LOCKEPORT - Austin Buchanan might only be 5’10” but his heart makes up for his height.
While he may not be considered short in everyday life, he is up against some serious height on the court in his first year of university basketball.
The 19-year-old Lockeport point and shooting guard is living his dream playing with the University of New Brunswick basketball team, the Seawolves.
“Playing university ball is much tougher,” he says. “(You’re) playing against bigger and stronger grown men who have also played at very high levels of basketball.”
Now that he’s achieved his dream of playing university ball he has set his sights on his next dream, which is to win the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association basketball championship.
“I achieve my dreams by working my hardest every day,” he says.
Buchanan says the pace is much faster than high school basketball.
I love the game so much that sometimes I walk down the hall pretending I am dribbling a ball or shooting a ball.
- Austin Buchanan
Buchanan works hard, hitting the court hours at a time every day.
Playing ball, attending practice and weight and cardio are just a part of his daily routine.
Off the court his parents, family and friends have stuck by his side to help him get to where he is.
Even when not playing the game, the game is stuck in Buchanan’s head. He wears the clothes and walks the walk.
“I feel basketball is much more than a sport, it is a lifestyle,” he says. “I love the game so much that sometimes I walk down the hall pretending I am dribbling a ball or shooting a ball.”
But when on the court, he gets zoned in.
“When I am playing the game I feel like there is no outer noise around me,” he says. “That it is only the basketball and the players on the court.”
Buchanan has been playing ball since grade two and is proud to say he is the first player in a decade, from Lockeport Regional High School, to play university basketball.
“I feel like I’m locked into the game, like it’s an instinct,” says Buchanan. “It’s my greatest passion.”
