By Bill Koch
The Cincinnati Enquirer

About a half-hour remains in another three-hour-plus practice session at the University of Cincinnati.

The Bearcats are working on their half-court offense. Former players Erik Martin and Curtis Bostic are on defense. Coach Bob Huggins is yelling. Bearcats great Oscar Robertson is observing.

And Eugene Land is sitting on the bench, an ice pack wrapped around his knee, watching.

Again.

That's how it is with Land as he continues his comeback from major knee surgery and two years of basketball inactivity.

"Some days, it feels way better than others," Land said. "I just pray for more of those better days."

Neither Land nor Huggins knows from day to day how much, if anything, Land will be able to offer on the court.

"It's just how he feels that day," Huggins said. "There are days he can't go."

When practice began in October, the question concerning Land was whether he could complete the comeback he so desperately wanted to make.

When it became apparent he was in this for the long haul, the question changed to: How much can Land help a UC team that's frighteningly thin along its front line?

Ten games into the season, it appears Land will not be a significant force on the court. He has played in eight games for a total of 52 minutes, averaging 1.7 points and 1.4 rebounds. His longest stint was 10 minutes against Florida A&M; his shortest was one minute against Xavier. He scored six points against Dayton and had three rebounds against Oregon.

But Land's inability to play for sustained periods hasn't detracted from his success story. Land, a 6-foot-7 senior forward, has established himself as a role model who helps UC's younger players understand where to go on the court and how to conduct themselves as college basketball players.

"His attitude is great," Huggins said. "He wants to play. All of us would want to be back where we were, but he's not. That's the hardest thing he goes through. But he's been so positive around the other guys, he's been great to have around."

More important, Land is performing better than he ever has in the classroom. In the fall quarter, he had a 3.31 grade-point average as a social sciences major, the best academic work he has produced since he left Roger Bacon in 1998 as Ohio's Division II player of the year.

"I'm here for school," Land said. "I know what has to be done for me to get through. I'm trying to get this all done the right way. I just became a junior (academically) for this quarter coming up. Hopefully, I can graduate in the summer of 2004."

Land admits to frustration over not being able to play the way he once could, but he says he's determined to complete his rehab sessions and to do what trainer Jayd Grossman asks of him.

"I knew this was about how much work I put in and how much results I got out," Land said. "I always wanted to make some sort of impact, but I never knew when or how. I really have no doubt in my mind that it's going to get back to how I want it to be and how it needs to be for me to be productive for the sake of the team."

Added Land: "It's tough. But I always have the will to go, because I know it's for the bigger picture."

E-mail bkoch@enquirer.com