The reward for persistence is inexact.
When or if it will arrive can't be predicted.
As a freshman on Xavier's men's basketball team last season, Dontarius James played a total of 40 minutes.
The 6-foot-7 forward from Kershaw, South Carolina, was never able to really work his way into the game plan.
Sunday when James, now a sophomore, exited the game at the end of a win over St. John's, a large portion of the sold-out Cintas Center crowd gave James a standing ovation.
"It felt real good," James smiled at the podium, making his first appearance in a Xavier post-game press conference.