Colorado University Athletics
Brooks: Higgins, Knutson & Co. Still Chase Seniors' Dream
March 04, 2011
Tad Boyle considers himself lucky.
When he took the Colorado men's basketball job last April, he inherited four seniors (another would make a mid-year return) who eventually warmed to him, and him to them. Such acclimations can be lengthier than was required at CU, or might not occur at all.
"There's always some rough waters when you transition to a new coaching system, but I think we handled it well and were able to adjust," said Marcus Relphorde, who along with Cory Higgins, Levi Knutson, Javon Coney and Trent Beckley will be at the Coors Events Center on Saturday for the final regular-season game (Nebraska, 7:05 p.m.) of their CU careers.
Continued Relphorde: "Some of the rough times showed in the beginning with some of the losses we had - everyone just trying to see what the mentality of this team was going to be. But I think we transitioned pretty well."
Boyle's gauge for measuring how close he's become to his players is whether he will miss coaching them - "And I'm going to miss coaching these guys," he said. "They're all great kids, great young men . . . there's going to be a lot of things we're going to miss about all five of them."
The Buffs might be an NCAA Tournament bubble team, they might be destined for the NIT. But in either case there is this certainty: They want to finish strong on Senior Night, then make whatever postseason case must be made at next week's Big 12 Conference tournament in Kansas City. CU's seniors haven't played in March past the Big 12 tourney; they've never experienced a winning season.
Boyle will remember his first collection of CU seniors "each in their own way . . . The two walk-ons (Coney, Beckley) have been wonderful role models, great ambassadors. They come to practice every day and are selfless kids."
Relphorde is a JC transfer who has played for four different head coaches in the past four years. "He's had some good moments for us," Boyle said, and Relphorde calls his final season at CU "a pretty good time, especially in this building. We let some (games) get away, but I love my teammates and I had a good time playing with them.
"I didn't really know exactly what to expect coming in. I just knew that it was an opportunity for me to play and it was in a good conference. I knew we had some good pieces. I think we've done some good things this year. Obviously, you always you could do better. But I can't complain about what's happened so far."
Higgins has made his name prominent in the school's record book. He and Donnie Boyce are the only CU players to surpass 1,800 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 150 steals in their careers. But Higgins stands alone in several other career categories, longevity among them. He played in a record 124th game Wednesday night at Iowa State.
"For the most part it has been (gratifying)," Higgins said of his time as a Buff. "I try to live without any regrets, so I feel like I got the most out of my time here . . . it feels good to be recognized for a few things, and for that hard work to be recognized. That part of it is gratifying.
"I'd just like to be remembered as a guy who came to work every day, tried to get better and tried to make his team better."
He's undoubtedly gone beyond that, as has Knutson, whom Boyle said "has had as good a senior year as any player I've been around, especially given his previous three years of production and playing time. He's been a heartwarming story for us, so it's great to see him go out with a bang."
Knutson's CU career started with more of a shudder. He persevered as an oft-injured, moderately productive reserve until this season. He currently leads the Big 12 in three-point field goal percentage (.484) and on Friday was named one of the conference's four finalists (11 nationwide) for the 11th annual V Foundation Comeback Award.
Of coming back from surgeries on both hips following his freshman and sophomore seasons, Knutson said, "I always took a positive attitude, no matter what was going on. I had confidence in myself as a player and my teammates were supporting me. I knew I could play at this level; it was just a matter of patience."
Said Boyle: "We're going to be telling the Levi Knutson story for years to come, as long as this coaching staff is at Colorado. He's a tremendous role model for our younger players to emulate in terms of his off-season work ethic, his preparation, his confidence, has patience, his persistence . . . I could go on and on about Levi."
When he took the CU job, Boyle needed a leadership link with his team and asked Higgins to provide it. "He was a guy I really leaned on," Boyle said. "I challenged him to keep the group together . . . and he really responded to that."
Watching his teammates interact with Knutson also has been special for Boyle. As this season has progressed, Knutson "really gained the respect of his teammates - which is the ultimate respect you can have as a player," Boyle said. "If you come to practice every day, work hard and are a good citizen, you usually earn the respect of your coaches that way. But to earn the respect of your teammates the way Levi has done this year has been pretty special. You can see the way they respond to him on the floor."
Over the last four years, Higgins and Knutson have formed relationships they envision as lasting. "Teammates, especially," Knutson said, "but also with coaches, managers, people working in the facility . . . a lot of people I hope I have great relationships with for the rest of my life."
Added Higgins: "I made friendships for a lifetime here. I'll probably keep in contact with (teammates) throughout most of my life."
Both players have experienced Senior Nights from an underclassman's perspective. Neither said he could imagine Saturday night's emotion from a senior's perspective.
"It'll probably be pretty emotional to leave this place, and hopefully we can end it right and leave in the way I want to leave it," Knutson said. "This place has been special to me and I always will look forward to coming back. It's been awesome here."
"I really don't know what my emotions are going to be like," Higgins noted. "Knowing it could be my last game here, I'm just going to try to enjoy it."
He'll have a sellout crowd - a school-record fifth this season - there to share the experience. Saturday's game will be the last Big 12 contest played in the Events Center, but the venue could get another game or two if the Buffs' postseason turns toward the NIT rather than the NCAA Tournament.
For the latter scenario to play out, a win against Nebraska and a split in the series (the Cornhuskers won 79-67 in Lincoln in January) is mandatory. Two wins in next week's Big 12 tournament might be, too.
"Going to the (NCAA) tournament, that would be the biggest thing, the biggest gratification for me," Higgins said. "But at the same time, we've still got a lot of work to do."
"Our ultimate goal," added Knutson, "is still reachable."
Until told otherwise, the "Big Dance" remains their objective. Unless they win on Senior Night, otherwise is upon them.
Contact: BG.Brooks@Colorado.EDU
