Georgetown's Knox turns hard work into success at Auburn

Nobody is laughing at Brendon Knox these days.

The Georgetown native started basketball later than most players, taking up the sport in eighth grade as a lanky, awkward kid donning glasses while on the court. Now, he's a 6-foot-10, 220-pound force for the Auburn basketball team.

"I'm laughing because it was funny," said Georgetown coach Alvin "Stitch" Walker, who coached Knox in high school. "[In high school] teams used to laugh when they'd see him looking all clumsy, wearing glasses. He'd have to stop when the glasses came off his face. He couldn't even catch the ball when he first started.

"He has really come a long way. Playing Division I basketball is just a great accomplishment."

Knox, a senior in his second year with the Tigers after playing two years in junior college at Spartanburg Methodist, is averaging 8.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and just over a block per game entering this week's SEC tournament.

Knox, who has been a consistent shot-blocker throughout his basketball career, added 15 pounds of muscle before the season and has become a legitimate low-post scoring threat for the Tigers.

"[I did] some more [low-post] workouts in the offseason because I knew I was going to play more," said Knox, who has scored in double figures in 13 of 31 games with season high of 22. "I remember back in high school I was real skinny. When I got to college I got bigger. That's helped me become a low-post scorer."

Plenty of people have noticed, including Walker.

"I just think hard work and determination has helped his offensive game. Even when he came home to visit he would want to get in the gym and work on his game." Walker said. "I've been really impressed. Every time they're on I'm glued to the TV. His low post moves in high school was just a lot of putbacks. He had maybe one go-to move in high school and a lot of [his scoring] was just off offensive rebounds and putbacks.

"He's just worked really hard on his low-post moves."

Knox has also continued to be a presence on the defensive end, primarily because of his shot-blocking ability, one phase of the game that came naturally for Knox.

"When I first started playing, that's all I could do. I couldn't really do anything but block shots," Knox said. "I'm still learning. There's still stuff I need to learn to get better."

The Tigers enter the conference tournament as the fifth seed out of the SEC West. Auburn (15-16) opens play at 7:30 tonight against the East's No. 4 seed, Florida, in Nashville, Tenn.

Knox knows that anything short of an SEC tournament title would likely signal the end of his collegiate career.

However, winning out can be done. Just two years ago Georgia ran the table as the sixth seed out of the East.

"We know it can be done," Knox said. "We've got to go in there with the right mindset and go hard and do our best. If we do our best it can be done."

Either way, Knox's career is winding down. He said he would like to continue playing basketball after school, but he hasn't thought too seriously about the prospects just yet. For the time being, he's just enjoying playing in one of the toughest conferences in the country.

"It's [been] an amazing experience. I love it," Knox said. "Playing against some of the best big men in the country, [guys] projected to get drafted - future NBA players. It's been a great opporutnity. I appreciate it."