Rudy Gay has guided Connecticut back to the No. 1 position in both polls and has the Huskies eyeing a third national championship in eight years. Anthony Lewis, Gay’s AAU coach at Cecil-Kirk Recreation Center in Baltimore, says Gay’s success is a combination of athleticism, resetting goals and desire with a sprinkling of progression through time.

‘The kids got to come in with desire, which Rudy had,’ Lewis said. ‘If they come in with desire, that’s half the battle. Then you got to put them in the right type of structure so they can do what they need to do.’

Desire has been Gay’s lifeblood since Lewis instilled it in him. One year after earning National Freshman of the Year honors, Gay was named to the All-Big East First Team on Monday after averaging a team-high 15.4 points and 6.6 rebounds this season for UConn, which faces the winner of today’s Syracuse-Cincinnati contest on Thursday.

Lewis coached Gay at Cecil-Kirk from his freshman through junior year in high school, but has known Gay and his family since the forward was 7 years old.

After enrolling in the AAU program at Cecil-Kirk when he was 12, Gay added to the list of great names to come out of the recreation center, such as the late Hall of Famer Reggie Lewis and Portland Trail Blazers’ Juan Dixon. Yet, Lewis says he did not see anything special in Gay when he was 12 that would be a precursor of what was to come.

‘You don’t see anything in kids until 15 or 16,’ Lewis said. ‘As you begin to set goals, you see if they can achieve those goals. And as they achieve those goals you set more goals before them. The closer they come to these goals, the more they begin to see the opportunities before them.’

Lewis made sure Gay was aware of these goals every time he walked into the Cecil-Kirk’s gym. Lewis outlined the goals in gradual steps for the young Gay. He would have Gay work on defensive skills and getting after the ball, no matter who was blocking him. The taller Gay became, the more intense Lewis’ goals became for the young star.

Lewis recalls Gay being between 6-foot-3 and 6-foot-4 at age 14. Then at 15, Gay grew to 6-foot-5. Lewis called it a steady progression.

‘He’s 6-9 and athletic,’ Lewis said. ‘Not every kid gets to be 6-5, 6-7. At the time when Rudy was 12, he wasn’t 6-9 and as athletic. So the goal of things didn’t apply at that time. You got to work on all those things like any normal kid. He was no different than any other kid.’

So the goals set forth for Gay during his early career at Cecil-Kirk were relatively the same as all the other kids. When Gay’s athleticism passed his peers, so did his goals. One time during practice Gay drove to the basket and laid the ball in over an opposing defender to avoid a potential collision. Lewis took the ball and told Gay to dunk it.

When Gay obeyed the order, Lewis said, ‘Good. Now do that every time someone’s in front of you.’

Lewis always made sure Gay knew that with any size he could have his way on the basketball court, whether he was 5-foot-6 or 6-foot-6. Since Gay did not have to worry about lacking in height, Lewis taught Gay more skills he could add to his dimensions as a player.

‘The taller you get the more things that will come to you,’ Lewis said. ‘Baltimore had Carmelo Anthony. Carmelo Anthony was a 6-2 guard. February through June, Carmelo grew about six inches. He went from a 6-2 guard to a 6-8 guard and that adds a lot more dimensions to what you can do.’

Lewis pointed out the dimensions added for a player with that type of athleticism and size is the ability to shoot over opponents, becoming longer on the perimeter, putting the ball on the floor and becoming a tougher guard for the opponent to handle.

‘A kid of his nature, you want to become much more accurate on the outside,’ Lewis said. ‘You have to begin to shoot for accuracy and not distance. You want to begin to put the ball on the floor and be able to jump and square up. You begin to work off a curve. You have someone who can make the other players look better. These are the goals we put forth for Rudy.’

The Cecil-Kirk formula proves to be an ingredient for success as the program continues to spit out skilled players such as Virginia’s J.R. Reynolds and Illinois’ Chester Frazier. Continuing to supply the Big East’s pool of talent, Cecil-Kirk’s Dejuan Summers has signed a letter of intent to play with Georgetown next season.

Although only a sophomore, Gay is receiving more attention than some of the biggest seniors in the country. Still, Lewis breaks down Gay’s success to simple terms.

‘LeBron James wasn’t doing what he’s doing now when he was 16,’ Lewis said. ‘Carmelo Anthony wasn’t doing what he’s doing now when he was 16. It was progression. He certainly progressed and took advantage of the opportunities he had in size, his gifts of athleticism and he worked hard to mold himself into what he is now.’

Games to Watch

What else? The Big East Tournament starts today. The entire tournament will be broadcast on either ESPN or ESPN2. Do not be surprised the eventual national champion arises from this tournament.

Published on March 6, 2006 at 12:00 pm