Cardinal Hall of Honor
Clarence “Pick” Kea was the cornerstone of Lamar University’s emergence as a prominent big-time basketball power. With Kea providing the inside muscle, the Cardinals captured three consecutive Southland Conference titles and made two notable NCAA Division I Tournament appearances.
He poured in 33 points and snatched 19 rebounds in a 95-87 win over 17th-ranked Detroit in the first round of the 1979 NCAA Tournament to earn NBC-TV’s Player of the Game award. Kea’s scoring and rebounding gained him All-Southland Conference honors in 1980 as he helped Lamar reach the NCAA West Regionals with wins over nationally ranked Weber State and Oregon State.
As of the end of the 2014-15 season, Kea still holds the Lamar record for career rebounds (1,143). He was fourth on Lamar’s all-time scoring chart with 1,814 points. Some of his best efforts came in big games, such as 22 points and 12 rebounds against UNLV, 29 points and 13 rebounds against Louisiana Tech, and 12 rebounds at DePaul. After two NBA seasons with the Dallas Mavericks, Kea had a stellar career in the European Professional League.
