Iverson Molinar
Iverson Latrell Molinar Jones (born December 3, 1999) is a Panamanian college basketball player for the Mississippi State Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
![]() Molinar with Mississippi State in 2020 | |
| No. 1 – Mississippi State Bulldogs | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard |
| League | Southeastern Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | December 3, 1999 Panama City, Panama |
| Nationality | Panamanian |
| Listed height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Listed weight | 86 kg (190 lb) |
| Career information | |
| High school |
|
| College | Mississippi State (2019–present) |
Early life and high school career
Molinar grew up in Panama City, Panama.[1] He moved to the United States at age 15 to play for Oaks Christian School in Westlake Village, California.[2] As a junior at Covenant Christian Ministries Academy in Marietta, Georgia, Molinar averaged 21.5 points, six rebounds and five assists per game.[3] He played for Veritas National Prep School as a senior. Molinar also competed for Team Why Not, an Amateur Athletic Union program founded by NBA player Russell Westbrook.[4] He committed to playing college basketball for Mississippi State over offers from Arizona and Arizona State, among others.[1]
College career
On November 21, 2019, Molinar scored a freshman season-high 21 points in an 80–66 win over Tulane.[5] As a freshman, he averaged 5.9 points per game. He missed the first three games of his sophomore season after testing positive for COVID-19.[6] On January 9, 2021, Molinar recorded 24 points, eight rebounds and four steals in an 84–81 victory over Vanderbilt. He was subsequently named Southeastern Conference (SEC) Player of the Week.[7] As a sophomore, Molinar averaged 16.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game.[8]
National team career
Molinar played for Panama's junior national teams from the age of 10.[1] He made his debut with the senior national team at the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup, averaging three points per game.[9]
Career statistics
| 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 | Mississippi State | 31 | 8 | 15.4 | .489 | .371 | .768 | 1.0 | 1.3 | .3 | .1 | 5.9 |
| 2020–21 | Mississippi State | 30 | 29 | 32.6 | .478 | .436 | .804 | 3.7 | 2.3 | .9 | .1 | 16.7 |
| Career | 61 | 37 | 23.9 | .481 | .419 | .792 | 2.4 | 1.8 | .6 | .1 | 11.2 | |
Personal life
Molinar is the son of Leyza Jones and Manuel Molinar.[1] He is named after Hall of Fame basketball player Allen Iverson. He speaks English, Spanish and Italian.[10]
References
- Horka, Tyler (December 13, 2019). "'Panamanian Prince': How Iverson Molinar made it to Mississippi State". The Clarion-Ledger. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Zaldivar, Gabe (July 8, 2020). "Veritas Prep Is Reshaping American Basketball With Latino Flavor". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Lowery, Logan (October 23, 2018). "MSU adds commitment from Molinar". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Lowery, Logan (February 7, 2020). "Molinar made his own way to MSU". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- "Iverson Molinar, Mississippi State cruise past Tulane; Villanova is next in Myrtle Beach Invitational". The Clarion-Ledger. Associated Press. November 21, 2019. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Coleman, Joel (December 3, 2020). "Iverson Molinar's return expected to boost Bulldogs as Mississippi State gets set to host North Texas". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Middleton, Dalton (January 11, 2021). "MSU's Molinar named SEC Player of the Week". Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- O'Connell, Robert (May 6, 2021). "Panamanians Division 1 players stats last season". Latinbasket. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
- "Iverson Molinar (PAN)'s profile - FIBA Americup 2017". FIBA. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
- Andrade, Jonathan (January 14, 2016). "Iverson is the answer, too". The Acorn. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
