Student Publications
University of Houston
151C Communications Bldg
Houston, TX 77204-4015
713.743.5350

©1991-2007
Student Publications,
All rights reserved.

Last modified:

Contact:
ktruitt@uh.edu

Sports

Senior center maintains learning as top priority

Sociology major found basketball in junior high school phys-ed class

Shirin Etemadi
The Daily Cougar

Growing up, senior center Kiemona Harris traveled a bumpy road but is living proof that she doesn't fit the traditional "jock" stereotype.

Harris, a senior majoring in sociology and minoring in African-American studies, plays center for the UH woman's basketball team. Since the seventh grade, Harris, known as Kiki by friends and family, was always passionate about basketball.

"(I have) two brothers and a sister and I'm the first to graduate from college in my family, and I'm the baby," said Harris. 

A Port Arthur native, Harris chose the sport as her gym elective in junior high. She soon realized her skills and with the help of her height, she carried on to higher places. She attended Port Arthur ‘s Thomas Jefferson High School where she continued to play center for all four years.

Having such extraordinary height for a high school female, it wasn't long before Cougar head coach Joe Curl came knocking on her door.

"In junior high school, I bumped into her through an old coaching friend who was her coach and as I evaluated her, I noticed certain things about her that I absolutely loved," Curl said. "I knew she was very raw and had a lot of improvement in front of her but I thought her upside was absolutely unbelievable."

Curl brought the Lady Cougars to its best season in school history in 2003-04. He can boast about his players having a record total of 28 victories and their 2004 Conference USA Regular Season and Tournament crowns. Curl and the players also went to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 12 years.

Even though many students feel that athletes can cruise through college, Curl and Harris ensured that this was not the case.

"I'm more serious about the academic career than the athletic one," Curl said. "As I recruit the players, I make it very apparent with my brutal honesty, that I will take nothing less than everything they have academically."

Coaches emphasize the importance of attending class, and if the players need some help, they are encouraged to attend tutorials. They may miss jump shots or make a bad pass, but they do not tolerate players going to class late.

"(Like many students) her first two years were her hardest struggle," Curl said. "She was fresh out of high school, and she wasn't disciplined. But as a player, I needed her. Winning basketball games and not having a degree when you're done is absolutely a crime."

Everyone has to hustle from class to class but Harris, along with the rest of the team, realizes the consequences of missing a class. The players may have to wake up at 5 a.m. and are drilled intensely. If the mishaps occur, players can be suspended from games or even be cut from the team.

"These players become like my own children and it's part my responsibility that those kids succeed academically," Curl said. "Harris is a humble woman and a great player to represent UH. I cannot even express in words what she means to me as a person. She's one of the best leaders I've coached."
 

Send comments to dcsports@mail.uh.edu