Jeff Hawkins earned unofficial player-of-the-game honors many times during his four years at Kansas City Sumner Academy.
The 5-foot-11 dynamo scored 42 points in one game and 35 in another and led the Sabres to two state titles in a career that landed him all-state accolades once and all-metro honors twice.
Until last Tuesday, however, Kansas University’s red-shirt sophomore point guard never had stolen the show in a college game.
Hawkins, who played a career-high 15 minutes twice last season after taking a red-shirt season two years ago, scored eight points in 22 minutes and also led a second-half defensive charge that erased a 10-point deficit in a 91-87 win over the EA Sports All-Stars at Allen Fieldhouse.
Hawkins’ work didn’t go unnoticed: First-year coach Bill Self singled out Hawkins as KU’s player of the game.
“Coach said it right after the game in the locker room. He was walking around, telling everybody what they did right. He told me I was player of the game. It felt good coming from him,” Hawkins said.
Self relayed the same message to the media, hyping Hawkins, whose three-pointer sliced a 53-45 deficit to five points at 13:44 and whose long two-pointer gave KU a comfy 88-82 lead with 52 seconds remaining.
“He was terrific,” Self said. “He changed the game more than anybody else when he was in there.”
Hawkins, Self said, created havoc on the defensive end. Naturally, Hawkins is hoping for more of the same in the Jayhawks’ second exhibition game — Tuesday’s battle against Pittsburg State, which will tip off at 7:05 p.m. at Allen Fieldhouse.
“I looked at the stat sheet and saw I played 22 minutes. It didn’t seem like I was out there that long. In the second half I lost myself into the game,” Hawkins said. “I was out there playing, having fun, actually. I really wanted to win.”
Hawkins — whose eight points would have been a career high had it been a regular-season game — says he can play better. He made two of six shots and converted three of four free throws against EA Sports.
“The first two shots I took (and missed), I was thinking about the shot like, ‘Man, I am so open,”‘ Hawkins said. “First-game jitterbugs … I guess I still have them. After those two shots, I just let it go and played with confidence.”
Hawkins’ defensive intensity could earn him minutes behind Aaron Miles at the point this season.
“I don’t want to jinx myself,” Hawkins said, “just keep going out every day at practice and games, working hard to get better. I just try to go out and do whatever coach wants me to do. That’s all I basically try to do.”
Hawkins, who said he was surprised Self called on him for 22 minutes in the preseason opener, thinks he knows the key to minutes.
“Just do what we practice, have no turnovers, play a solid game and try to not score 30 points a game,” Hawkins said. “Completing passes, pressuring the opponent’s guard and make it tough for them to make a pass or bring it up court.
“I try to come in and bring energy. I try to raise the energy of everybody’s play. They see me working hard, maybe it will encourage them to work hard, too.”
