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TUBBY SIGHTING

Gopher men's head basketball coach Tubby Smith was in the crowd Tuesday, February 19 when the Wildcats played Robbinsdale-Cooper at CLHS.

Presumably he was there, presumably to look at the Hawks' highly regarded junior Rodney Williams, but he also took the time to sign autographs for area kids, shake hands with the players and sign a basketball given away during the Wildcat-Viking matchup.

He also impressed the locals with his likeable persona and willingness to converse.

"Tubby is a very nice man," said CLHS baseball coach Pat Collins. "I asked Tubby what level he thought Josh Figini could play at. He said he was definitely a D1 player. He said he uses either hand very well and is comfortable around the basket and can shoot outside well.

"He said he needs to keep working on his skills, but was surprised Figini was only a junior. He liked the way that Josh took the ball to the hoop and that was what he was trying to get his players to do. He said Josh had a very good game against one of the best players in the country in Williams," Collins added.

Smith may have been scouting Rodney Williams, but it certainly would be hard to ignore Figini's performance. Figini scored 41 points and grabbed 15 rebounds while playing against the Cooper star.

"What a class guy," said Wildcat coach Herb Jangor, about Smith. "He took the time to sign autographs for the kids and signed a basketball for the 'Border Battle.'"

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