Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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"Tom Knight gave us energy, and he fifth in the Big East in shooting perlifted us and he gave everybody he centage (.654) after connecting on 45 played with more energy." of 69 attempts. He had five doubleThe program's resident goofball, digit outputs and looked as if he'd be Knight soaked up all 32 minutes a critical role player off the bench. The against South Florida, not hesitating to bottom dropped out in terms of prolet his inner satisfaction manifest itself duction since then, and Brey turned in the form of ear-to-ear grins. What to Knight for reserve minutes in the could have been three years of frustra- paint. tion, Knight said, were spent focusing "He should be more of a pain in the on team needs. But he's enjoying the butt with me about playing time, but overdue payoff. he's not," Brey said. "He's probably "There's definitely been times I was too good of a guy, because if anybody down," Knight said. "I just talked to had an argument early in the year to my high school coaches, my AAU get more of a bite of the apple … coach, my par"I didn't have ents and they to talk to him "Tom Knight gave us energy, and just said to he lifted us and he gave everybody about, 'You're make the best of going to get he played with more energy." the opportunity your opportuHead coach Mike Brey you have. Even nity.' I think he though I wasn't almost knew, playing much in basketball, I was still 'They'll need me someday.' He's very at a great university at Notre Dame. mature about it." Things could have been worse I guess His game has also ripened since you could say." Knight first stepped foot on campus. Opportunity knocked in last year's "I'm definitely tougher now," he NCAA Tournament second-round said. "There were times when I was game versus Xavier, when Knight younger earlier that I would shy away, went 2 of 2 in the first half of the even- stay up on the high post and avoid tual defeat. A year where minutes contact in the middle. Whenever I slowly began to mount transitioned screened I would always pop; I would into another stage of uncertainty this never roll to the basket just because I year when Michigan State transfer didn't want to get physical with anyGarrick Sherman, a senior center with one. junior eligibility, entered the picture. "I've been attacking the backboard "I knew he was a force inside the more and rebounding. That's also paint," Knight said of Sherman. "I something I was tentative about." was just going to continue to work Senior forward Jack Cooley, a startand hopefully I could pass him. But I ing lineup staple and now part of the knew coming in he was going to [play] biggest outfit in Brey's 13-year tenahead of me." ure playing alongside Knight, recalled By Dec. 20, Sherman had climbed to Knight's go-to move in past years.