Seeing freshman guard Thomas Neff perform on the court can take University of Denver men’s basketball coach Joe Scott back to his playing days at Princeton.
The DU player’s father, Tim, was Scott’s teammate in the mid-1980s.
“They look a lot alike,” Scott said of the Neffs. “They move exactly alike on the floor. Tim was a good shooter, and so is Thomas.”
The Princeton connection wasn’t a factor in the younger Neff’s decision to join the Pioneers.
“I thought about it and realized how cool it would be to stay close to home,” Neff said. “I’ve watched DU play basketball ever since I was a kid. The connection between Coach Scott and my dad didn’t enter into my decision. It was my choice.”
Neff grew up in the same southeast Denver house where his father grew up before the family moved to Arvada when Neff entered the seventh grade. Neff played for Arvada West.
Tim Neff, a federal attorney in Denver, attended Mullen High School before going to Princeton. Neff doesn’t minimize his father’s influence on his development as a basketball player.
“He helped me a lot,” Neff said. “He was a big supporter of me and my brother. He worked with us almost every day.”
Younger brother Luke already has committed to DU with a final year remaining in high school.
Including Sunday afternoon’s 74-58 home loss against Eastern Washington, Thomas Neff has started all 12 games this season, averaging 4.1 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.
“I can hold my own,” said Neff, who plays at 6-foot-5 and 200 pounds.
On Saturday, Scott talked about the progress made by Neff.
“I’ve seen more consistency in the last couple of games against Weber State and Northern Colorado,” Scott said.
Neff scored nine points on three 3-point field goals against Weber State and 14 points against Northern Colorado on two 3-pointers and eight free throws.
“He plays really hard and he cares about the team,” Scott said. “He plays basketball for one reason, and that’s to win.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296, imoss@denverpost.com or @irvmoss
