Rienk Mast

Rienk Mast
No. 51 – Nebraska Cornhuskers
PositionPower forward / center
LeagueBig Ten Conference
Personal information
Born (2001-07-19) 19 July 2001 (age 23)
Groningen, Netherlands
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight248 lb (112 kg)
Career information
College
Playing career2017–present
Career history
2017–2019Donar
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing the  Netherlands
FIBA Europe U16 Championship Division B
Silver medal – second place 2017 National team
FIBA Europe U18 Championship Division B
Gold medal – first place 2018 National team

Rienk Johannes Mast (born 19 July 2001) is a Dutch college basketball player for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Standing at 205 cm (6 ft 8+1⁄2 in), Mast usually plays the power forward or center position. He is a current member of the Dutch national basketball team.

Early career

After playing korfball first as a kid, Mast switched to basketball for the club Celeritas-Donar from Groningen. After a couple of years, he changed teams to RTC Noord where he was coached by Marco van den Berg. As a youngster, Mast received offers for Real Madrid Baloncesto to play in their program.[1]

Professional and college career

Donar

2017–18: Rookie season

Mast played his first professional seasons for Donar, as he was added to the roster for the 2017–18 season.[2][3] When Mast played his first game, he was 16 years old.[4] On 1 February 2018, Mast scored 24 points in a NBB Cup game against Racing Beverwijk, which made him the youngest top scorer for Donar in history.[5] In the 2017–18 season, Mast started in 3 of the 29 games he played for Donar and averaged 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in the Dutch Basketball League.[6] He played two games in the continental fourth-tier FIBA Europe Cup competition.[7]

2018–19: Breakthrough season

In the 2018–19 season, Mast had his breakthrough season. Because of personnel changes within Donar and American players leaving, Mast was given a place in the starting five from January. On 12 January, he scored a career-high 30 points in a 101–67 win against BAL Weert.[8] In April 2019, he was awarded the DBL MVP Under 23 award, as well as the DBL Most Improved Player award.[9]

Bradley

On 21 January 2019, it was announced that Mast committed to Bradley University, where he will play for the Braves.[10] He redshirted his freshman season. As a redshirt freshman, Mast averaged 8.6 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.[11] He was named to the Third-team All-Missouri Valley Conference as a sophomore.[12]

Nebraska

In April 2023, after four years at Bradley, Mast announced that he would be transferring to Nebraska, where he would have two years of eligibility remaining.[13] He explained his move by stating that "Bradley is a great basketball spot, [...] but you get to play against high majors 4-5 times a season. I want to see how I match up and play under bright lights every night. I want to see how I stack up against the best competition in college."[13]

International career

Youth teams

In 2017, Mast played for the under-16 and the under-18 Netherlands national basketball team. He played at the 2017 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship Division B, where he reached the final and made the tournament All-Star Team.[14] Mast averaged 11.9 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

In 2018, Mast won the 2018 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship Division B while being the captain of the Dutch under-18 team.[15] On January 21, he committed to play for the Bradley Braves in NCAA.

Senior team

On November 16, 2018, Mast was selected by head coach Toon van Helfteren to be a part of the Netherlands senior team for the first time.[16] On November 29, 2018, Mast made his debut for the Netherlands in a 78–105 loss to Poland.[17]

Honors

Club

2017–18
2017–18

Individual awards

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Bradley Redshirt Redshirt
2020–21 Bradley 28 19 23.5 .484 .359 .724 5.9 1.3 .3 .5 8.6
Career 28 19 23.5 .484 .359 .724 5.9 1.3 .3 .5 8.6

References

  1. ^ "De NBA is mijn grote doel". www.dvhn.nl. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  2. ^ "Basketbaltalent (16) mag zich bewijzen bij Donar". RTV Noord. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  3. ^ "Rienk Mast toegevoegd aan de Donar selectie". Donar (in Dutch). 28 August 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Donar stelt eerste plek veilig met 16-jarige uitblinker Mast". RTV Noord (in Dutch). 22 April 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  5. ^ "Donar eenvoudig naar halve finale" (in Dutch). DBL. 1 February 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Basketball League". Eredivisie basketbal Nederland, basketballleague.nl (in Dutch). 21 September 2017. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  7. ^ "Rienk MAST at the FIBA Europe Cup 2017-18". FIBA.basketball. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  8. ^ Donar vs BAL
  9. ^ "MVP under 23: Rienk Mast". basketballleague.nl. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  10. ^ "Basketballer Rienk Mast (17) verruilt Donar voor avontuur in Verenigde Staten". Dagblad van het Noorden (in Dutch). 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
  11. ^ "Bradley Hosts Howard in Home Opener". Bradley Braves. November 12, 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
  12. ^ "AJ Green of UNI Headlines 2022 MVC MBB All-Conference Teams" (Press release). Missouri Valley Conference. March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Nebraska basketball lands Bradley post transfer Rienk Mast". Husker247. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  14. ^ "Greece captain Rogkavopoulos headlines All-Star Five after snatching up MVP honors". FIBA.basketball. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
  15. ^ "Netherlands celebrate historic title in Skopje". FIBA.basketball. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  16. ^ "Vier debutanten voor Orange Lions". Basketballleague.nl (in Dutch). 16 November 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  17. ^ "Nederland kan WK vergeten". basketballleague.nl. Retrieved 30 November 2018.