How Edmond Memorial alum Sean Pedulla proved doubters wrong with Virginia Tech basketball
Sean Pedulla has not forgotten the driveway at his home.
Now 1,100 miles from the concrete slab that features a basketball goal in Edmond, the Pedulla home’s entryway has turned into a bit of a legend.
“Very intense,” Pedulla said.
As the third youngest of nine siblings, he took beatings there more than he can count or care to admit. He had several moments of glory, too.
Fouls were rarely called. They were allowed but more of a sign of weakness.
“It’s not about skill,” Edmond Memorial coach Shane Cowherd said of the games he’s only heard stories about.
“It's about literally who can survive the most broken bones.”
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Pedulla had to endure. He had to learn how to become better.
It’s that space that shaped Pedulla into a budding basketball star, turning doubt into stardom.
In his second season at Virginia Tech, the former Memorial star is the talk of the ACC. He’s one of the top point guards in the conference, leading the Hokies in scoring and assists.
And when he faces Oklahoma State at 1 p.m. Sunday in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, he has yet another chance to prove himself.
The Cowboys were slow to recruit Pedulla in high school, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s limitations on in-person recruiting. Still, they made a late push that was not enough to keep him in state.
“I’m not the type to ever hold a grudge or anything,” Pedulla said. “I definitely say chip on the shoulder is the right way to put it.
“I felt like they held out on me a little bit to see where other kids would go.”
Pedulla averages 17 points while shooting 50% overall and 35% from 3-point range. He also averages 3.8 assists. He fits perfectly in coach Mike Young’s system.
“He’s playing for one of my best friends,” OSU coach Mike Boynton said. “I even told him this when we recruited him: He picked a coach that’s going to be really, really good for him personally as he continues to play this game.
“The kid was a hard worker, comes from a tremendous family, played for a terrific high school coach and I’m not surprised that he’s having success certainly because I know how hard he works and who he’s playing for.”
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Still, Pedulla dealt with the doubt for as long as he can remember.
To the eye test, Pedulla was never tall enough. He was never athletic enough. If he was going to play college basketball, he was told a mid-major Division I program or Division II would be best.
That became even more motivation.
Early in high school, he worked to prove those who believed that wrong.
He watched other players he knew get scholarship offers and better rankings. He focused on proving he was better than them.
“If this kid’s apparently better than me, I’m going to prove why he’s not,” Pedulla said.
That started in practice.
Pedulla upped his intensity. He increased his training.
“He would always go play these dudes that were way better than him,” said Brooks Manzer, Pedulla’s close friend and former Edmond Memorial teammate who is now a walk-on at OSU.
“And people would be like, ‘Oh my god, who is this guy?’”
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Pedulla went viral. His recruiting took off.
“He’s one of the three best players that’s ever been in my gym,” Cowherd said, “and I’ve had some really good ones.”
Cowherd said Pedulla never took a day off. He found ways to be the best player every day.
“This dude’s going for the kill,” Manzer said. “At practice, he’s scrapping and running his mouth.”
But Manzer also considered Pedulla the best teammate.
He made others better.
Manzer is far from surprised to see his friend do so well at Virginia Tech. Last season, Pedulla came on strong late as a true freshman off the bench, shooting nearly 45% from 3-point range and even scoring 19 points in the NCAA Tournament against Texas.
He became a fan favorite quickly for the Hokies.
“Because as most anybody that’s ever seen Sean play, he looks like a Catholic choir boy, but he’s got the heart and the skillset of an assassin,” Cowherd said.
Now, Pedulla is the starting point guard.
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And at 6 feet 1 and 195 pounds, he’s making waves in an impressive way.
“I joked about it with some of the guys,” Manzer said. “He looks like me but I promise you he’s like an Avery Anderson. In terms of the eye test, people doubt him. But he’s a Division I athlete.”
Manzer saw this coming.
He was involved at times in the pick-up basketball games in the driveway.
It was there Manzer truly discovered Pedulla’s competitive side. Several of his older siblings were college basketball players or rugby stars. Their dad, Dominic, played college baseball at Fordham.
Pedulla had to be the best, though.
There was no other option.
“It’s a real competitiveness, too,” Manzer said. “Not just fake.
“He has to win.”
Jacob Unruh covers college sports for The Oklahoman. You can send your story ideas to him at junruh@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @jacobunruh. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists bypurchasing a digital subscription today.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Virginia Tech basketball star Sean Pedulla gets shot at Oklahoma State
