There's something most people don't know about senior guard Bryce Canda.

Most know that the Grant High School standout is a community college transfer (Central Wyoming Junior College).  And, a lot of people know that he leads the team in steals this season, and is among the Vikings' leaders in scoring (14.1 ppg), rebounding (6.0 rpg), three-point shooting (68 3-pt FG) and assists (74). 

A few know he's an Arts and Letters major.  And fewer still know the reason he's majoring in Arts and Letters is "so I could take graphic design and art."  You see, since his sophomore year in high school, Canda has wanted to be a fashion designer with his own label.
      
"As a sophomore, I was always aware of how people dressed.  I'd look at their shoes and how they dressed. That drew me in and I've noticed those things since then," Canda said.
      
And, by the way, he's also collected shoes during that period. Today, he's got a collection of about 100 pairs, some quite valuable ("I bought a pair for $185 and today they're worth $1,000").
      
All that will have to wait though because Canda has the rest of this PSU basketball season to get through and he's hoping to play in Europe after that.
      
"Bryce could play at a lot of different levels. He can do a lot… he shoots, rebounds and he can play defense. He has the ability to play at a high level," said 1^st year Head Basketball Coach Barret Peery.
      
On the floor, the 6-4 Canda has come a long way from being one of the shortest kids on the team when he began playing basketball in the sixth grade. That he was interested in athletics isn't surprising. Hid dad John Canda played basketball at Jefferson High School and in the Air Force. His oldest sister Brandi ran sprints and distances at Washington State. And, he began his athletic endeavors at the age of four… running track.
     
He looked at football, but liked basketball better.
      
"Basketball is a more explosive and exciting sport. It's a game about scoring and you're not all covered up by a helmet and pads. Everyone can see you, which makes it exciting," he said. Plus, he said, "I didn't want to get hurt" noting that the collisions are different. They're not at such a high speed.
       
Perhaps most importantly "I got good at basketball. I could score and when I played AAU ball, the coaches worked me out and trained me and I got good at scoring."
      
Canda quit being one of the team's shortest members as a high school junior. He grew four inches, to 6-2 between his sophomore and junior years at Grant. Then, as Grant made a playoff run, he started hearing from college coaches. He heard from a couple of Pac-12 schools and from some junior college coaches. He chose the latter.
      
"I needed to get my grades up and I wasn't physically ready to play D-I basketball," he said.  As a senior in high school, he weighed only 160 pounds. So, it was off to Central Wyoming where his goals were to grow (he grew two inches), gain weight and "to get my grades up so I could play at a university."
     
At Wyoming, he averaged 19.3 points per game, 6.1 rebounds while shooting .468 from the field and .415 from three-point range. He was named first team All-Region 9 and heard from 26 Division I programs during his second year there.
      
He chose the Vikings because "PSU stayed with me. You know, as the recruiting process goes on, schools drop in and out, but PSU wanted me the most." And, he could play in front of his friends and family.
      
His first year as a Viking, Canda started 24 games and averaged 10.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists. He scored in double figures in 18 games and ranked 15^th in the Big Sky in three pointers made.
     
As he mentally prepared for his senior season, he learned that the Vikings had signed 7-1 graduate transfer Ryan Edwards. He was excited.
     
"I was really excited. I'd never played with a seven-foot player or with anyone coming from a top program like Gonzaga. I know coming from Gonzaga that he'd played behind some really great players and for a great program. He could share stories with us and he'd be fun to have around. It also would be fun to have that pressure down low," Canda said.
     
For a number of reasons, including Edwards, Canda had high hopes for his last year of college basketball.
     
"We had all the pieces. We had the coaches. My expectation was to have fun and to have a winning season," he said.
     
Then, right out of the box, the Vikings played the nation's number one team (at that time), Duke.
     
Playing Duke was a little daunting on national television. "Still, we played them tough (PSU led well into the second half). It opened our eyes that if we lock in and play right, we could beat any team in the country. I mean, we were really excited to play them. They were the number one team at the time and we knew there was a reason they were there. That opened our eyes."    
      
Canda's highlight during his Viking experience isn't a game or a moment… "it's the way we've come together this season and with a first year coach, it's been special."
       
And, Peery said it's been special coaching Canda. "He really works on his game. He comes every day working to get better and he cares about winning. I was excited to have him here when I came. I've really enjoyed coaching him."