“He was so popular among his teammates,” said former UD coach Don Donoher. “He was just a pleasant, easy-going guy who loved basketball.”
The 6-foot-10 forward played at UD in 1984-85 and ’85-86 after transferring from Cleveland State. He was team MVP both seasons, averaging 16.7 points as a junior and 18.8 as a senior. The Flyers reached the NCAA tournament in ’85, losing to eventual champion Villanova, 51-49, at UD Arena in the first round, and played in the NIT in ’86.
Colbert is perhaps best known for a tip-in as time expired that beat seventh-ranked DePaul 65-64 during his junior year. DePaul coaches protested that the shot came after the buzzer, but in the days before replay, the bucket stood.
The Flyers proved their victory was no fluke by beating the Blue Demons in Chicago later that season.
He’s one of 41 1,000-point scorers in UD history.
“It’s a real tribute to him that after that Elite Eight year (in ’84), we were missing Roosevelt Chapman, and Ed Young goes down with (a knee) injury. It looked like we were decimated,” Donoher said. “He just took over and made us a good team again.
“He was just a sweetheart of a guy, always had a pleasant demeanor. All he ever wanted to do was get the key to the Fieldhouse and shoot. That’s probably why he was such a good shooter.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or at dharris @DaytonDailyNews.com
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