LOUISVILLE — Terry Rozier is finally ready to show the Louisville fans what he can do.
Rozier, the 6-1 guard out of Cleveland, has been a known name to Louisville fans since signing with the Cardinals two years ago. However, he spent last season at Hargrave Military Academy. But now he is in the Cardinal fold and is anxious to get going.
“I’ve been waiting for this for a long time. And they’ve (fans) been waiting, I’ve been waiting, so it’s just something I’m looking forward to and something I want to have fun with,”?Rozier said Saturday during Louisville’s media day. “I’m just waiting on my opportunity.”
Rozier originally signed with Louisville out of Cleveland Shaker Heights, where he averaged 25.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 4.7 steals per game as a senior.
He spent last season at Hargrave, but Rozier and the Cardinals stayed committed to one another. Louisville coach Rick Pitino said his son,?Richard Pitino, recruited Rozier and sold his father on the future Louisville guard.
“When Richard recruited him, they rated him where they did, top 40s or 50s. He said, ‘I think he’s one of the top three players in the country,'” Rick Pitino said after Saturday’s scrimmage. “And then he goes to prep school and they don’t get ranked anymore. But Richard was evaluating him and put him in the top three guards in the country.
“He’s a pro, too. He doesn’t show a lot of negative emotion, he plays every possession like a pro would play it.”
Rozier, who played with fellow Louisville freshman guard Anton Gill at Hargrave, averaged 29.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists last season, leading Hargrave to a 38-8 record.
He says his year at Hargrave has helped make transitioning to Division I basketball easier.
“We pressed a lot. No system will ever be like Coach P’s system, but it got me the conditioning and the leadership skills I knew I had to have for the next level,”?Rozier said. “(Louisville assistant) Coach (Kevin)?Keats used to coach at Hargrave and the coach there now was an assistant under coach?Keats, so he knows what we need to play at this level.”
While primarily a scorer in high school and prep school, Rozier has transitioned to the point guard as well, backing up newcomer Chris Jones. Rozier said he is getting used to playing the point.
“That’s something that’s always going to be in my game,” Rozier said of his scoring prowess. “But if I want to be a point guard at the next level, I have to learn to do other things than score. So looking for the open man, doing other things, looking for the (alley)-oop, always talking, being the leader.
“Whatever Coach wants me to do, that’s the role I’m going to have to take on. I used to like the ‘two’ (scoring guard) more, but Coach has me more comfortable playing point.”
Pitino said both Rozier and Jones have been strong playing point guard early in the preseason.
“It’s worked out very well because both guys are difficult to guard,”?Pitino said.
Rozier is also getting used to going through the experience of being a freshman guard under Pitino.
“I’ve experienced it, everybody’s experienced it, but that’s what great coaches do, they make it tough for their guards. They challenge their guards,”?he said. “That’s something I want, that’s something I already knew about before I came here, what kind of coach I was dealing with.
“He can say anything to me. He’s a Hall of Fame coach. I can accept that, I accept the coaching and that’s what will get me far and what makes our relationship off the court great.”
Rozier is also part of a loaded backcourt, which also includes preseason All-American Russ Smith. So that competition each day will make the Cardinals better, Rozier said.
“It’s been real good. You get to go up against guys like Chris Jones and Russ Smith, it’s a blessing,”?Rozier said. “It’s something you want to take the challenge on every day. And you’ve got Anton Gill and even Tim Henderson, so everybody gets after it every day.
“It gets you better. So why not take on a challenge that’s going to get you better?”
