Thursday, December 28, 2000
UC's Jones still struggling to find niche
Injury, move to Division I an adjustment
By Michael Perry
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Jones
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Antwan Jones doesn't need to see the stats. The University of Cincinnati junior knows that his 3-point shot is not falling, and it wears on him every day.
Over the last five games, he is 0-of-12 on 3-point attempts and last made one Dec. 11 against Oakland.
“In all my years of playing, I've never shot this bad,” Jones said. “But I'm not going to let it bring me down. I'm just going to continue to work hard and keep shooting.”
Jones had surgery Oct. 2 on his right foot, which never healed fully after he broke it last May. He returned to action Nov. 21 against Marshall, after not playing basketball for most of the previous six months.
A second-team junior college All-American, Jones arrived at UC with the reputation as a talented offensive threat. He averaged 18.7 points and 5.3 rebounds and shot 33.6 percent from 3-point range last season at Tallahassee (Fla.) Community College.
Heading into tonight's game against UNC-Wilmington, Jones is averaging 5.9 points and 2.0 rebounds. He is shooting just .143 from 3-point range (4-of-28) but .667 from inside the arc.
“He doesn't know what he's doing yet,” coach Bob Huggins said. “He's thinking rather than playing. The difference between Leonard (Stokes) this year and a year ago was a year ago he thought about everything. Antwan's just got to relax and play.”
Huggins said he hasn't even seen a glimpse of the player he recruited.
“He's not close,” Huggins said. “Antwan's really athletic; he hasn't shown any of that. He's not near what he ought to be defensively. He ought to give us a lot of help on the glass, and he's hardly given us any. He ought to be a guy who can score inside and out.”
Jones had never suffered a major injury before and did not anticipate coming back to be this difficult.
He is upset with himself for trying to play too soon after surgery last spring, believing he created the need for a second operation five months later. Also, he figured it would be easier to pick up UC's plays and acclimate to Division I basketball.
“It was totally different from what I expected,” Jones said. “It was a shock to me. It's like I'm totally out of it. I feel like I'm still in the learning process. I don't feel comfortable right now.
“In junior college, I was so in the flow of the offense. I was so used to getting the ball. At the next level, which is D-I, it's totally different. You've got more than one scorer and more than one rebounder. Pretty much you've got to find out what your role is going to be, and I don't think I know what my role is right now.”
Jones is averaging 13.6 minutes off the bench, though he started against Clemson in Puerto Rico. His best game came against Youngstown State when he scored a career-high 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, with all his baskets coming from inside the 3-point line.
The 6-foot-8 forward said that for now, he will concentrate on taking shots closer to the basket.
Jones said he developed some bad habits when he was hurt. He would shoot with his protective boot on and always landed on his left leg. Now, he sees himself landing on his left leg first.
“It's hard, man,” Jones said. “But hopefully I'm going to overcome it.
“I'm so used to having the ball. I'm not saying I need to score 30 points, because that's not the thing; I just want to win. And when coach Huggins puts me in the game, I want to know what's going on.”
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UC's Jones still struggling to find niche
