Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Rebounding from adversity: Part 1 of a two-part series on junior forward Patrick Hazel

By Craig Meyer/DFP Staff

In college basketball, much like life itself, things don’t always follow a designated path or go entirely according to plan.

If things always worked out like they were supposed to, Ohio State University and the University of Kansas would have squared off for the national title while Butler University and Virginia Commonwealth University would have been afterthoughts by the end of the NCAA Tournament’s first weekend.

But aside from all the upsets that generally define March Madness, the reality of things not working out applies strongly to individual players.

It is the exception and not the rule for a player’s collegiate career to pan out just how he envisioned it coming out of high school. For every Kemba Walker, there are hundreds of other players who didn’t fully realize their dreams or were unable to properly rewrite their stories when preconceptions got derailed.

Inevitably, storybook endings are in short supply in college basketball.

This is a script and a lesson that Patrick Hazel knows well. The Boston University junior forward has experienced the setbacks and disappointments that plague many careers on the college hardwood, but he has also been able to redefine both his game and himself amidst such adversity.

Read more at www.dailyfreepress.com

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