UCLA has raided Kansas City for some fine basketball players throughout the years — athletes such as Lucius Allen, JaRon Rush and Earl Watson.
The Bruins came close to nabbing another Kansas Citian, but red-shirt freshman reserve guard Jeff Hawkins chose Kansas over UCLA and others in recruiting.
“I knew Earl Watson really well. We used to work out a little bit two summers ago,” KC Sumner graduate Hawkins said of Memphis Grizzlies point guard Watson, a graduate of KC Washington.
“He probably let their coaches know about me. He had them come to a (AAU) game when we were in California, and after that they started recruiting me.”
Hawkins visited UCLA the summer before his senior year of high school.
“I took an unofficial visit. It was real nice, I really liked the campus. I got to hang out with Earl Watson,” Hawkins said.
But … “they just stopped recruiting me,” Hawkins said. “It was weird because right after I committed, maybe a week later, my mom had told me UCLA had called to get me up for a visit. So I called them back and they were trying to get me up there. I just told them I couldn’t because I had given coach (Roy) Williams my word, and I didn’t want to break that off. It was real tempting, but I feel I made a real good decision coming here under coach Williams.”
UCLA coach Steve Lavin said that like Williams, he wanted Hawkins to walk-on his first year, then receive a scholarship down the line.
“We really liked him,” Lavin said, “but we were limited in terms of scholarships. Similar to Kansas we were hoping maybe we’d get him to walk on a year. But out-of-state tuition is expensive.
“We understood. KU is close to home and a great program. He has a good family, is a good student, player and person, all things attractive to us. We were very impressed with him as a kid.”
Hawkins vividly remembers KU’s 87-77 loss to UCLA last Jan. 12 at Pauley Pavilion.
“UCLA had recruited me and I was on the end of the bench playing for the Jayhawks in a suit so it was real tough, especially when our team got down. I was thinking ‘Man I wish I could come in and shoot a three and make everybody feel happy or something like that,”‘ Hawkins said.
The Bruins won before a frenzied crowd of 12,280.
“One of the things that I remember is when Matt Barnes stole that pass and did that windmill dunk. I thought right after that their crowd was real into it, it set the tone for them,” Hawkins said.
The crowd stormed the floor after the victory.
“I remember fans rushing the court afterward,” KU sophomore Wayne Simien said. “There was a bad feeling in the locker room. I remember how bad we played, but we were still in it at the end. We hope to not have the same feeling this year.
“We are not trying to make this into a game of remembrance for last year, or trying to get revenge. We are starting to take steps up from the Tulsa win and Emporia State win. This will be good for us, trying to take momentum into Christmas break.”
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KU trailed UCLA by 15 points at halftime, but wound up beating the Bruins by 15 — 85-70 — back on Dec. 1, 1995, at Allen Fieldhouse.
“The biggest thing I remember was how loud it was,” Williams said. “The comeback against UCLA may have been as loud as I’ve ever heard the fieldhouse.”
“I wasn’t here. I was watching it on TV and heard stories about it,” Leavenworth native Simien said. “We don’t plan on being down 15 at halftime, but it’s definitely something to look at if we are ever in a jam. It’s definitely better to play here with our fans behind us. We’ll try to use it as leverage.”
UCLA has raided Kansas City for some fine basketball players throughout the years — athletes such as Lucius Allen, JaRon Rush and Earl Watson.
The Bruins came close to nabbing another Kansas Citian, but red-shirt freshman reserve guard Jeff Hawkins chose Kansas over UCLA and others in recruiting.
“I knew Earl Watson really well. We used to work out a little bit two summers ago,” KC Sumner graduate Hawkins said of Memphis Grizzlies point guard Watson, a graduate of KC Washington.
“He probably let their coaches know about me. He had them come to a (AAU) game when we were in California, and after that they started recruiting me.”
Hawkins visited UCLA the summer before his senior year of high school.
“I took an unofficial visit. It was real nice, I really liked the campus. I got to hang out with Earl Watson,” Hawkins said.
But … “they just stopped recruiting me,” Hawkins said. “It was weird because right after I committed, maybe a week later, my mom had told me UCLA had called to get me up for a visit. So I called them back and they were trying to get me up there. I just told them I couldn’t because I had given coach (Roy) Williams my word, and I didn’t want to break that off. It was real tempting, but I feel I made a real good decision coming here under coach Williams.”
UCLA coach Steve Lavin said that like Williams, he wanted Hawkins to walk-on his first year, then receive a scholarship down the line.
“We really liked him,” Lavin said, “but we were limited in terms of scholarships. Similar to Kansas we were hoping maybe we’d get him to walk on a year. But out-of-state tuition is expensive.
“We understood. KU is close to home and a great program. He has a good family, is a good student, player and person, all things attractive to us. We were very impressed with him as a kid.”
Hawkins vividly remembers KU’s 87-77 loss to UCLA last Jan. 12 at Pauley Pavilion.
“UCLA had recruited me and I was on the end of the bench playing for the Jayhawks in a suit so it was real tough, especially when our team got down. I was thinking ‘Man I wish I could come in and shoot a three and make everybody feel happy or something like that,”‘ Hawkins said.
The Bruins won before a frenzied crowd of 12,280.
“One of the things that I remember is when Matt Barnes stole that pass and did that windmill dunk. I thought right after that their crowd was real into it, it set the tone for them,” Hawkins said.
The crowd stormed the floor after the victory.
“I remember fans rushing the court afterward,” KU sophomore Wayne Simien said. “There was a bad feeling in the locker room. I remember how bad we played, but we were still in it at the end. We hope to not have the same feeling this year.
“We are not trying to make this into a game of remembrance for last year, or trying to get revenge. We are starting to take steps up from the Tulsa win and Emporia State win. This will be good for us, trying to take momentum into Christmas break.”
¢
KU trailed UCLA by 15 points at halftime, but wound up beating the Bruins by 15 — 85-70 — back on Dec. 1, 1995, at Allen Fieldhouse.
“The biggest thing I remember was how loud it was,” Williams said. “The comeback against UCLA may have been as loud as I’ve ever heard the fieldhouse.”
“I wasn’t here. I was watching it on TV and heard stories about it,” Leavenworth native Simien said. “We don’t plan on being down 15 at halftime, but it’s definitely something to look at if we are ever in a jam. It’s definitely better to play here with our fans behind us. We’ll try to use it as leverage.”
UCLA has raided Kansas City for some fine basketball players throughout the years — athletes such as Lucius Allen, JaRon Rush and Earl Watson.
The Bruins came close to nabbing another Kansas Citian, but red-shirt freshman reserve guard Jeff Hawkins chose Kansas over UCLA and others in recruiting.
“I knew Earl Watson really well. We used to work out a little bit two summers ago,” KC Sumner graduate Hawkins said of Memphis Grizzlies point guard Watson, a graduate of KC Washington.
“He probably let their coaches know about me. He had them come to a (AAU) game when we were in California, and after that they started recruiting me.”
Hawkins visited UCLA the summer before his senior year of high school.
“I took an unofficial visit. It was real nice, I really liked the campus. I got to hang out with Earl Watson,” Hawkins said.
But … “they just stopped recruiting me,” Hawkins said. “It was weird because right after I committed, maybe a week later, my mom had told me UCLA had called to get me up for a visit. So I called them back and they were trying to get me up there. I just told them I couldn’t because I had given coach (Roy) Williams my word, and I didn’t want to break that off. It was real tempting, but I feel I made a real good decision coming here under coach Williams.”
UCLA coach Steve Lavin said that like Williams, he wanted Hawkins to walk-on his first year, then receive a scholarship down the line.
“We really liked him,” Lavin said, “but we were limited in terms of scholarships. Similar to Kansas we were hoping maybe we’d get him to walk on a year. But out-of-state tuition is expensive.
“We understood. KU is close to home and a great program. He has a good family, is a good student, player and person, all things attractive to us. We were very impressed with him as a kid.”
Hawkins vividly remembers KU’s 87-77 loss to UCLA last Jan. 12 at Pauley Pavilion.
“UCLA had recruited me and I was on the end of the bench playing for the Jayhawks in a suit so it was real tough, especially when our team got down. I was thinking ‘Man I wish I could come in and shoot a three and make everybody feel happy or something like that,”‘ Hawkins said.
The Bruins won before a frenzied crowd of 12,280.
“One of the things that I remember is when Matt Barnes stole that pass and did that windmill dunk. I thought right after that their crowd was real into it, it set the tone for them,” Hawkins said.
The crowd stormed the floor after the victory.
“I remember fans rushing the court afterward,” KU sophomore Wayne Simien said. “There was a bad feeling in the locker room. I remember how bad we played, but we were still in it at the end. We hope to not have the same feeling this year.
“We are not trying to make this into a game of remembrance for last year, or trying to get revenge. We are starting to take steps up from the Tulsa win and Emporia State win. This will be good for us, trying to take momentum into Christmas break.”
¢
KU trailed UCLA by 15 points at halftime, but wound up beating the Bruins by 15 — 85-70 — back on Dec. 1, 1995, at Allen Fieldhouse.
“The biggest thing I remember was how loud it was,” Williams said. “The comeback against UCLA may have been as loud as I’ve ever heard the fieldhouse.”
“I wasn’t here. I was watching it on TV and heard stories about it,” Leavenworth native Simien said. “We don’t plan on being down 15 at halftime, but it’s definitely something to look at if we are ever in a jam. It’s definitely better to play here with our fans behind us. We’ll try to use it as leverage.”
UCLA has raided Kansas City for some fine basketball players throughout the years — athletes such as Lucius Allen, JaRon Rush and Earl Watson.
The Bruins came close to nabbing another Kansas Citian, but red-shirt freshman reserve guard Jeff Hawkins chose Kansas over UCLA and others in recruiting.
“I knew Earl Watson really well. We used to work out a little bit two summers ago,” KC Sumner graduate Hawkins said of Memphis Grizzlies point guard Watson, a graduate of KC Washington.
“He probably let their coaches know about me. He had them come to a (AAU) game when we were in California, and after that they started recruiting me.”
Hawkins visited UCLA the summer before his senior year of high school.
“I took an unofficial visit. It was real nice, I really liked the campus. I got to hang out with Earl Watson,” Hawkins said.
But … “they just stopped recruiting me,” Hawkins said. “It was weird because right after I committed, maybe a week later, my mom had told me UCLA had called to get me up for a visit. So I called them back and they were trying to get me up there. I just told them I couldn’t because I had given coach (Roy) Williams my word, and I didn’t want to break that off. It was real tempting, but I feel I made a real good decision coming here under coach Williams.”
UCLA coach Steve Lavin said that like Williams, he wanted Hawkins to walk-on his first year, then receive a scholarship down the line.
“We really liked him,” Lavin said, “but we were limited in terms of scholarships. Similar to Kansas we were hoping maybe we’d get him to walk on a year. But out-of-state tuition is expensive.
“We understood. KU is close to home and a great program. He has a good family, is a good student, player and person, all things attractive to us. We were very impressed with him as a kid.”
Hawkins vividly remembers KU’s 87-77 loss to UCLA last Jan. 12 at Pauley Pavilion.
“UCLA had recruited me and I was on the end of the bench playing for the Jayhawks in a suit so it was real tough, especially when our team got down. I was thinking ‘Man I wish I could come in and shoot a three and make everybody feel happy or something like that,”‘ Hawkins said.
The Bruins won before a frenzied crowd of 12,280.
“One of the things that I remember is when Matt Barnes stole that pass and did that windmill dunk. I thought right after that their crowd was real into it, it set the tone for them,” Hawkins said.
The crowd stormed the floor after the victory.
“I remember fans rushing the court afterward,” KU sophomore Wayne Simien said. “There was a bad feeling in the locker room. I remember how bad we played, but we were still in it at the end. We hope to not have the same feeling this year.
“We are not trying to make this into a game of remembrance for last year, or trying to get revenge. We are starting to take steps up from the Tulsa win and Emporia State win. This will be good for us, trying to take momentum into Christmas break.”
¢
KU trailed UCLA by 15 points at halftime, but wound up beating the Bruins by 15 — 85-70 — back on Dec. 1, 1995, at Allen Fieldhouse.
“The biggest thing I remember was how loud it was,” Williams said. “The comeback against UCLA may have been as loud as I’ve ever heard the fieldhouse.”
“I wasn’t here. I was watching it on TV and heard stories about it,” Leavenworth native Simien said. “We don’t plan on being down 15 at halftime, but it’s definitely something to look at if we are ever in a jam. It’s definitely better to play here with our fans behind us. We’ll try to use it as leverage.”
