Jerome Harper Update

Jerome Harper may have one particular college on his mind this fall, but the talented JUCO sniper could have some crucial decisions to make come the spring time.

Harper, a 6-4, 180 pound shooting guard from Indian Hills C.C. in Ottumwa, Ia., should be one of the top players in the junior college class of 2002. The product of Keenan H.S. in Columbia, S.C. has a particular affinity for one college, according to IHCC Asst. Coach Chad Boudreau.

"South Carolina is his main look because he kind of wants to go back home," Boudreau said. "Who knows what avenue he'll go after this year? He might even try to go in the draft."

Harper had a solid freshman year at Indian Hills, but did not put up the gaudy numbers in the scoring column that he did in high school or on the summer travel circuit. From that perspective, a jump to the pros might not seem warranted.

As a freshman for the fourth place finishers at last March's NJCAA Tournament, Harper averaged 10.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.

Harper repeatedly told the coaching staff that a knee problem was to blame for his lack of explosiveness on the offensive end last year.

"We had it checked 100 times, but he kept saying that his knee would lock up on him," Boudreau said. "So he would settle on shooting jumpers and quit going to the hole. At the start of practice this season, he had been killing -- going to the hole and dunking on people -- he looked like he did in high school."

But just a few weeks ago, Harper said his knee locked up again.

"We have this great [doctor] in town and he did an exploratory MRI," Boudreau said. "They went in there and found a couple of pieces of bone floating around in there and locking up. We got that removed and he's playing already."

Indian Hills does not start its season until Nov. 16, and Boudreau expects Harper to be at 100 percent once the season gets under way.

While South Carolina appears to be the primary college option for Harper at this stage, Illinois and Iowa State had expressed some interest in Jerome earlier this year.

"I think it would be tough to keep him instate," Boudreau admitted, referring to Iowa State's chances with Harper. "The message he is sending is that if he does not go pro, South Carolina is where he would want to go."

However, Boudreau said that South Carolina probably would not take a fall commitment from Harper, due to his pro aspirations and suspect academic past.

Harper had committed to the University of Cincinnati out of high school, but saw the Bearcats withdraw his scholarship after he ran into some off the court problems. It was kind of a moot point anyway, since Harper failed to qualify academically for NCAA D-I freshman eligibility following his senior year at Keenan.

Harper was initially slated to attend Oak Hill Academy for the 1999-2000 school year, but he hastily withdrew from summer classes in July of 1999 so that he could attend the adidas ABCD Basketball Camp. That effectively ended his stint at Oak Hill and he played his senior year at Keenan, where he was also rumored to have NBA Draft aspirations.

However, Harper made a wise decision last fall by enrolling in a junior college, and his choice was Indian Hills, which won consecutive NJCAA titles from 1997-99. After being absent from the NJCAA Tournament in 2000, Harper and his teammates led the Warriors to a fourth place finish in 2001.

All of that information brings you up to speed until this season. In order for Harper to seriously entertain notions of going pro out of junior college, he will need to have an outstanding sophomore campaign.

If he is 100 percent healthy, anything is possible with Harper. Whatever he opts to do, you can count on Rivalshoops.com to keep you posted on his situation, so stay tuned!