life.

The standout post player said a trip to Croatia last summer showed him that he thinks he has what it takes.

“That’s my goal,” he said when asked about pro ball.

To get there, Talbot said he will keep working tirelessly in the gym to improve his craft – now and into the future.

“It’s important for me to stay consistent and be able to do what I do best,” Talbot said. “My college time has flown by, and I can’t really believe that I’m about to graduate college and be done with college basketball. I think what’s made it so enjoyable is how far I’ve come – not only as a player, but as a man.”

Gibby Talbot

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