Dr. Dre'

Just before Christmas most of Big Blue Nation believed that Liggins would never make it on the court again for the Cats. Rumors ran rampant that he was set to transfer after not making it on the court one time in the first 9 games. Of course Coach Cal didn't budge when asked of his status saying he refused to "throw a player under the bus". Then a Christmas miracle happened. Ok, so maybe it was more of a surprise than a miracle, but on December 12th against Indiana he made it on the floor for one minute making us all wonder how true the transfer rumors were. Since that date, Dre' has made his way into the rotation, logging at least 8 minutes in each game.

Liggins played 14 minutes on Saturday and contributed with 6 points and 3 steals while committing no turnovers. Those six points were big too considering the game was very much in limbo when they came. After the game Coach Cal said that he was the only player that came off the bench with any energy. The second time Cal has made such remarks about DeAndre.

When Coach Cal arrived on campus last spring he said he had been surprised by the play of Liggins and that the half court offense that Coach Gillispie ran didn't suite his style of play. Those type of comments made many of us wait with eager anticipation for what he could do for the new looking Cats. Then the season started and with it the great mystery of the once prized recruit.

Now we are in the conference schedule and we still don't know what exactly kept Liggins off the court for so long and we may never know. Whatever the issues were, they seem to be resolved and I believe that is a very good thing for not only Liggins, but this team. Each game he seems to not only grasp his complimentary role, but embraces it. Coming to the court with energy and enthusiasm that eclipses even some of the starters'. I think his spot in the rotation could grow to the 7th or even 6th man in some games. Most of his minutes will come from Harris and Miller, especially those games where Miller seems to disappear.

So congratulations Dre' for earning a spot on this team. With all the talent around him and the drama surrounding his status, the easy thing to do would of been to transfer somewhere that he could be a star. Instead he chose to tough it out and be a Cat and that is something he'll probably be thankful for....so will we.