Kalib Thomas Found the Second Chance He Needed at Centre College

Centre College Athletics Photo

He played on an Alabama state championship team his high school sophomore season and he knew he didn’t want to go far from home in Birmingham to play college basketball.

Kalib Thomas realized Division III Birmingham Southern seemed like the best option for him. He enjoyed his freshman season and thought he had made the right choice when he got the news the school was closing.

“Yes, panic set in for sure,” said Thomas. “It kind of felt like my high school senior season all over. I am taking visits, trying to find a new school. I visited the majority of schools in the conference (Southern Athletic Association) but it really came down to Rhodes or Centre. I could have just decided not to keep playing basketball but I knew I wanted to play.”

Centre College interim coach Gavin Root certainly is glad former Centre coach Greg Mason found a way to get the guard to Danville after he averaged 14.4 minutes, 6.7 points and 1.6 rebounds per game for Birmingham Southern as a freshman. He averaged 11.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 26.7 minutes per game last season at Centre and started 17 games.

Thomas opened this season with 18 points on 5-for-8 shooting, including 4-for-5 from 3, in 24 minutes a win over Asbury.. He also had four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Centre plays its second game of the season at Berea Saturday afternoon.

Thomas felt the “vibe” at Centre on his visit set the Colonels apart from other teams. He liked the small town environment and felt it was more his “speed” than other places he visited.

“Once we looked at the campus, I think from that point I knew I was going to Centre. I didn’t tell him (Mason) that I’m kind of more of a laid back, chill kind of guy and the campus and town just  matched my personality,” Thomas said.

Thomas injured his knee midway of the 2024-25 season but worked his way back into the lineup and helped Centre reach the conference tournament title game.

“The second half of the season didn’t go as planned but it was a pretty successful season that we can build on,” he said.

He had to deal with change again when Mason, Centre’s all-time winningest coach, announced his retirement to enter private business and Root, last year’s assistant coach, was named interim coach.

“It was definitely shocking. We thought we were just having a beginning of the season kind of meeting and when he (Mason) told us,” Thomas said. “Once we knew Root was gonna be the interim, we felt pretty comfortable since he was the coach for the end of last year (when Mason had some health issues). It wasn’t that big of a change after I got over the initial shock.”

So what’s the difference between Mason and Root as head coaches?

“That’s a good question. I would probably say Root is a little bit more modern with technology. He’s younger, but he’s probably not as good a dresser, though, as Mason,” Thomas said. “We may play a little different way but as far as the coaching, I don’t think it’ll be much different. I think last year he (Root) showed us how he would act as a head coach.”

Even though Thomas grew up in Alabama, he didn’t play football. His father played basketball and Thomas “fell in love” with the same sport.

“My dad definitely taught me the work ethic part and my high school coach played at Alabama, played overseas and showed me what it would take if I wanted to be really good.” the Centre junior said.

He believes his scoring is what he does best but is not an “irrational” scorer.

“I feel like I score in the flow of the game,” he said. “I can defer to someone else if needed but I also know I can go get a bucket when needed. If I come out and make two or three early shots, then I feel like maybe I should keep shooting. But if I miss two or three shots, I understand maybe I should try to get a paint touch for someone or swing the ball around.

“I think as a team we are pretty good offensively but I also think our defense is what’s gonna take us to that next level. I feel like defense can be fun if you are getting up into players. Chatting on the court is not really my nature but if someone is talking stuff to me, maybe I will say something but I won’t start it. I like to let my game do my talking.”

If he has free time, he’ll maybe watch a football or volleyball game on campus but normally he’s just in his room with friends.

He’s a business major and learned quickly that “you really are a student-athlete” at Centre where academics are the priority.

“I am taking accounting classes right now but I am not really sure what I want to do after I graduate but right now I have plenty to keep me busy,” he said.