By Michael Donlin

Maroon-News Staff

Tucker Neale's number 20 has been "retired" in downtown Hamilton at the Hourglass since he graduated Colgate in 1995. However, last Saturday, Colgate honored the Red Raiders' hoops legend in front of a near-capacity crowd during halftime of the Colgate-Holy Cross game at Cotterell Court. Number 20 became the third number to be retired in the history of Colgate men's basketball.

In an era when the pure shooter has become obsolete, Neale's range ripped through opponents from way downtown. While Neale's unorthodox shot was not picture perfect, his perfect swishes ripped the cords out of rims around the Patriot League for three seasons. Neale was more than just a long-range gunner; he worked off of screens, dribbled around players, posted players up and ripped boards off offensive glass.

"Tucker Neale signified everything that is right about a basketball player," Senior Brian Tripp said. "Those of us who were lucky enough to see him play, know there will probably never be another player like him in the history of Colgate hoops."

Neale transferred to Colgate from Division II Ashland College in Ohio with only three years of eligibility remaining. He was the ultimate success story, a gym rat and son of a high school coach who overachieved at every level.

During the 1992-93 season, Neale quickly made up for lost time, leading the Patriot League in scoring at a 21.9 clip. He garnered the Patriot League Player of the Year award in 1993-94 as his 26.6 points per game ranked him fifth nationally. The NCAA Tournament, however, had to wait due to a 78-76 Patriot League finals loss at Navy.

The early part of Neale's senior season was marred by several losses to perennial Division I power houses. The rigorous non-league schedule toughened Neale. It allowed him to bang with the big boys such as the scrape with Maryland's Joe Smith. Neale saw failure in a disappointing outing against Central New York power Syracuse in the Carrier Dome when Lucious Jackson blanketed the Colgate star but tasted success against the likes of Mississippi State when he dropped in 31 on the SEC power.

On January 23, 1995, Neale surged past Mike Ferrara's 1,763 points in a 78-61 victory over Cornell to become the all-time leading scorer at Colgate. With that record smashed, Neale poured on the points, scoring 23.1 points per game.

The senior captain was named the most valuable player in the Patriot League Tournament. His valiant efforts led the Red Raiders to their first ever NCAA tournament.

The tournament pairings sent Colgate to Dayton, Ohio as the number 16 seed in the Midwest. Neale's numbers alone did not lead the Red Raiders into the second round, but his efforts were recognized by CBS, as he was named Chevrolet Player of the Game.

Neale finished his Colgate career with 2,075 points in three years of action.

Although half of Colgate's student body was not yet enrolled at Colgate during Neale's career, the entire crowd responded to Head Coach Jack Bruen's introduction with a rousing standing ovation. Neale came out to center court, grinning, yet looking a bit out of place in a business-like suit.

"It's very easy to look at someone's statistics and determine whether or not they were successful," Bruen said. "In team sports, that can sometimes be very misleading. We have before us today someone whose numbers speak for themselves. To describe him as a player, you'd have to describe him as the ultimate competitor, the person who would do whatever it took to win. Our program was on the verge of a breakthrough, and he came in and took our program to the next level. He was the ultimate, ultimate winner."

Bruen sees Neale as a model for all athletes. "I want the fans to take a good, long look at him, because we'll