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Date Posted: 04:18:15 02/19/04 Thu
Author: TD
Subject: +++Midconfans 2/19/04+++


Leathernecks face must-win situation--Western Courier

UMKC at Centenary--Kansas City Star

Starks flourishes as starter--Kansas City Star



Tutt learned from upbringing--Tulsa World


Tutt learned from upbringing

By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
2/19/2004

ORU freshman has used great work ethic his parents gave him.

Garland Nichols jokes about wanting to claim credit for Ken Tutt's development as an athlete and a person. He knows it wouldn't be honest.

"Ken is the way he is because of the way his parents raised him," says Nichols, who coached Tutt's basketball team at South Garland (Texas) High School. "They did a great job."

Eddie and Lisa Tutt moved from their native Mississippi to the Dallas metroplex in 1990 without the promise of jobs. Once employed, they worked hard to create a good life for their children and demanded the same from every family member.

Tutt was required to do household chores, make As and Bs in school and earn his own spending money by working part-time jobs.

He did all three while playing four years of high school basketball.

He starred on a 28-0 freshman team, and as a senior averaged 18.2 points per game while helping South Garland

go as far as it ever had in the playoffs.

Nichols was as impressed with Tutt's character and work ethic as he was with his ability to score.

"I always brag on him, but people don't believe me," Nichols said. "The kid is just too good to be true."

Oral Roberts University coaches are apt to say the same.

The 6-foot Tutt is having an uncommon rookie year for the Golden Eagles, who host Chicago State on Thursday night. ORU (14-9, 7-5) and Chicago State (8-16, 7-5) are tied with Missouri-Kansas City for fourth place in the Mid-Continent Conference.

Tutt's 20.4 scoring average ranks second nationally among freshmen and 23rd overall. He's also sixth nationally in 3-pointers per game (3.5) and 23rd in 3-point accuracy (.432).

He's won four games with last-second baskets or free throws, and has been as solid and steady as a concrete bridge support.

"It's amazing how consistent he's been," says ORU head coach Scott Sutton. "That's unusual for a freshman. He continues to put up big numbers and that has allowed us to stay in a lot of games."

At Valparaiso last weekend, ORU fell behind by 18 points early in the second half, but Tutt scored 25 of his 28 points in the second half, enabling the Eagles to close the gap to five.

Two days later at Western Illinois, he scored 17 of his career-high 30 points in the final 6 1/2 minutes as the Eagles rallied for a 74-66 win to break a four-game losing streak.

In his last five games, Tutt has scored 26, 28, 28, 28 and 30 points.

That's a remarkable run, even for a school that lists Greg Sutton, Richard Fuqua and Anthony Roberts as its highest-scoring alumni.

With 469 points, Tutt is on track to break ORU's all-time freshman scoring record of 561, set by Fuqua in 1970 against NAIA competition.

The most amazing thing has been the consistency.

Tutt has scored in double figures in 21 of his 23 games. In 19 games, he's scored 17 points or more.

He plays every game the same way, with the same deadpan expression and same feathery jump shot. He never seems to speed up or slow down.

Slade Young, Nichols' assistant at South Garland, says Tutt played every high school game the same way, "always poised, never out of control."

Tutt's shooting stroke is so smooth that he was nicknamed "Silk" by teammates on an AAU summer team.

The deadpan expression came from his father, who taught Tutt never to let his opponent know what he was thinking.

Tutt started developing his outside shot in the summer before the seventh grade.

Eddie Tutt remembers his son spending entire days at a neighborhood recreation center, breaking only for meals.

"He has an incredible work ethic," Nichols says. "Between his junior and senior year, he broke his ankle and I asked him what he was working on in the meantime. He said, 'I'm sitting on a bucket, dribbling basketballs with both hands.' "

Tutt and Memorial High forward Caleb Green give ORU the highest-scoring freshman tandem in the nation, and a high pair to build on.

But as with Green, many recruiters looked at Tutt and didn't see a diamond in the making.

Nichols said it was probably because Tutt played on a team with other capable scorers. He could erupt with a fury, but wasn't always required to do so.

Baylor, UNC-Wilmington and Stephen F. Austin recruited Tutt, but only SFA offered a scholarship.

Texas coaches encouraged him to walk on with the Longhorns. SMU wasn't interested.

But ORU assistant Corey Williams was.

"The first time I saw him was in his junior year. He only scored eight points, but he was so smooth. I remember thinking that by his senior year, he'd be able to go somewhere good," Williams said.

"He was intelligent, never got rattled, never did stuff he couldn't do, and when he jumped up and shot it, he made it. I didn't know if we could get him, but I was going to give it my best shot."

Tutt liked ORU's Christian atmosphere, felt comfortable with the players and coaching staff and fell in love with the school.

On his return from his recruiting visit in the fall of 2002, he told his parents and Nichols that he was certain ORU was where he was meant to be.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



ORU
Radio: KCFO am970
TV: None
When: 7:05 p.m. Thursday
Where: Mabee Center


Chicago St. 8-16 (7-5 Mid-Con)
Ht. Pt. Rb.
F Hansbro 6-4 3.5 2.7
F Perry 6-8 11.2 5.8
C Akindele 7-0 6.3 4.4
G Franklin 6-3 14.6 3.7
G Weeden 6-2 14.3 2.9
ORU 14-9 (7-5 Mid-Con)
Ht. Pt. Rb.
F Gastel 6-11 6.4 4.4
F Green 6-7 16.5 9.4
G Atkinson 6-3 11.6 3.7
G Bluitt 5-9 9.7 3.4
G Tutt 6-0 20.4 2.5





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Mike Brown 581-8390
mike.brown@tulsaworld.com



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