Wright State offense in crunch time? ‘Give it to Trey and get out of the way’

The 6-foot senior guard tends to take over whenever Wright State is desperate for a basket. And he’s been so good that coach Scott Nagy has essentially come up with a new offense in those stretches:

It’s called “Give it to Trey and get out of the way.”

Asked what he thinks about before shooting while the clock is racing toward zeroes, Calvin said: “Nothing, really. I get all my confidence from being in the gym and relying on my work ethic. I know I can make tough shots like that in crunch time.”

He’s certainly done that the last two years:

In the Horizon League championship against Northern Kentucky last season, he made a mid-range jumper with 10.5 seconds to go to give the Raiders a 72-71 win.

At Louisville earlier this season, he made a contested 17-footer at the buzzer for a 73-72 victory.

And though it was on the road and few beyond his coaches and teammates were able to appreciate it, he had probably the best performance by any Raider ever in a 91-89 triple-overtime loss to Youngstown State.

He scored five unanswered points in the last 19 seconds of regulation to force the first OT.

He then scored 20 points in the three extra sessions, including a tying bucket at the end of the first OT, a 3 with five seconds left in the second one to tie it up again, and then another basket with six seconds to go in the third for an 89-all tie.

That gave him 44 points, one off the school record. The Raiders fell, though, when Dwayne Cohill scored on a coast-to-coast drive.

“I do love that moment. I’m just competitive like that. When those moments come, I take them on,” Calvin said.

“A big part is how much coach (Nagy) trusts me. That helps a lot, too. On my team, I feel like that’s my role — make big shots.”

Calvin, who averages 20.1 points and 3.9 assists, has become one of the top guards in the mid-major ranks, and he’ll almost certainly have the opportunity to move up a level after this season if he chooses.

Would that interest him? Yes, definitely.

He’s got a fifth year of eligibility, and he plans on taking it.

He’s just not sure where.

“Honestly, coach Nagy and I haven’t really talked about it. I haven’t really said I’m coming back here yet. I just said I was going to play another year in college,” Calvin said.

“I’m probably going to come back here, but I haven’t really made a decision on that yet. I’m not really worried about it. We still have four games left to worry about.”

Though transparency on NIL deals is scarce, it’s safe to assume high-major schools have more resources from boosters to funnel to players.

Calvin said he has a partnership with Key Chrysler in Xenia for an undisclosed sum.

He knows he likely can make much more by moving on, and he’s keeping his options open.

“Obviously, NIL deals and stuff play a big part in it. But like I said, I’m going to talk with coach Nagy, and we’re going to get something going,” he said.

FRIDAY’S GAME

Wright State at Cleveland State, 7 p.m., ESPNU, 980