Vandal fans may know junior forward Kyson Rose by all his accomplishments on the court, but who is Rose, and how did he get here? Rose grew up in Kennewick, Washington, about two hours away from Moscow. However, his story goes way beyond the Evergreen State.
From his fifth to ninth-grade years, Rose lived in Hawaii before moving back to Washington, attending Kamiakin High School and showing out for the Braves. Rose, the captain of the Braves from 2018-2020, had a tremendous senior season. He led the Braves to a district and regional championship and a sixth-place finish at state.
Rose also had a career-high 46 points in a game, which got him to his favorite moment as a basketball player.
“My dream as a child was to be on the Wall of Fame at Kamiakin, and to do that, you have to break a record. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was the game that put me over the edge to do that,” he said. “Since I was a kid going to Kamiakin games and dreaming about being good, that game was not only a record-breaking game but also what helped me get on the wall.”
After four successful years for the Braves, Rose signed to play college basketball at Central Washington. After two seasons for the Wildcats, Rose appeared in 24 games, and after the Covid breakout, Rose decided it was time for a change and transferred to Walla Walla.
“I think Covid was a super hard experience. It was nothing the coaches and the players did. I just thought going somewhere else would be better for my mental health,” he said.
After being committed to Whitworth University, Rose changed his mind and came to the University of Idaho after a conversation with Head Coach Alex Pribble. “Honestly, I came here because of Coach Pribble. On my visit, I was blown away by how beautiful this place is and by his vision of the team,” he said.
Rose’s journey with Idaho has not been all sunshine and rainbows. Rose started the season as the team’s starting forward. However, he got benched based on poor performance but has been surging lately.
“My process with that was just do what’s best for the team. I wasn’t playing my best basketball, (and) I just wanted to win games. There was no tension within the team. It was just business,” he said. “When I wasn’t playing as much, I got to reflect on why I love basketball and why I chose to come here, and I had the option to roll over and quit or figure it out. So, I used that time to push through it and figure it out.”
Rose certainly figured it out in the last six games, and he has been back in the starting lineup. He has averaged 11.5 points per game and three rebounds, and his resurgence has led to the Vandals winning three out of their last six games.
“At the beginning of the season, I was trying to figure out if I belonged here,” he said. “Throughout the season, people were saying I shouldn’t be here. He isn’t playing (well), stop playing him, just things I should not have been listening to. What’s changed is that I stopped caring about that stuff and got myself into a mindset to let loose and play my game.”
Despite the struggles, Rose loves being a Vandal. “It has meant the world. I get a little emotional talking about it because of this community, the way they rallied around us, this team, and how they believe in me and each other,” he said.
The belief his coaching staff has in the team has also been crucial to Rose’s success.
“The way Pribble believes in us it’s just something I have never had before,” Rose said. “Growing up, if you would have told me I would have come to Idaho and be a starter and helped turn the program around, I would have laughed at you.”
Rose likes to do various things outside of basketball and class, including cooking. “I love to play Xbox with my friends back home. To be able to keep those relationships is huge. I like cooking a lot as well. I’ll be cooking it up in the Kitchen in my free time,” Rose said.
Growing up, Rose dreamed of playing college basketball, and has some advice for the younger generation of basketball players. “I would tell them to believe in themselves. If you work hard enough, anything’s possible,” he said.
After Rose graduates college, he wants to continue his basketball career. “I want to play overseas,” he said. “I’ve got connections in Greece. I think it is cool to play basketball and earn money. That’s my dream.”
Catch Rose and the Vandals as they aim to keep the momentum rolling into the Big Sky tournament in a couple weeks.
Jayden Barfuss can be reached at [email protected] or on X @JaydenBarfuss10