Young's impact on the Gaels was immediate and constant, though not consistent. His Sophomore and Senior seasons were by far his most effective. Statistically speaking he was best as a sophomore, though he was not a starter for a single game that season. In his senior year he started every game for the Gaels.
The 6'9'', 235lbs forward has spent his career at Saint Mary's as a complimentary big man to guys like Omar Samhan, Ben Allen, Rob Jones and most recently Brad Waldow.
As a Freshman, Young was stuck behind Ben Allen and all-American Honorable Mention Omar Samhan. Despite the Gaels' frontcourt depth, Young saw action in all 35 of the Gaels' games that season. He averaged 13.9 minutes per game and accounted for 3.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Young was more than a big man to fill space when Allen or Samhan needed a breather. He was used in 17.6% of the Gaels' possessions when on the floor. On the most balanced basketball team possible, each player would be used 20% of the time. Young was slightly below that 20% mark, but for a freshman coming off the bench he managed to be pretty effective.
On top of his offensive abilities, Young provided stout defense in place of Allen or Samhan. He totaled 22 blocks, good for third on the team and a mark he would never reach again.
His sophomore season was when Young really came into his own. Allen and Samhan were gone and it was up to Young, along with transfers Kenton Walker III (Creighton) and Rob Jones (San Diego) to replace them. Jones became the immediate impact starter, and Walker had a starting job early in the season, but it was Young who was the most efficient.
Coming off the bench to play 21.2 minutes per game, Young was putting up nearly one point every minute he spent on the floor. He totaled 348 points as a sophomore, his highest total in a season. His productivity was very efficient. With a field goal percentage of 59.4% he led the WCC.
As a result of his breakout year, Young was awarded the starting job at the beginning of his junior campaign. He started the first three games of the season for the Gaels and averaged 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds. Unfortunately, a groin injury forced him to miss the next two games and almost all of the third (he pulled down one rebound in less than one minute of play against Cal Poly). He came off the bench for the rest of the season. With senior Rob Jones dominating the interior for the Gaels (15 PPG/10 RPG) and freshman Brad Waldow providing a major spark off the bench, Young was essentially forced back into his role from his first year in Moraga.
His output was lowest as a junior. It was his worst season in terms of points, rebounds, assists, games and minutes.
Young bounced back as a senior. Much as he did as a sophomore when called upon to replace the productivity of Samhan and Allen, he stepped up to replace the productivity of Rob Jones as a senior. He started every game and averaged 20.4 minutes.
His game evolved from the highly efficient scoring style of his sophomore season. The Gaels had excellent scorers in Matthew Dellavedova, Steven Holt and Brad Waldow. So, Young stepped up as a rebounder. He pulled down nearly a quarter (24.5%) of available defensive rebounds, which made him the 35th most efficient defensive rebounder in the country and by far the best at Saint Mary's.
He also became a more effective distributor. He dished out 46 assists over his first three seasons as a Gael but accounted for 30 in his fourth.
Perhaps the most memorable change in his game came at the free throw line. He improved his FT% 8.4% from his junior year to 73.4% as a senior (a full 10% higher than his career average).
On New Year's Eve ESPN ran back-to-back games featuring WCC teams and both came down to the wire. First, Gonzaga escaped Stillwater, OK with a one point victory over #22 Oklahoma State. Then Saint Mary's avoided a devastating home loss against Harvard by one point. (Nights like that make one want to take good care of one's heart.)
I say "devastating" because had the Gaels lost that game against Harvard they likely would have missed out on the NCAA Tournament. The win over Harvard was, along with the win at BYU (that amazingly also came down to the final second and finished with the same score), the Gaels' best win of the season. Considering the Gaels were put in a First Four game in the NCAA Tournament, the selection committee obviously thought that they did just enough to warrant an at-large bid. One more loss on their resume, especially at home to a non-at-large worthy team, should have kept them out of the dance altogether.
Anyways, back to Mitchell Young. I say this is the most memorable change in his game because it was Young who won the game against Harvard, from the free throw line, for Saint Mary's. The Gaels had trailed the Crimson for the first 39 minutes and 58.9 seconds. Watch the video below to see how Young won the game. He wins it with the two most improved aspects of his game, rebounding and free throw shooting.
On May 14th, Young signed a two year deal with the Cairns Taipans of Australia's NBL. He will play alongside former Saint Mary's teammate Clint Steindl with the Taipans as well as with the Australian National Team. Young and Steindl are part of the 17-man roster for the Sino-Australia Series. The Australian Boomers will play the Chinese Men's National Team four times, twice in Australia (June 7th and 9th) and twice in China (June 12th and 14th).
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