HOOVER, Ala. — UA not rushing Harris
Arkansas Coach Tom Collen is taking a wait-and-see approach with shooting guard Lyndsay Harris.
Harris, who averaged 12.3 points a year ago, is returning from torn ligaments in her right knee after she was hurt against Florida in the SEC Tournament. Harris has been practicing for the past two weeks but is still tentative, Collen said Thursday at SEC media day.
“We’re trying to be cautious with her,” Collen said.
“She has a little problem with her gait when she runs, and we need to see improvement in that area. The other thing we need to see is, she can’t be hesitant. It’s what everybody goes through.”
Collen said Harris is probably about 75 percent.
The Razorbacks have a little luxury in not hurrying Harris back because of improved depth in the back court, although Harris is the team’s best three-point shooter and one of the best in the conference.
“We need her at 100 percent,” Collen said. “The kids who will play in front of her, their 100 percent is better than her 75. That’s not a knock on her. If we can’t roll her out, we’re going to play.
“Whether we’re going to miss her or not, I don’t know. We have other kids raring to go and want the opportunity.”
Arkansas, 22-12 a year ago, opens the season Nov.
11 at the WBI Tip-off Classic in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Holloway eligible
Ole Miss Coach Andy Kennedy prides himself on not being surprised with anything that happens in his program, but Murphy Holloway has caught Kennedy off-guard twice.
“Two of the most surprising days of my coaching career were the day Murphy left and the day that Murphy came back,” Kennedy said.
“Completely out of left field both times, but such are the ebbs and flow of life.”
Earlier this week Ole Miss announced Holloway, a 6-10 redshirt junior who transferred from South Carolina this year, is eligible to play for the Rebels immediately after he received waivers from the SEC and NCAA.
“Obviously, it’s a great day for Murphy, and it makes Ole Miss basketball better,” Kennedy said.
Holloway started for Ole Miss as a sophomore during the 2009-2010 season, then transferred to South Carolina to be closer to his Irmo, S.C., home for family reasons. After sitting out as a redshirt at South Carolina last year, Holloway contacted Kennedy about transferring back to Ole Miss.
“I’ve never heard of that happening,” Kennedy said of a player going back and forth between conference schools. “But I was always optimistic that once the NCAA and SEC saw the merits of his case and the reason he made the decisions that he did, they’d do what was in the best interest of the student-athlete and give him the opportunity to play now rather than have to sit out two seasons in a row.”
Kennedy said after Holloway’s family situation was resolved, he wanted to return to Ole Miss and finish his college career with the Rebels.
“He didn’t leave because of anything related to athletics or academics, it was about his family,” Kennedy said. “That’s why the waiver was granted from what we understand.”
Kennedy said Holloway, who was a walk-on at South Carolina, is back on scholarship at Ole Miss, where he averaged 10.1 points and 6.5 rebounds as a sophomore.
“Having Murphy back completely changes the dynamic of our front court,” Kennedy said. “We know he’s a proven commodity.”Keady protege
First-year Tennessee Coach Cuonzo Martin played and coached for Gene Keady at Purdue for a combined 13 seasons.
Keady, a former Arkansas assistant for Eddie Sutton who was Purdue’s coach from 1980-2005, recruited Martin out of East St. Louis, Ill. Martin developed into an All-Big Ten guard his senior season in 1990-1991. He averaged 18.4 points, but also was known as the Boilermakers’ defensive stopper.
Martin, also a Purdue assistant from 2000-2008, said Keady has influenced his life tremendously.
“Coach Keady is a father figure to me,” Martin said. “He taught me a lot of life of lessons and how to become a man. I still talk to Coach Keady at least twice a week.”USA teammates
Three seniors who are SEC rivals - Vanderbilt guard John Jenkins, Kentucky guard Darius Miller and Alabama forward Ja-Mychal Green - were teammates last summer on Team USA in the World University Games played in China.
“They were real cool,” Jenkins said of Miller and Green. “We got along surprisingly well. We didn’t think it would be that way at first.”
Jenkins said he “broke the ice” by approaching Miller and Green and telling him he admired them as players and the three quickly became good friends.
“After that, we were together all the time,” Miller said.
Team USA also had an SEC coaching connection with Tennessee Coach Quonzo Martin serving as an assistant. Purdue’s Matt Painter was the team’s head coach.
Team USA finished 7-1 at the World University Games but finished fifth after losing to Lithuania 76-74 in the quarterfinals.
Sports, Pages 20 on 10/28/2011