A year ago Otis Livingston II was lighting up opponents for a highly ranked Linden (NJ) High School basketball team, but coach Phil Colicchio's phone wasn't lighting up with offers from Division I coaches.

   As a junior, Livingston steered the Tigers to the state public school title as the point guard. As a senior, Livingston engineered two wins against Roselle Catholic, at one point the No.1-ranked team nationally, which included heralded guard Isaiah Briscoe, a Kentucky signee.

   When Livingston's fourth-quarter heroics provided another important win last February, Colicchio could no longer contain his frustration in post-game comments.

   "What does this kid have to prove?" the coach told New Jersey media outlets. "He's been doing it for two years against the best players in the country in our division. I don't know what else to say? I'm tired of singing his praises. The kid's a basketball player. He's a basketball junkie. He's a great kid. He's a full qualifier. He has a 3.8 GPA. What more do you want? Maybe they don't like his haircut? I don't know."

   By late spring Livingston was resigned to attending a prep school. Robert Morris and Fairleigh Dickinson had made scholarship offers, but Livingston wanted to play on a larger stage.

   The opportunity presented itself after Mason hired Dave Paulsen in late March. Assistant coach Dane Fischer, who came from Bucknell with Paulsen and whose recruiting area included New Jersey, contacted Colicchio about Livingston.

   The Mason staff saw film of one of the Roselle Catholic wins and was impressed. Colicchio provided rave reviews about Livingston's character. Livingston visited campus in May and three days later he signed.

   The 5-11, 162-pounder has started all 22 games for the Patriots (8-14), who play No.24 Dayton on Saturday at EagleBank Arena. He's been at his best in A-10 play, averaging team second-bests of 13.0 points and 34.9 minutes per game along with a team-best 38 assists in nine games with 19 turnovers.

   “Otis is playing well, at a high level,” Paulsen said. “He's just a very, very driven, competitive kid. He works really hard and he wants to be really, really good.”

   Colicchio, who has watched several of the Patriots' games, is not the least bit surprised: “Most any freshman has an adjustment period. Sometimes it takes two years. That kid, from the first time I saw him dribbling up court for Mason, he looked comfortable. He looked like he did playing at Linden.”

   Not that a kid with the same name as a well-known elevator company hasn't had his downs along with ups. There was a 4-for-18 shooting game against Duquesne and a 1-for-5 night.

   In Linden Livingston was known to hoist 500 shots the day following a poor shooting performance. After the Duquesne game, he stayed at the RAC, along with teammates DeAndre Abram, Jaire Grayer and Kameron Murrell for extra shots soon after the game ended.

   Playing defense has been a challenge, too. “That's been the biggest adjustment,” Livingston says. “A lot of the guards are really fast, really strong. They're older too. It was easier in high school. I was faster than everybody. But I think I'm getting better at it.”

   So why after a heralded two years at Linden was Livingston not more avidly pursued?

   “I think it was pretty much size,” says Livingston, who's smaller than some tuba players in the Green Machine pep band. “I wasn't dunking on nobody so I wasn't crazy in the athletic sense. I guess I don't jump out at people in some ways. I was overlooked. There's wasn't a lot of hype around me.”

   That worked to Mason's advantage. “Every year there's a 10, 15, 20 guys like him under the radar,” Paulsen says. “DeAndre and Jaire were under the radar, too.

   “Every year there's top 50 recruits who end up being a bust. So much of it is these rankings. But if you can play, you can play. Then it's what do you do when you get there. Do you work hard? Are you coachable? Do you have the right attitude? That's what has enabled him.”

   Livingston's approach comes from his parents, Otis, a point guard at Kansas and Idaho in the 1980s and now the WCBS sports anchor in New York City, and Nikki.

   “With them it's all about team,” Colicchio says. “Never put yourself above the team. You've got to work hard; you have to make the team work hard. He's a throwback point guard. He thinks pass before shot but has the ability to make shots.”

   Livingston also has the knack to make spectacular plays especially on the break. In the recent GW loss, he had a spectacular behind-the-back pass to Abram for a jam and whipped a long pass to Grayer for a layup. He can finish plays himself with acrobatic drives.

   “I have the most fun when the game is a fast tempo and there are a lot of fast breaks,” Livingston says, “when I'm pushing the ball and either finishing or passing to teammates. I'm happiest seeing teammates score.

   “My eyes light up when I see the floor open. I get creative. I love that.”

   Livingston's contributions extend beyond the court. After games, he invariably stops by to thank Doc Nix and the Green Machine; he probably leads the team is signing autographs for fans.

   “In his two years here, he took over our team and he took over our school from the superintendent to the principal to the teachers,” Colicchio says. “Everybody loves him. I don't think you can find anybody to say something bad about him.”

   A year ago, Livingston couldn't get a scholarship offer. Now he's averaging double figures in scoring and nearly 35minutes for a team in the A-10, the No.7 conference nationally.

   “It's a great league,” Livingston says. “I just want to prove to myself and those who don't believe that I can play at this level.”