Lunchtime pickup star earns walk-on spot on Missouri roster

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- Lunchtime faculty pickup games aren't usually considered fertile recruiting territory for top-tier college basketball programs like Missouri -- and with good reason.

Just don't try telling that to Tiger sophomore Jarrett Sutton, the team's newest walk-on and an instant fan favorite for Missouri (10-2). The 6-foot-3 shooting guard from Oak Park High in Kansas City earned his spot at the end of the 14-man roster by impressing coach Mike Anderson and his assistants while the coaches were hooping with the professors at the campus recreation center.

"I was just going to run sprints to stay in shape," said Sutton, who as a freshman didn't make it past walk-on tryouts and didn't plan to even bother this season. "They asked me if I wanted to play. I guess they liked what they saw."

Sutton often matched up against Anderson, a fiery sparkplug guard at Tulsa under coach Nolan Richardson whose game hasn't eroded two decades later, according to Sutton. The intimidation factor was another story.

"I was a little nervous at first, knowing that he's our head coach," Sutton said. "But once I got used to how he played, I knew I could just go out and play."

Anderson, in his third year at Missouri, likely has a soft spot for walk-ons. His own son, Michael Anderson Jr., is a senior guard for the Tigers who also is not on scholarship.

A good walk-on, the coach said, "has got to be about the team. He's not going to get a lot of ink; he's not going to get a whole lot of playing time. He may not get into practice. And of course he's paying his own way. He's got to have some character. And he's got to have some confidence too."

The dual existence of the basketball walk-on -- from afterthought to the most popular player on the court once a rout is in hand -- was on clear display in Missouri's 107-57 drubbing of Southern Illinois-Edwardsville at Mizzou Arena on Saturday.

With a 30-point lead before halftime, each of Missouri's other 13 players had already seen playing time. Anderson rested his starters for most of the second half as the lead hovered near 40 points for most of that span.

But it wasn't until just 2:30 remained that Sutton, who wears No. 25, entered the game to one of the loudest ovations of the night from an otherwise somnolent crowd.

He quickly delivered, sinking a 3-point shot to provide Missouri's its final margin of victory. For the season, Sutton has appeared in five games and made five of his 10 field-goal attempts, all 3-pointers.

Only forward Justin Safford, who is 3-for-6 from behind the arc, can match Sutton's accuracy. Designated sharpshooter Matt Lawrence is shooting 35.5 percent from 3-point range. J.T. Tiller and Kim English are also below 40 percent.

"He can shoot the basketball a little bit," Anderson said admiringly.

So much that come garbage time, Anderson will even diagram a play to free up Sutton for an open shot.

Sutton said that fans can relate to his everyman persona. He's not staggeringly tall, and his physique, while far from slovenly, doesn't exactly draw comparisons to the sculpted frame of players like leading scorer DeMarre Carroll.

"Every guy on the floor is very athletic," Sutton said. "At the rec center, I'd play and feel like I was the most athletic. Now I'm probably the least athletic."

A business major, Sutton carries a 3.3 grade-point average. He hopes to work in marketing, though he also thinks about a coaching career.

He describes his role on the team as "no maintenance. No excuses. You're just there to help the team get better."

After earning all-conference and all-district recognition his senior year at Oak Park, Sutton received feelers from Division II schools such as Northwest Missouri State and scholarship offers from local NAIA schools William Jewell and Benedictine.

He demurred, holding out hope he could join the team he has watched since childhood and follow two older brothers to their beloved state university.

"I just wanted to chase my dream and go as high as I could go," he said.

Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.