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Edwards has overcome the death of his mother to shine in the tournament.
(David E. Klutho)
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Allen
Edwards,
Kentucky
Class: Senior
Position: G/F
Height:
6'5" Weight:
200
DOB:
Dec. 16,
1975
Hometown:
Miami
High School:
Miami
Senior
Vital
Stats: 9.3 points per game, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3
assists
by Albert
Lin
Nothing could have prepared Allen Edwards for the emotional
swing he had to endure in
February.
Before this season, the swingman already had lived through
plenty of lows. He nearly transferred to another school
after both his freshman and sophomore years in Lexington
because he spent too much time on the bench. He considered
redshirting but
decided against it. Then, after he became a starter as a junior,
injuries limited his playing time as Kentucky reached
another Final
Four.
Edwards continued to struggle in 1997-98. Finally, on Feb.
22, he broke a five-week slump with 13 points, six rebounds
and seven assists as the Wildcats beat Georgia 85-74 on
Senior Day. Edwards' brother Doug, a former All-ACC forward
at Florida State
recently released by the NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies, was in
attendance. "You want to play well in front of your
family," Edwards said. "With them being here, it
gave me a huge
boost."
Four days later, family was again foremost in Edwards'
thoughts, but for a different reason: His mother, Laura
Mae, lost her three-year battle with breast cancer. Edwards
went home that weekend, and then the following weekend for
the funeral. He missed
just two games, and has since played with renewed
enthusiasm. Edwards provided one of the electric moments of
this year's tournament with a Jerry Stackhouse-like
baseline reverse jam over two Bruins in the Wildcats' rout
of UCLA in the South Regional
Final in St. Petersburg. And he is shooting an impressive 62%
(18-for-29) from the field in tournament play, with a
team-high seven
three-pointers.
"Everybody says, 'Do what your momma would want you to
do,'" said Edwards, who has another brother, Steven,
who played for the University of Miami, graduating in 1996.
"I feel strongly that she'd want me to continue my education
and play basketball. I
understand she's gone and in a better place. I know she's
looking down on
me."
When Edwards returned to practice following his mother's
death, he saw that Scott Padgett had written "R.I.P.
L.M.E." on the side of Padgett's sneakers. His
teammates' concern helped ease Edwards' pain. "I know
this is the closest team I've been on
since I've been at UK," Edwards said. "I don't know if
there's a reason, but it just seems like we click
more."
Two more clicks to
go.
Other Spotlights
March 25: Mark Madsen, Stanford
March 24: Tamika Catchings, Tennessee
March 22: Jeff Sheppard, Kentucky
March 21: Khalid El-Amin, Connecticut
March 20: Andre Miller, Utah; Alisa Burras,
Louisiana Tech
March 19: Brian Cardinal, Purdue
March 18: Tim Young, Stanford
March 17: Sarunas
Jasikevicius, Maryland; Adia Barnes, Arizona
March 16: Mateen Cleaves, Michigan; Murriel Page, Florida
March 15: Jason Hart, Syracuse
March 14: Kris Johnson, UCLA
March 13: Lee Nailon, Texas Christian
March 12: Brian Earl, Princeton
March 11: Tyrone Weeks, Massachusetts
March 10: Brett Robisch, Oklahoma St.
March 9: Larry Hughes, Saint Louis
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