For a guy who wants to play basketball overseas after college, sophomore Rocky Hampton’s first ever practice was anything but impressive.

“I was a dork,” said Hampton. “My friend’s dad asked me to play on a traveling team in seventh grade and I showed up in hiking boots.”

Even in the first grade, Hampton was the biggest kid in his class. Now standing at 6 feet 9 inches tall and playing center for the Biola basketball team, he is still an intimidating specimen.

And no, he doesn’t box, but he was given the nickname “Rocky” after the movie character in place of “Romke,” his real name.

Hampton came to Biola as a business major in 2005 from Lake Arrowhead, Calif. He grew up in a resort community that he proudly said had snow days.

Athletic ability is in the Hampton family. His sister Tavea, a freshman plays for the Biola volleyball team, while his other sister in high school is a talented volleyball player as well.

His father was drafted for the Vietnam War, but they chose to put him on the Army basketball team instead.

“It was either play hard or get shipped out for him,” said Hampton.

Biola men’s basketball Head Coach Dave Holmquist doesn’t ship people off like the military, but Hampton admitted he enjoys playing hard under Holmquist’s pressure to perform.

“Close games are the most fun,” he said. “We love beating Azusa — that’s our favorite thing to do.” He went on to admit his least favorite thing to do is run, which is something he did a lot of this pre-season.

Though the men’s team is still young, Hampton is optimistic about the upcoming season. According to him, the atmosphere of a team changes every season, and this one is good.

“We don’t have anyone who is really selfish,” Hampton said, “and it hasn’t been that way in past years.”

Hampton loves the Christian atmosphere Biola provides. He also understands it is too easy to take that atmosphere for granted and just assume that’s how everything is in the rest of the world.

“I like how it’s normal to see someone out reading their Bible,” he said. “And I like that I don’t have any coaches breathing down my neck swearing at me —that’s definitely not the atmosphere I would want to be in.”