Creighton forward Doug McDermott is the nation's leading scorer. He ranks fifth in NCAA history in career points and pumped in 30 against Louisiana-Lafayette on Friday to help Creighton open the NCAA tournament with a 76-66 win. (Update: McDermott finished with 15 points Sunday in a loss to Baylor.)
He also does not have a scholarship this season.
Hardcore college basketball fans might remember that last summer Creighton unexpectedly received a sixth year of eligibility for guard Grant Gibbs.
The problem was that Creighton had already maxed out on its scholarships.
The solution? McDermott would become a walk-on. The catch here is that his dad, Greg, also happens to be Creighton's coach and this is his fourth season working at the school, which is not enough time for Doug to get a break on tuition, under NCAA rules.
That means Doug's parents, Greg and Theresa, are coughing up more than $40,000 so that Gibbs could remain on scholarship.
"His mother reminds me of that daily -- that I owe her some money when this is all over," Gibbs told the New York Times. “But it was a tremendous gesture, obviously, by Coach and Doug to do that for me to be able to come back for one more year."
Gibbs leads the team in three-point shooting accuracy at 47.5 percent while averaging 7.2 points and 3.8 assists. With the team earning a No. 16 ranking in the final AP poll of the regular season and winning its tournament opener, the McDermotts' big-hearted investment has paid off.
"I had never been more excited to be a walk-on," Doug told the Times.
