BURN THE HORSE
A quick chat with UALR signee Taggart Lockhart reveals that he’s Coach Steve Shields’ type of player.
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| Taggart Lockhart kisses the Oklahoma State Championship trophy. |
“He thinks I’m physical enough and shoot the ball well enough that I can play down low and outside and being 6-5 helps. I’ve got the height over some of the little guards,” Lockhart said on Wednesday in an exclusive interview with Burn The Horse.
Lockhart is a 6-5 guard from Talihina, Okla., where he helped lead the school to its first state championship. He averaged 18.4 points and 9.43 rebounds and has received numerous all-state honors in Oklahoma. He’s also going to play in the state’s small school all-star game later this year.
Coming off a NCAA Tournament appearance, UALR is looking to re-load with the loss of seniors Solomon Bozeman, Matt Mouzy, Alex Garcia-Mendoza, Montrell Thornton and Derrick Bails. In the fall UALR signed Will Neighbour, James White and Reggie Fondren. UALR also has a commitment to sign from Arlington (Fla.) Country Day’s Michael Javes. And indications are that UALR is waiting to hear from Ron Baker of Fort Scott, Kan., for its last available scholarship. Baker is visiting South Dakota State this weekend and is expected to make a decision next week.
Talihina lost in the state championship game in both his sophomore and junior years before breaking through this year.
“It was heartbreaking the first two years, but we came through and finally pulled it off. It was a big relief for us. I know the fans really loved it in Talihina, a little town, the first one that we’ve had in this town,” Lockhart said. “It was a great feeling.”
Lockhart played in Class 2A in Oklahoma and was being recruited by smaller-level schools before exploding onto the recruiting scene with big games against bigger schools last December. UALR was aware of him and Lockhart became one of their top recruiting targets.
He made an unofficial visit to UALR when the Trojans faced North Texas in early March.
“It was close to home. That was a plus. The facilities are awesome. And they made the Big Dance, that’s another plus,” Lockhart said. “No matter who you’re playing for, you want to compete for the national championship.”
Lockhart provides some flexibility as well. UALR has lost 3 guard Alex Garcia-Mendoza and 2 guards Solomon Bozeman and Matt Mouzy to graduation. He likely slots in at the 3 behind senior Tramar Sutherland, but can play both positions.
“He said that he’d like for me to come in and be a 3 and run some 2 as well. Mainly my strength is getting down low to bang with the bigger guys,” Lockhart said. “He said he thought if I came in and worked hard that I could get 15 to 20 minutes as a freshman. That was another plus of coming here.”
