Post by MizzouTiger on Jan 19, 2008 13:22:11 GMT -5
www.kansascity.com/167/story/446480.html
Horton plays his way back into Missouri fans’ hearts
By MIKE DeARMOND
The Kansas City Star
AMES, Iowa | He’s been suspended, booed by his own fans, exposed for inciting a mutiny that never took place and aligned himself with a losing cause when Quin Snyder’s ouster was already a done deal.
Somehow, through it all, Jason Horton is still at Missouri.
Horton reintroduced himself to Mizzou fans with a near-perfect performance Saturday in the Tigers’ upset of then-No. 12 Texas. Suddenly, the target of so much criticism over the last four years looks as if he’s an important piece to the Tigers’ Big 12 run.
“I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason,” Horton said. “The man above knows. Right now I’m just taking it day by day.”
That hasn’t always been easy for Horton, a 6-foot-2 senior point guard who will make his last trip as a Tiger to Hilton Coliseum when Missouri tips off at 7 tonight against Iowa State.
Coming out of Cedar Hill High School in Dallas, Horton was ranked the No. 10 point guard in the nation by RivalsHoops.com and the No. 49 prospect overall.
It all started well enough.
Freshman-season accomplishments included 10 assists in a victory over No. 16 Oklahoma. He also scored what is still a career-high 17 points while making five of six three-point shots against Texas A&M.
But from there the lows quickly overwhelmed the highs. As a sophomore, Horton was booed by MU fans and suspended by then-coach Snyder. When the 2005-2006 season reached its penultimate point with Snyder’s February ouster and a one-and-done Big 12 tournament, well, Horton was in the middle of controversy.
“I don’t think there’s going to be an in-between,” Horton told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch of a possible mass departure of players before MU had hired Mike Anderson as its new coach. “If a couple guys say they want to stay, we’ll all stay. If a couple say they want to go, we’ll all go.”
Less than 24 hours later, teammate Marshall Brown disputed any possible mutiny and Horton backtracked.
Horton, of course, did come back and started 22 games last season but was supplanted at point guard by junior-college transfer Stefhon Hannah. Horton’s assist totals dropped from 121 to 95, his minutes in Big 12 play from 32.1 a game to 19.1 and his scoring from seven points a game in league play as a freshman to 2.9 as a junior.
He thought about just quitting, walking away.
“That goes through everybody’s mind at some point,” Horton said. “At some times, maybe I was like ‘d**n, maybe I should have gone to Texas.’ ”
Odd that thought came up right after a crowd of 13,085 cheered Horton’s every move in the win over Texas. Horton hit all four of his shots for a season-high 16 points, and made all six of his free throws. He added five assists and a steal.
“He is one of those guys that goes in and does all the dirty work,” Brown said. “He runs the team. He is a head on the floor.”
Horton has 50 assists to only 21 turnovers. He has 22 steals. And the last two games, he’s scored 11 points against UMKC and 16 against Texas.
Anderson likes what he sees in Horton these days.
“Jason has figured out the things we need him to do in order for us to be successful,” Anderson said. “He knows he’s a key, important part in what we’re doing. I like the swagger that he has right now.”
Horton plays his way back into Missouri fans’ hearts
By MIKE DeARMOND
The Kansas City Star
AMES, Iowa | He’s been suspended, booed by his own fans, exposed for inciting a mutiny that never took place and aligned himself with a losing cause when Quin Snyder’s ouster was already a done deal.
Somehow, through it all, Jason Horton is still at Missouri.
Horton reintroduced himself to Mizzou fans with a near-perfect performance Saturday in the Tigers’ upset of then-No. 12 Texas. Suddenly, the target of so much criticism over the last four years looks as if he’s an important piece to the Tigers’ Big 12 run.
“I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason,” Horton said. “The man above knows. Right now I’m just taking it day by day.”
That hasn’t always been easy for Horton, a 6-foot-2 senior point guard who will make his last trip as a Tiger to Hilton Coliseum when Missouri tips off at 7 tonight against Iowa State.
Coming out of Cedar Hill High School in Dallas, Horton was ranked the No. 10 point guard in the nation by RivalsHoops.com and the No. 49 prospect overall.
It all started well enough.
Freshman-season accomplishments included 10 assists in a victory over No. 16 Oklahoma. He also scored what is still a career-high 17 points while making five of six three-point shots against Texas A&M.
But from there the lows quickly overwhelmed the highs. As a sophomore, Horton was booed by MU fans and suspended by then-coach Snyder. When the 2005-2006 season reached its penultimate point with Snyder’s February ouster and a one-and-done Big 12 tournament, well, Horton was in the middle of controversy.
“I don’t think there’s going to be an in-between,” Horton told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch of a possible mass departure of players before MU had hired Mike Anderson as its new coach. “If a couple guys say they want to stay, we’ll all stay. If a couple say they want to go, we’ll all go.”
Less than 24 hours later, teammate Marshall Brown disputed any possible mutiny and Horton backtracked.
Horton, of course, did come back and started 22 games last season but was supplanted at point guard by junior-college transfer Stefhon Hannah. Horton’s assist totals dropped from 121 to 95, his minutes in Big 12 play from 32.1 a game to 19.1 and his scoring from seven points a game in league play as a freshman to 2.9 as a junior.
He thought about just quitting, walking away.
“That goes through everybody’s mind at some point,” Horton said. “At some times, maybe I was like ‘d**n, maybe I should have gone to Texas.’ ”
Odd that thought came up right after a crowd of 13,085 cheered Horton’s every move in the win over Texas. Horton hit all four of his shots for a season-high 16 points, and made all six of his free throws. He added five assists and a steal.
“He is one of those guys that goes in and does all the dirty work,” Brown said. “He runs the team. He is a head on the floor.”
Horton has 50 assists to only 21 turnovers. He has 22 steals. And the last two games, he’s scored 11 points against UMKC and 16 against Texas.
Anderson likes what he sees in Horton these days.
“Jason has figured out the things we need him to do in order for us to be successful,” Anderson said. “He knows he’s a key, important part in what we’re doing. I like the swagger that he has right now.”