This hooper might be the most unlikely Atlantan in the NCAA Tournament

But not only has this Atlanta hooper found his way to Fargo, North Dakota, but he’s a walk-on.

That means his family is footing the bill for him to attend school and pursue his playing career in a far-flung land where his hands once got frostbite in the time it took him to walk from his dorm to the arena.

“It’s freezing out there, that’s for sure,” Saunders, a freshman guard, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Wednesday at KeyBank Center.

How did it happen?

As a senior at Landmark Christian a year ago, Saunders was not getting any recruiting attention, he said.

He was a 1,000-point scorer and an all-region selection, but the fact that he is listed at 5-foot-11, and that measurement appears to be generous, probably had something to do with it.

Running out of time, Saunders’ father, Leroy, tried a connection with NDSU athletic director Matt Larsen, a football teammate at Stony Brook in New York. That led to an invitation to walk on.

At first, Saunders wasn’t so sure about going all the way to Fargo for college.

“I was like, ‘Whoa — North Dakota?’” Saunders said.

But his father appealed to their faith, for Saunders to not be afraid of where God was leading him.

“I was like, ‘All right, cool,’” said Saunders, demonstrating the sort of blind trust that pastors like to use in sermons.

And off he went.

I asked him to describe winter in Fargo.

“Man, it’s cold,” Saunders said. “It’s cold. Just know that.”

Cold enough that he has to wear a ski mask to protect himself from the snow and bitter wind. Cold enough that, on a recruiting visit that he recalls as being in April, the car door of the assistant coach showing him around froze shut. And cold enough that his parents had to buy him heated gloves to protect his hands on the walk from dorm to gym, a distance of about five minutes.

“Those come in clutch,” he said.

Saunders comes across as someone easy to root for.

“Just a great kid,” assistant coach Luke Strege told the AJC as he watched the Bison practice. “Teammates love him.”

“He just brings joy to the team,” said guard Markhi Strickland, himself a transplant from Miami. “He’s always happy.”

Saunders has appeared in eight games, logging 16 minutes. His primary job on the team is playing on the scout team in practice to prepare the regulars.

It has been humbling, he said, “but it’s been real cool, though, putting them first and making sure that they’re ready for the game, making sure it’s easier for them when they get out there.”

But check this out. In his few minutes, he is 5-for-7 from 3-point range.

There is a story there. Saunders came to Fargo with a repertoire that heavily featured his midrange jump shot. It is a selection that many coaches disdain, preferring the efficiency of 3-pointers and shots at the basket.

NDSU coach David Richman is such a coach, to the degree that Saunders was barked at when he dared attempt a midrange shot in a summer practice.

“They told me, ‘We don’t do midranges here at the school,’” Saunders said. “So I was like, ‘OK, cool.’ From then on out, I just worked on my 3’s.”

Putting up hundreds of shots after practice, his accuracy in a small sample size is the result.

Even in a day when athletes transfer at the drop of a hat, Saunders plans to remain in Fargo. His next goal is to earn a scholarship.

“I’m going to stick it out,” he said. “I’m a warrior.”

He called his tournament appearance a dream come true, validation of his hard work and dedication. It is also, he said, evidence that his father’s encouragement to heed his faith was unerring.

“Most definitely a surreal moment,” he said. “I’m still taking it all in. I’m ready to go, though, for sure.”

Aren’t we all.

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