TU Stars Give Wojcik Heaps of Credit

Originally Published: Jun 23, 2010 5:40 PM CDT

Bobby Lewis
Oklahoma Sports Mobile Journalist

TULSA, Oklahoma – Ben Uzoh and Jerome Jordan could both be playing in the NBA this fall. That means new homes, new teams and a new league. It also means, a new coach.

After spending four years with the same coach, the talented Tulsa duo has to leave Doug Wojcik behind.

“I give him a lot of credit,” Uzoh said in a phone interview before the draft. “I give the whole Tulsa staff a lot of credit.”

Wojcik, Jordan and Uzoh won 93 games together in TU blue. That includes a pair of conference runners up seasons and the 2008 CBI Championship.

“From Day 1, since I’d been there, (Wojcik and his staff) pretty much had a game plan for me, developing me and stuff,” Jordan over the phone. “We saw it through for four years. They always pushed me.”

Both players are projected to get taken before the end of the draft’s two rounds on Thursday, but they’re not sweating the assumptions and predictions that many mock drafts stir up.

“I don’t even own a laptop,” Uzoh chuckled. “That just shows you I really don’t have any time to get caught up in any of that stuff. So, I really couldn’t tell you what’s going on with those things.”

Both say they’ve put in the necessary work leading up to the biggest nights of their lives. The draft clock is ticking and all they can do is wait. The preparation is what’s keeping them grounded.

“I give my hat off to them,” Jordan said of his coaches. “Everybody pretty much helped contribute to where I am right now, keeping me motivated and all that stuff. So, they helped put me where I am right now.”

Wojcik admits that it would be pretty amazing for two players from Tulsa to be taken in the same NBA draft, but added that it’s a testament to the caliber of player the program has been able to attract during his tenure.

“I think it’s a credit to my mentors: Skip Prosser, my high school coach and Tom Izzo at Michigan State,” said Wojcik. “I think (Izzo) set the pace for me and it makes me feel awfully good that we may have two guys potentially playing in the NBA very soon.”