Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 10, 1994 TAG: 9403100057
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Long
At some point in his college basketball career, Jamal Robinson hopes to resurrect the Band-Aid that was his trademark before arriving at Virginia.
"I've been thinking about it," said Robinson, a 6-foot-6 freshman, "but I don't feel I've been playing well enough yet."
If Robinson can play much better than he did in the second half Saturday against Maryland, he can start wearing Band-Aids from head to toe. All he did was score 13 of his career-high 16 points after intermission as UVa sliced a 13-point deficit to two before losing 70-68.
It provided a stark contrast to the first game between the teams, when Robinson scored eight points in eight minutes, but did not play in the second half of the Cavaliers' 73-66 victory Feb. 2 in Charlottesville.
"I really wanted to play," said Robinson, whose displeasure was evident on the bench. "I'd never really gotten upset before about not playing. I was out of it."
When the players celebrated at midcourt after the game, Robinson held back. After the assistant coaches spoke to him, Jones pulled Robinson aside and asked him to stop by the UVa basketball office the next day.
"He said he did what he did because he wanted experience on the court," Robinson said. "He told me not to let it get me down. I wasn't worried about confidence or anything. I just wanted him to explain, to give me a really good reason why I wasn't playing."
Jones remarked after the game that he was surprised that so many people - not just the media - had made an issue of Robinson's absence in the second half. While it quickly was forgotten by coach and player, however, the first Maryland game represented a turning point in Robinson's year.
In nine games since that night, Robinson has averaged more than 26 minutes off the bench, not once playing fewer than 20. He played 36 minutes against Georgia Tech on Feb. 22, when he took over for woozy Cornel Parker down the stretch and joined with fellow freshman Harold Deane in sparking UVa's 73-72 overtime victory.
The irony of the situation was not lost on Robinson, who went to coach Bobby Cremins' basketball camp at Georgia Tech from the time he was 12 until he was 15 or 16. Robinson's uncle, Darryl, played for Cremins at Appalachian State.
"I thought I'd end up at Georgia Tech," said Jamal Robinson, who was 6 or 7 when he first went to a Cremins camp, "but [the Yellow Jackets] signed Martice Moore. When Coach Cremins came to my home, he explained that I wouldn't get the playing time I wanted because of players already there.
"He sat down with me to discuss and basically decide where I was going to go. He said, `Is this [Virginia] really what you want?' I said, `Yeah.' Then, he said, `All right, we're going to find out if they really want you.' He spoke to somebody."
According to Robinson's father, James, Cremins refrained from recommending a particular school. But, he could have seriously damaged Virginia's chances if he had been so inclined. George Felton, a former Cremins assistant, is an assistant at St. John's, a school whose campus is a 15-minute walk from Robinson's home in Queens.
Although Deane became a starter when point guard Cory Alexander was injured in the first game, Robinson was the Cavaliers' most celebrated recruit. He was known for his spectacular dunks, and the Band-Aid - which he wore on his right cheek - only added to his high-wire image.
When Robinson arrived at Virginia, however, there was a new stage awaiting him. Robinson was expected to play defense, and reports from preseason workouts were not promising.
"My expectations were to do pretty much what I'm doing now," Robinson said. "Then, after the first couple weeks of practice, I was like, `I might not play at all.' Harold Deane and Mike [Powell] were getting through it and I was just struggling."
Even when he got an opportunity to play, with Alexander injured and Powell battling mononucleosis, Robinson was skittish and missed all nine shots he attempted in the first three games. He gradually became more comfortable and had 10 points in UVa's 81-77 upset of then-No. 3 North Carolina.
"The big thing he needs to improve is his defense," Jones said. "At times, his concentration comes and goes. But there's a lot to like about Jamal: his athleticism, his basketball skills, his attitude."
Robinson's role should expand next year, when Parker will have exhausted his eligibility. Robinson also plans to ask for Parker's number (5) and give up the No. 13 he wears because he liked another player who wore it, Nevada-Las Vegas guard Freddie Banks.
UVa also can expect Robinson to assume part of Parker's leadership role and, in a way, he already has. When the UVa starters huddle following the game introductions, sixth man Robinson joins them.
"It started after the Old Dominion game," said Robinson, referring to an early-season loss that dropped the Cavaliers' record to 3-3. "I sensed we were starting to divide up a little bit. The first thing I said in the first huddle was, `We've got to stick together.' "
Much of Robinson's time now comes in relief of small forward Jason Williford, but there is no question that he has a guard's skills and some feel he is the best ballhandler on the team, next to Alexander.
"Coach [Jones] asked me before everything started, `Are you going to handle the ball?' " Robinson said. "I said, `If you let me.'
"I don't know what I said that was wrong, but I don't think he wanted me to answer that way. I think he wanted me to say, Yeah, I'll play the point.' I think, eventually, I will."
by CNB