Jimmy Baron of URI, right, battling for a loose ball against Fairleigh Dickinson on Jan. 2, is closing in on 1,000 points.

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

SOUTH KINGSTOWN — If form follows, Jimmy Baron will score his 1,000th point in a University of Rhode Island uniform tomorrow night when the Rams host George Washington at the Ryan Center.

The junior guard needs 12 points to become the 46th player in the 102-year history of the program to reach that milestone. While it is a major moment in any player’s career, in Baron’s case it means even more because of who he is.

He is, of course, the son of the coach. That makes his road to the 1,000-point club different than most. And it makes his place in school history a bit different, too.

If he continues at his current pace, Baron Jr. could end up with a very special place in school annals. For all the success the program has had, going back to the Frank Keaney days that have helped produce more than 1,300 victories, the list of great players from Rhode Island at the state university is relatively small.

Two stand out as the best Rhode Islanders ever to play at the school — Ernie Calverley and Tommy Garrick.

Calverley, from Pawtucket, was the biggest of the heroes in the Keaney era when URI led the country in scoring nine times. He piled up 1,522 points in his three years on the varsity, 1943-46, including the shot heard ’round the world. That came in the 1946 NIT , part of a season in which Calverley led the nation in scoring.

Calverley made URI his life. He went on to become basketball coach and athletic director at the school.

Garrick is doing much the same. An unheralded guard out of West Warwick High, he scored 1,573 points from 1984-88, ninth most in school history. After a career in the NBA, he returned to URI, first as an assistant coach with the men’s team and now as head coach of the women’s team.

Baron’s connection with coaching happens to be a bit different. The family moved to the state seven years ago, more than long enough to make Jimmy Baron a Rhode Islander. He is on pace to end up in the same neighborhood as Calverley and Garrick, around 1,500 to 1,600 points. He is a typical coach’s son in many ways.

One is his dedication to the game. He is the classic gym rat who has grown up with the game. His late-night shooting sessions in the dark at the Ryan Center — he gets the keys from his father and works out even if the lights cannot be turned on — are a legend around the school. He broke Tyson Wheeler’s school record for 3-pointers in a season last winter, with 97, and is on pace to shatter that mark again this year. He soon will pass Preston Murphy for second place in 3-pointers made and will be behind only Wheeler in that department.

While he is best known for his shooting, he knows the right way to play the game. One person involved with the program told a story, as the season was beginning, about how he expected the team to be focused this season, to have fewer ups and downs than most other teams. He spoke about how the veteran leadership was excellent with seniors Will Daniels, Parfait Bitee and Joe Mbang. Beyond that, Kahiem Seawright, a two-year regular and a vocal presence, had become a leader, too. And he spoke about how Baron had become a big part of it, also.

“Jimmy’s different this year,” he said. “He’s much more of a leader than he was the first two years.”

It was hard, the man said, for Baron in his first season. Because he was the son of the coach, there was some skepticism among the other players. Baron had to tread lightly. Jim Baron the coach has gone out of his way not to treat his son any differently. If anything, he has been harder on his son than other players because he, too, is aware of the situation.

By last season, everyone on the team knew how good he was, on and off the court. He became one of the guys, one of the guys who also happens to be a bright, articulate dean’s list student. This year he has become even more than that.

“When the team is together, he’s much more willing to speak up and make sure everyone knows what he should be doing,” the insider said. “Add him to the others and we’ve got great leadership on this team.”

As a player, Baron’s value goes beyond the excellent numbers he has posted. Ron Everhart, the Duquesne coach, spoke about it after URI edged his team last week.

“You have to pay so much attention to where Baron is because he’s such a good shooter that you can’t focus as much on the others,” Everhart said.

URI has had other in-state players who had outstanding careers. Three others who would be high on that list are Jeff Kent, Bruce Blount and Dave Stenhouse, all 1,000-point scorers.

Still, Calverley and Garrick stand above the rest. If Baron keeps going, it will be a threesome at the top by the end of next season.

pkenyon@projo.com