Price Is Right for Oklahoma In the Final Four

March 25, 2002

By OWEN CANFIELD
AP Sports Writer

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) - Oklahoma guard Hollis Price needs extra time to warm up before games. When he's on the sideline, a heating pad helps keep his injured right arm loose.

It must be working.

The Sooners are back in the Final Four for the first time since 1988 in large part because of Price, who went down with a gruesome elbow injury in the first round of last year's tournament.

He's averaging 18.2 points in the NCAAs this year, a remarkable turnaround for a player who needed three operations.

Price tore the triceps tendon and had nerve damage after coming down hard on an Indiana State player's lower teeth during a drive in the Sooners' loss. Price ended up with a piece of the opponent's tooth in his arm.

"I didn't know it was that severe when it happened, but it turned out to be it was," Price said. "I thank the Lord he got me through that. Coach always says that adversity makes a man, and I think it made a man out of me and a better player, too."

He's been outstanding for Oklahoma (31-4) all season.

At 6-foot-1 and just 165 pounds, Price looks almost frail on the court. But he has tremendous speed, a sweet jumper and toughness, too.

While other Sooners struggled in the first half of the regional semifinal against Arizona, Price made six 3-pointers. He had 22 of the Sooners' 33 points at halftime, keeping them close enough to rally in the second half.

"I've never seen that kid have any fear," Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson said.

After scoring 18 points in Saturday's regional final against Missouri, Price shared a long hug with Sampson, then called his grandfather in New Orleans - just as he does after every game.

Price's grandparents, George Carraby and Ann Dennis, raised him and his two siblings because their single mother was often in jail.

Price grew up in New Orleans' Desire neighborhood, which Sampson called "one of the toughest projects in that city."

But with his grandparents providing guidance, Price was drawn to sports and stayed clear of trouble.

"He had a beautiful home," Sampson said. "He lived in a project apartment, but he had a beautiful home because of his grandfather and grandmother. Hollis was brought up the right way, and that was his constant."

The "right way" meant coming home straight from school, doing homework before going out to play, and being home on time at night. It meant going to church on Sunday, being thankful for little things and respecting others.

"The distractions were there," Carraby said. "But he was always above that fray because he had folks who impressed on him that there are things much more important than to waste your life."

Like any youngster, Price occasionally got out of line, but he never got into any serious trouble.

"You didn't need a whip or a switch. He's the kind of kid who comprehends," said Carraby, a counselor at a drug rehab center. "He looks you dead in your eyes when you talk to him, so that when you talk to him, you can get a good read on whether or not you're connecting. Hollis and I could always connect."

Price played several sports, and excelled at basketball. At St. Augustine High School, he averaged 25 points as a senior and led his team to the Class 5A state title. He also led his under-17 AAU summer team to a national title.

He started 22 games at Oklahoma as a freshman, averaging 7.2 points and 3.5 assists at point guard. He played the first 16 games at the point the next season before moving to shooting guard, and wound up averaging 11.8 points and 4.7 assists.

With the arrival of his high school teammate, Quannas White, at point guard, Price has been able to stay at shooting guard this season and was an All-Big 12 pick after averaging 17 points.

The elbow still hasn't healed, but Price's game is perfectly healthy.

"I don't think it'll ever be 100 percent," Price said. "But I haven't had many problems with it. Once I get into a game, I really don't think about it."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Price Is Right for Oklahoma In the Final Four

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