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Harris Becoming A Hoosier State Standout
Monday, October 26, 2009
Written by Steve Wiltfong Monday, 26 October 2009 09:19
Gary Harris learned to play tough and physical by his mother at a young age.
Joy Holmes Harris, a former All-American forward and Big Ten Player of the Year at Purdue, used to back her young son down in the post and turn around and score on him at will.
“She used to beat up on me when I was younger,” Harris laughed. With college interest coming from the likes of Notre Dame, Indiana, Michigan State, Michigan, Illinois, Washington, Xavier and Alabama, the 6-foot-3, 185-pound Harris (Hamilton Southeastern High in Fishers, Ind.) is quickly becoming one of the most sought after players in the recruiting class-of-2012.
Following her outstanding career at Purdue, Harris went on to play professionally in Japan before returning to the United States to play in the ABL and then the WNBA for a year. She also had coaching stops at Cincinnati, Middle Tennessee State and IUPUI.
Hanging with his mom, the younger Harris grew up around the basketball court, but the mother-son, one-on-one games stopped a couple years ago.
“She won’t play me anymore,” Harris said. “I finally got big enough to beat her. I think she stopped playing because she doesn’t like to lose too much.”
Neither does Harris.
Last season, Harris made the Hamilton Southeastern varsity as a freshman, and helped lead the team to its first-ever sectional championship. He was a threat from the perimeter, making 22 3-point shots on the season, and averaged eight points per game.
“I think I’m going to be more comfortable playing varsity this year, and our team should be better than we were last year. I expect nothing but great things this season.”
With that, more college interest will start pouring in.
“I’ve been waiting for this to happen,” Harris said. “I’m kind of just enjoying it right now.”
Harris has been enjoying his contact with Notre Dame. He’s been keeping in touch with Irish assistant coach Anthony Solomon, and nearly two weeks ago with his father, he took his first-ever trip to South Bend to get a look at the campus.
“It was a nice campus,” Harris said, adding that the Notre Dame-USC football game was the highlight of the trip. “The football game had a nice atmosphere, and the facilities were pretty good.
“I just wanted to get on campus and see what it was like, and see what the atmosphere of Notre Dame was like, and check out the football game. The facilities were nice. I heard about the renovations they did in the gym, and it looked nice. The practice gym looked nice. I liked the locker room too.”
Solomon told Harris to keep working hard, and both parties plan to keep an eye on each other this coming season.
“I’ve seen them play a couple times,” Harris said of Notre Dame. “I’ve saw them play last year when they played Connecticut, and I think that was the only game of theirs I saw. I still think I need to learn more, but I’ve heard they play a nice style of basketball that would fit my game. I think I would like it already without even seeing it.
“I heard it’s a really good academic school and the alumni program is great. I liked the coaching staff when I was up there, and it seemed like a great school.”
Harris has also taken visits to Michigan State, Michigan and Indiana, and hopes to see plenty of other places in the future.
“I want to go to a place that’s right for me, and a good fit to how I play, and a coaching staff I feel comfortable with. That’s pretty much the main thing, a coaching staff I feel comfortable with.”
Hanging around his mother and the teams she played on and coached, Harris learned another valuable lesson he takes with him to the gym on a daily basis.
“I saw all the hard work that she put in. That’s definitely helped me.”
Steve Wiltfong
ESPN's Irish Sports Daily
Staff Writer
(312) 545-9983 (C)
stevewiltfong@yahoo.com
www.irishsportsdaily.com
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