It's difficult to fathom there are many college basketball players in the country who have taken a more circuitous route to their current destination than Antonio DiMaria.

Next month, DiMaria's lengthy, unconventional trip will take yet another sharp turn, this one landing the West End resident more than 1,500 miles away from home.

DiMaria is set to begin classes at Casper Community College in Wyoming in late August. It's there where DiMaria, a 22-year-old sophomore (eligibility-wise), will display his talents before playing his final two seasons of college basketball, probably at the University of Wyoming.

The choice to continue his college career, particularly considering DiMaria's age and his already roundabout journey, might appear extreme to some, but for DiMaria it's all about the passion he has for the game.

"I've still got goals. I still want to play over in Europe when I'm done with college," said DiMaria, a 6-foot-7 guard/forward. "This is what I do. I'm a basketball player. So I'm going to go wherever I can play."

DiMaria sure has illustrated that point ... time and time and time and time again. The amount of stops DiMaria has made the past five years have been so frequent that it wouldn't be a shock if even DiMaria himself has lost track of some of the places he has been.

After beginning his high school career at Sewickley Academy, DiMaria transferred to Bishop Canevin early in his junior season. The WPIAL, however, declared DiMaria ineligible after determining his move was for athletic intent, so he didn't make his Bishop Canevin debut until a few games into his senior season. DiMaria had signed with Duquesne University that fall, but was granted a release from his scholarship when coach Danny Nee resigned the following spring.

A "free agent" again, DiMaria elected to attend Patterson School, a top-notch prep school in North Carolina, before committing to Kent State.

Appearing to have finally found a permanent home, DiMaria redshirted his first year at Kent State and was set to be a major contributor last season. But coach Jim Christian suddenly left for Texas Christian University, and DiMaria said he didn't fit well into new coach Geno Ford's system. So, after playing sparingly in three games, DiMaria left Kent State at the semester break last December.

"I didn't fit in there anymore. It wasn't really the right place for me, so I got out early instead of wasting the whole year there," he said.

That's when DiMaria called Nee -- DiMaria said the two still talk frequently -- who set him up with his son, Patrick, who coached Highlands Community College in Kansas. DiMaria attended classes there last spring, before attracting the attention of the University of Wyoming, a Division I school that competes in the Mountain West Conference.

"An assistant at Wyoming, Shaun Vandiver, had seen me play a lot in high school, and heard that I left Kent and went out to [Highlands CC], and that's when he started talking to me," DiMaria said. "It sounded good, so I committed to them and now I'm out at Casper."

In lieu of his traveling to his newest destination, DiMaria is back home playing for the PBC team in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club's Pro-Am Summer League at the Greentree Sports Complex. Additionally, DiMaria went to Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma last weekend to participate in a camp that features some of the top junior college players in the country.

"I'm just trying to tighten up every part of my game, so when I head out to Casper, I'm ready to roll," DiMaria said.

For someone like DiMaria who could have been bucked off his ride to college basketball success a multitude of times, it only makes sense that he is heading to a state where rodeo is king.

"I'm happy with the way everything turned out. I really am," DiMaria said. "A lot of people call me crazy for going to all of these different places, and I'm like, 'If you were in my shoes and you saw it the way I saw it, then you'd know it was all worth it.'"