TicketsHuggins Sees Bright Spots in Practice
Comments from the coach's Oct. 12 media session.
Contact: Tom Hathaway
10/16/2002
Bob Huggins meets with the media. |
Head coach Bob Huggins lauded the performances of Taron Barker and Kareem Johnson as bright spots of the first couple of University of Cincinnati men's basketball practices.
Barker' the Bearcats' 6-1 senior guard, drew praise for some of the leadership he has displayed in his attempt to fill the point guard position vacated by consensus All-American Steve Logan.
"His play is better, but he's playing against freshmen right now," Huggins explained. "His attititude is great. He's working hard. I think he's playing with a lot more confidence. He benches 385--they shouldn't be able to take the ball from him."
Johnson, the 6-7 junior college transfer who is trying to win the starting berth at center, is drawing attention by his hard play.
"There have been guys who have come in here and we haven't had to teach them how to play hard," Huggins observed. "Kareem will be one of those guys.
Other observations from Huggins, which he shared with the media on Oct. 12:
"I've seen a lot of guys running into each other. We don't have the presence inside that we've had for the last five or six years as far as being able to block shots. It's like any thing else. You try to see what they can do and you try to put them in positions where they can be successful.
Are the players approaching practice any differently, with their head coach having returned in two weeks from a heart attack?
"I think the older guys are that way but I'm not sure about the younger guys. I think the younger guys are just kind of following the older guys lead right now. It's early. Everybody is excited in the beginning. You get into next week and you get tired of the same guys hitting you. That's when you start to separate things."
Huggins reaffirmed that the recent heart episode will not affect the way he approaches coaching.
"I hope all those people who care about me understand that I'd like to be around a little longer, too. I'm not going to do anything that I really shouldn't do. People say I shouldn't go to practice. I'd be going nuts if I couldn't go to practice. That would be the worst thing in the world for me. I can't change my personality. And I don't know if I want to change. I don't think (coaching) was the problem. The problem is genetics. It has happened in my family. Probably, if it didn't happen now it would happen later on.
"I don't see my recruiting schedule changing," Huggins stated. "If I (change) then we're going to lose. I'm not going to do that for the university. I'm not going to do that for the kids. I'm not going to do that for me. If I start not recruiting, then I need to quit."