Kari Jo Simmons?

[Bball Girl]

I'm curious to know what the rest of you think about Kari Jo Simmons.

She's a local product from Lubbock Monterey HS...came in somewhat unheralded according to those on RP.com. In fact, al ot of posters strongly questioned the decision. During a profile on Coach Sharp's weekly tv show, Kari Jo commented that coming in, she wasn't well known...but Coach Sharp told her that she had the skills and talent to become one of the best PG's in the Big12.

I expected to not be impressed with Kari Jo and it's been quite the reverse. She's a hard worker, is very quick, can make good decisions with the ball and isn't afraid to take the ball to the hoop. She's had a couple of games where she got some silly fouls. But with White in foul trouble early in the 1st half against Texas, Kari Jo game in and held her own. She had no trouble taking charge and running the team.
With Erin Grant (one of the 3 best HS PGs in the country) coming in next year, I expect Tech to have a terrific PG combo.

Comments?

[elfdenmom]

I have been very impressed with Kari Jo's play both in games and in the practises that I have watched. She is extremely smart and basketball savvy. She is really quick, fearless, and rebounds well because she jumps so well. Her passes are crisp and precise and she gets the ball to players where they can score. She takes care of the basketball. She is also a confident player, which is vital to a point guard who has the responsibility of running the team.

I think Marsha found a gem in Kari Jo! The reason that she was not well known here was that she played most of her high school ball in Kansas. I know she was heavily recruited by Deb Patterson, which is an endorsement in itself.

[DblT81]

I didn't know much about KJ before the season except blurbs written by some on RP who saw her play at Monterey and said she wasn't anything special.

From what I've seen so far, she is very special. The first clue came from the radio broadcast of the early road games. Hyatt seemed to pick up the speed of his announcing when she was in the game. http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif

One word really comes to mind to describe her play: Energy.

When she was in during the first half against UT, her confidence and energy were infectious. Even though Tech didn't begin setting the world on fire, KJ made the offense pick up speed. In the first few minutes of the second half, I was frustrated with White and I was yelling (in my head) for Sharp to put Kari Jo back in. Of course, White went on to play one of her best halves of basketball as a Lady Raider, so my yelling soon stopped. Maybe White elevated her game a bit because Kari Jo did play some good minutes in the first half.

KJ will make some mistakes due to inexperience, but I would still rather have her in there some to keep Jia at shooting guard.