For Virginia basketball, Mustapha Farrakhan has made quite a name for himself -

Virginia senior guard Mustapha Farrakhan howled and slapped both palms on the court after missing a layup during a 4-for-13√ performance in Saturday's home loss to Boston College.

In his first two seasons, such a play would have haunted Farrakhan. But thanks largely to the opportunities afforded by second-year Coach Tony Bennett, Farrakhan more easily moves past his mistakes.

As Virginia's leader in points scored and minutes played this season√, Farrakhan has relished being able to develop on the court instead of solely off it. His final chance to demonstrate his growth at John Paul Jones Arena will come Tuesday during Virginia's home finale against N.C. State (15-13, 5-9).

"I couldn't throw a brick in the ocean" against Florida State, Farrakhan said in a recent interview with a handful of reporters a few days after shooting 3 for 15√ from the field. "It's not going to be perfect every time. And I think that's what I was when I first got here. I was so much of a perfectionist. I've got to make every shot. I've got to do this right. I can't get beat off the dribble. Some games, it's just not going to click."

When Farrakhan arrived at Virginia, he was used to things clicking. The Illinois General Assembly passed a state resolution his senior year in honor of his athletic and academic achievements at Thornton Township High, where he was a first-team all-state selection.

But under then-Virginia coach Dave Leitao, Farrakhan averaged 6.1 minutes√ per game his freshman season, and his playing time increased only marginally — to 10.4√ per game — during his sophomore campaign.

"Mustapha wears his emotions in his face," Farrakhan's father, Mustapha Sr., said. "You can tell when he's upset, and most of the time when you challenge him, he's upset at himself ... You may see his eyebrows very passionate about it. Coach Leitao, I guess, didn't like it, and he would always have something to say to Mustapha about that.

"So when he would say stuff like that, Mustapha was trying to tell him, 'I'm not mad.' They kept asking him, 'Why you mad?' And he would say, 'But I'm not. That's just the way my face looks.' The coaches felt that if Mustapha makes a bad play, his mind will be stuck on that bad play while the game is going on, and he won't get it together maybe until two plays later."

During his sophomore year, which he called “one of the lowest points in my life,” Farrakhan got a tattoo on his left shoulder of a basketball with the meaning of his name — “The Chosen One” in Arabic — transcribed above it. He also had frequent discussions with his parents about his frustrations.

Farrakhan's father, who encouraged his son to remain at Virginia, said Mustapha "absolutely" would have transferred that had Leitao not been fired following the 2008-09 season√.

“I wanted him to see that his choice [of where to attend college] wasn’t a bad choice based on everything that was shown him” at the time of his recruitment, Farrakhan Sr. said. “His choice became a bad choice because of his handling of it.”

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Farrakhan also consulted with his grandfather, Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam. Louis Farrakhan’s controversial views and highly publicized comments on issues of race, religion, sexuality and leadership have made Mustapha’s last name a matter of intrigue.

But Mustapha said his family’s notoriety never has come up in discussions with teammates and that his ancestry has not been an issue around campus during his stay at Virginia.

"I know that with my last name, there's not that many people with my last name, so people are going to know who I am or my background," Mustapha said. "But it doesn't feel any different. When people meet me, I'm still the same person that I always am. It just doesn't feel any different to me. I don't know how to put it because it just feels the same as I first got here and now that I'm on my way out, it never changed."

On the court, Farrakhan has undergone significant evolution in the past two years. Bennett's arrival precipitated a fresh start for all the players, and Farrakhan seized the opportunity. His playing time, while inconsistent, rose to 21 minutes√ per game last year, during which he had his last name tattooed across the back of his shoulder blades in block letters.

This season Farrakhan has averaged a team-high 30.5 minutes√ and 13.2 points√ per contest.

"He can go on runs offensively and get so excited," Bennett said. "Sometimes he'll battle his emotions and get discouraged or get off the track a little bit earlier, and I think he's improved in handling that. But part of who he is and what makes him good is that he does play with emotion. ... When he has either a bad stretch or an off night, that's his greatest challenge, to overcome that and get back to it."

After a dismal performance at the Maui Invitational in late November when Farrakhan tallied 14 points combined in three games, he scored 23 points in an upset win at Minnesota. He followed a three-game stretch in December during which he shot a combined 5 for 28 (17.9 percent) from the field with an 11 for 12 shooting performance against Howard.

Farrakhan remained confident following his poor shooting performance Saturday that he would respond against N.C. State. He'll have added incentive against N.C. State, as Louis Farrakhan plans to be in attendance Tuesday night to see his grandson play college basketball live for the first time.

Though he wishes his request to redshirt during his freshman year would have been granted so that he could extend his on-court maturation one more year, Farrakhan is grateful for how his college career has concluded. He would not have lasted at Virginia this long without the guidance of his family, and he said he's excited to show his grandfather how far he has come.

“Coming from high school where you’re out there on the floor and being able to play just to come and sit down and not being able to contribute at all or come in sparingly was very tough,” Farrakhan said. “I would call my dad and say, ‘Why me? Why would this happen to me?’ And my dad would respond, ‘Why not you? What makes you different than anybody else?’ ”

One night, the answer finally clicked.

“You know what, Dad?” Farrakhan said. “You’re right.”

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