DaytonDailyNews.com

Those who have known Norris Cole the longest say this is his time of year.

"Norris is at his best come tournament time — it's pretty much his life story," his dad, Norris Sr., said Monday night, March 9.

His Dayton Metro AAU team played in the national tournament in Florida. He was the MVP when his Fairview Middle School won two Dayton Public Schools titles. And, of course, there was Dunbar.

With Cole playing an integral part each season, the Wolverines made it to three state title games, won two and twice he made the all-tournament team.

Now he's at Cleveland State and nothing has changed.

The 6-foot-1 sophomore guard has led the Vikings into the Horizon League championship game against Butler tonight at Hinkle Fieldhouse. And if he continues to stay true to his story line — he scored 26 points to lead the Vikings to a come-from-behind win over Illinois-Chicago in Friday night's quarterfinal and had 23 in an upset of Green Bay on Saturday — he'll carry his team into the NCAA Tournament.

"Tournament time seems to be his time of the year," said Diane, his mom. "He thrives on it."

Monday, Cole said while he's focusing on Butler, he's "excited" about the possibility of playing in the bigger tourney: "To be among the elite — to say you're in the top 64 teams in the country — is something every basketball player wants."

No one sings his praises more than CSU coach Gary Waters: "The kid has been fabulous for us, and he's just a sophomore. He's intelligent — he was the salutatorian of his high school — and he's game savvy. And yet, he's just beginning to understand how to play the game. I can't wait to see what horizon he's going to go over next."

Cole does know a couple of horizons he missed out on. Although he dreamed of playing basketball for the Dayton Flyers and had an academic scholarship to Wright State, he said he drew late and limited interest from UD and none from the Raiders.

And yet, according to his mom, he used to get rave reviews at UD. Playing piano though, not basketball.

"I wanted he and his sister to be well-rounded, so they took piano lessons growing up," she said. "They had competitions at the University of Dayton and it was maybe eighth-grade year he won the top award — Unanimous Superiors — at his recital.

"He'd play classical, but he could play some boogie woogie, too. Once basketball got so big, he quit and we put the piano in the basement. But sometimes when he'd come home from school in high school, I'd have him go downstairs and just play. It would just soothe me."

She started laughing: "Now it's all basketball, and these games have been nerve wracking. They raise my blood pressure. But I love his playing now, too."

Especially come tournament time — his time.