Growing up attending University of Alaska Anchorage men’s basketball games, Bishop Tosi dreamed of being a Seawolf.
In the 2023-24 season, he finally got his chance.
But Tosi, who graduated from Bartlett High School in 2021, suffered a season-ending injury in just his third game.
After a lengthy rehabilitation, Tosi is back healthy and thriving playing for the team he grew up rooting for. The injury and recovery has given the junior forward new perspective on how much the game means to him.
“It can be taken away so quickly, and I think that is one thing I hadn’t really come to terms with yet,” Tosi said. “Having it taken away and having another year back, I’m just smelling the roses as I’m going through the years now.”
His career as a Seawolf got off to a sizzling start and in the third game of the season Tosi had charted 24 points, his career-high at the Division II level. Tosi suffered a compound dislocation of his pinky finger while diving for a ball at the end of the game, resulting in the bone popping out of the skin.
“I ran off the court and went to the hospital that night to have surgery and fix it and they found a whole bunch of other stuff that was wrong with it,” he said. “It was a lot more of a process than I thought it was going to be.”
His parents were confused and in disbelief when he told them what happened and how it happened on such a routine part of the game.
Since it was just his pinky finger, they all didn’t think he’d be out for an extended period of time at first, but it wound up taking the whole season to fully and properly recover. Tosi is healthy now and back to being a full-time starter and key contributor this year as a strong presence in the post.
“Being back this year is kind of starting off where I left it and being able to go out there and be a lot more comfortable than I was last year was huge.”
And if not for a global pandemic, Tosi would have come straight to UAA from Bartlett.
UAA head coach Rusty Osborne said the Seawolves recruited Tosi out of high school but were unable to offer him a scholarship. Because of COVID-19, UAA didn’t play during Tosi’s senior season at Bartlett, creating a logjam as all of their players returned the next season with an extra year of eligibility.
That logjam prevented Tosi from being able to stay close to home to continue his basketball career at the collegiate level. The circumstance was disappointing but not the end of the world.
He didn’t think leaving the state would be helpful, but it wound up being “very beneficial” to his growth on and off the court as a player and person overall.
Tosi attended Bellevue College, where he helped lead the team to back-to-back Northwest Athletic Conference title-game appearances and a championship while averaging 15.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.5 blocks as a sophomore.
“It was a different style of basketball than I had played,” Tosi said. “It gave me confidence and kind of proved that I could do it coming out of high school where I didn’t have any offers outside of the JUCO level. Once I went there and was able to play good, I got more options which was very uplifting to me.”
He finally got a chance to join his hometown team after breaking out in the 2022-23 season and transferred to UAA that summer.
“Last year it was fun to get going again coming from a (junior college) to a (Division) II, it’s hard to get comfortable but once I finally did get comfortable, I got hurt,” Tosi said.
Finding a ‘new normal’ and deeper appreciation for the game
Regaining his shot “took a minute to get the feeling back” and get comfortable. Tosi still has his shooting hand taped to protect the finger.
“It feels different when I shoot but it’s just getting used to my new normal,” Tosi said.
Having to watch the rest of the 2023-24 season from the bench after a hot start was difficult to stomach initially but he quickly shifted his perspective to a more positive outlook.
“It was hard at first but then I took a step back and realized I could get something out of it,” Tosi said.
His injury marked his first time not playing basketball for an extended period of time and being able to take that involuntary step back made him even more grateful for the opportunity he had to come back.
It wasn’t until March of last year that he was able to get back to normalcy from a physical standpoint but even after that, he spent the summer trying to get used to his finger.
“It took a long time to figure out what worked because I wanted to just keep it safe and figure out what was comfortable with my shooting hand,” Tosi said.
While he hasn’t picked up exactly where he left off in the game he got injured, he is still averaging double figures in scoring with 11 points per game.
Tosi also leads the team in total rebounds through 22 games with 132, an average of half a dozen per game.
“It’s really my teammates,” he said. “They have a lot of trust in me and it allows me to go out there and do my thing. Knowing that they want me to be successful is really helpful.”
Osborne says he brings “strength and athleticism” to his position on this year’s team and even though he is listed at 6-foot-6 and 230 pounds, Tosi plays “bigger than his size” which is an aspect they need from him this year.
Pride in representing Alaska and a legendary family legacy
Tosi is one of seven players from the Last Frontier on the team and being able to represent his hometown and state is a privilege he doesn’t take for granted.
“It’s a whole lot of fun seeing people at games that I haven’t seen in so long. I’ve seen a lot of teachers and old friends, it’s really a full circle moment,” Tosi said.
He is glad to have fellow Alaskans on the team including some who he once played against in fellow junior Hasaan Herrington and senior Luke Devine.
“It means a lot for us to be able to represent our state,” Tosi said.
He is the son of Mao Tosi who was part of a high school hoops dynasty at East High in the 1990s alongside Alaska hoops legend Trajan Langdon. His dad was a two-sport star who played collegiately at the University of Idaho before playing two seasons in the NFL for the Arizona Cardinals.
“One thing my dad always tells me and tells all of us before every game is just ‘Play hard and have fun’ and he says ‘I love you,’ ” Tosi said. “The main point of sports is of course to go out and win but also give it all you have and have fun.”
His younger brother Kingston is one of the top high school basketball players in the country, playing at Millennium High School in Arizona.
“I’d like to say that I helped him get better from beating him up all the time growing up but he’s really good and I’m happy to see how well he’s doing,” Tosi said.
Helping the Seawolves get back on track
UAA is in the midst of a five-game losing streak during which only one came by double figures and each of the last three came by four points or less. Tosi believes they are close to turning the tide in tight games so that they can start coming out on top more often than they fall short.
“Really we just need to steal a couple possessions because we are right there,” Tosi said. “We’re not getting blown out every night. We’re a good team and we have a belief in ourselves. It’s really just bringing that belief into some concrete evidence and going out there and proving it with our actions.”
The Seawolves’ will have two chances to get back in the win column for the first time in three weeks starting on Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. when they host the last team they beat in Western Washington at the Alaska Airlines Center followed by another GNAC matchup on Saturday night against Simon Fraser at 5:15 p.m.
“We’re just focusing on the next game,” Tosi said. “Of course we believe we’re still going to win but it’s been awhile. … Every game is different. They’re going to bring new stuff, we’re going to bring new stuff and it’s just any given night in our conference.”
Osborne believes his team needs to specifically improve when it comes to defensive rebounding and scoring more consistently which will be a challenge moving forward with senior guard Sean Evans out with a knee injury he recently suffered. He is the Seawolves’ second leading scorer behind junior guard Tyler Burraston.
“Hopefully we make the proper adjustments and everyone feels comfortable in their new roles,” he said.