Cabrini athletics photo

Aaron Walton-Moss missed out on playing his beloved game of basketball before: Playing only 18 games his first two years at Camden (N.J.) High School, then going another two years without displaying his all-around talents because his academics caused Division I suitors to sour on his prodigious skills.

And now, Walton-Moss found himself in an unfortunate but familiar role as spectator during Cabrini's first nine games. Fresh off earning the 2012 D3hoops.com Rookie of the Year award after helping Cabrini reach the NCAA Division III national championship game, his grades derailed him again, forcing him to watch the Cavaliers suit up without him.

These situations, even if self-inflicted, provide lessons and tests of character. Not only within, but also for those around him. Because in the past, Walton-Moss became a basketball star seemingly out of sight and out of mind without the round ball in his hands.

At Cabrini, the 21-year-old has found his way again, returning to the court thanks to a personal philosophy change and a coach offering unflinching support.

"I'm not sure that has ever happened for him in the past. I think that in the past guys may have wrote him off if he wasn't playing," Cabrini coach Marcus Kahn said. "That's not me, that's not Cabrini, that's not who we are as a campus."

This is a different world for Walton-Moss, who said he never received this support at Camden High or from any other coach he has ever known.

"He made sure I would keep my head on right," Walton-Moss said. "That's why I love Coach Kahn so much. Not everything's about basketball."

In his 21 years, Walton-Moss learned this much. He is the father of a 2-year-old daughter, Ariyiania, and already worked for a living at Walmart and the Camden Bureau of Recreation before enrolling at Cabrini, as D3hoops.com spotlighted last March.

This is why learning he failed to make the grade again wounded him so deeply. Walton-Moss, regretfully, admitted "it didn't look good" that a first-year player who pushed the Cavaliers within sniffing distance of a national championship disappeared from the spotlight nearly as soon as he seized it.

"I felt very disturbed and angry about it," Walton-Moss said. "But it's nobody's fault but mine. I can't be mad at anybody but myself."

Walton-Moss channeled his anger to fuel his first steps down his personal road of redemption. Sure, he still worked on his game, but he emphasized the student aspect of student-athlete which, honestly, is the reason he and any basketball player are ultimately part of their respective programs.

While Walton-Moss dedicated himself to his courseload, still finding time to work out for his pending return, Kahn kept constant tabs on him because, "We were not going to let him float off and be on his own." There were the series of conversations and consultations that started after the current sophomore learned last May he would be ineligible for the first semester, then continued to ensure that the player would stay the course with his classwork.

Through it all, Kahn made it clear that, even if Walton-Moss never played basketball again, he would stay on top of him and his pursuit of a degree. Of course, not playing basketball again was not an option for Walton-Moss.

On Dec. 30, he made his season debut against Wesleyan despite a 101-degree fever. No matter: In just 15 minutes, he scored a game-high 26 points in an 87-69 victory. In the four games since his return, he is averaging 16.0 points in 19.8 minutes.

"I was very, very excited," Walton-Moss said. "Everything just worked out good."

With him back on the basketball court, Cabrini (9-4) again becomes the favorite in the Colonial States Athletic Conference and a potentially dangerous team come March thanks to an arduous early-season schedule that included losses to Scranton and Virginia Wesleyan without Walton-Moss.

"He's big for us. He's definitely made a big impact," senior point guard A.J. Williams said. "We missed him in the first semester, but he worked hard to get back. He's one of our leaders.  He's our best player overall, so he's definitely go to help us out."

Added Kahn: "He can do some special things with the ball. We want the ball in his hands more. It's alm giving guys new roles. We're much happier with him on the roster."

Walton-Moss looks like a man on a new mission in his first four games back. From being forced to the sideline against because of his grades, he has discovered a new perspective that he, Kahn, and Cabrini hope will serve him well across the rest of his collegiate career.

"I'm definitely go to make sure that never happens again," Walton-Moss said. "It's basketball season, it's winter break, it's time to focus on just basketball.

"But next week classes start. You have to be a grown adult about it. If you could go play bask and go out and have fun with people, you can buckle down and go to classes."

Knight rediscovers basketball bliss at Southern Maine

Rebecca Knight played in 29 games last year for the University of Maine as a freshman, averaging 4.9 points.  Southern Maine athletics photo

Beyond sheer ability, being a Division I athlete requires a level of dedication and demand that makes student-athletes like Rebecca Knight go from asking “Why D3?” to ultimately deciding “D3 is best for me.”

From playing on scholarship last season at the University of Maine, Knight (13.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 57.8 FG%) is now the leading scorer on a balanced and deep No. 13-ranked Southern Maine (14-0) squad that, at the midway point, figures as the favorite in a Little East race that venerable coach Gary Fifield figures is as challenging as any his Huskies have encountered in recent seasons.

“I think this year I'm just in a better place because of the transition I've been able to make with my teammates and the people around me,” Knight said. “I've been able to enjoy the game again.

“I think that's the big difference: I'm enjoying. I like the environment I'm in. When you're in a situation like that, you always want to get better. When you're having fun, it's easier to do that.”

From the day-in, day-out demands of life on scholarship, even at a Division I mid-major like Maine, Knight is enjoying being one of four double-digit scorers for Southern Maine alongside seniors Jordan Grant (12.1 points, 8.3 rebounds), Nicole Garland (11.9 points), and Haley Jordan (10.0 points).

Her biggest adjustment since joining the Huskies: Becoming more unselfish. Earlier this season, she deferred too often for Fifield's tastes, forcing him to challenge her “because I was concerned she wasn't looking to score herself. She was looking to get her teammates open. She didn't want people to feel that just because she was (a Division I player) for a year that she was thinking that, 'Oh, I'm playing Division III, I'm going to be the dominant scorer.'”

Above all else, Knight is happier. She gets to spend time with her family, which is less than a 45-minute drive away in Alfred. Then there is the balance between academics, athletics and life that can often become skewed in a scholarship program.

Not at Southern Maine, which is 13-0 headed into a key Little East matchup Saturday at Mass-Dartmouth (10-2).

“I learned if you're not having fun, it's not worth it,” Knight said. “And I think Division III, you're playing because everyone wants to play.

“We're not on scholarship. We're all making the commitment because we want to. That's what makes it a lot more fun and enjoyable.”

A new era for the Millikin men

Last season, Matt Nadelhoffer estimates he spent “literally 10 percent of our practices” in first year as the bench boss for Millkin's struggling men's squad, leaving behind only a single assistant coach as he and the rest of his staff hit the road in search of fresh talent.

Instead of bringing in quick fixes from the junior-college ranks, Nadelhoffer decided to rebuild from scratch. Interestingly, he would not allow any of his potential future student-athletes to see the Big Blue play in person, instead selling them on his vision of future prosperity while imploring them to “stay away.”

“I knew by early December we weren't going to win a conference game,” said Nadelhoffer, in his second season after nine years at Eastern University in suburban Philadelphia. “We loved the kids we had ... but we knew we had to get a better product on the floor and even in the classroom, just a better Millikin fit.”

From inheriting a program that went 1-24 overall and 0-14 in the rigorous College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin each of the previous two campaigns, the Big Blue have emerged as the early surprise of the CCIW. Although a 7-7 record seems modest, Millikin is 3-0 in league play and has won four straight games entering Saturday's road test at Wheaton, Nadelhoffer's alma mater, despite starting his version of a Fab Five of freshmen and having 10 of the top 13 players he has utilized this season all being in their first season.  There are 17 rookies on the varsity roster.

This is all part of a paradigm shift that began when Nadelhoffer signed on to a position he saw as “truly a sleeping giant.” When he talks about a Millikin fit, it extends beyond anything with basketball: Revitalizing the campus' interest — the coach even sang with the school's renowned choir — as well as community-service projects such as visiting with older adults at a local assisted living facility, holding open doors for women, and looking others in the eye when speaking to them.

A friend of Nadelhoffer's told him that if, as a coach, one has a few freshmen playing big minutes and the team is playing break-even basketball in conference play, those rookies are keepers. Again, it is still early, but the Big Blue already appear to have several worthwhile pieces in places to ensure continued prosperity.

Nadelhoffer's Fab Five features point guard TJ Griffin (14.9 points, 3.8 assists, 3.3 steals), a 6-6 forward in Deavis Johnson (10.0 points, 8.3 rebounds) who only played one year of high school basketball at East Saint Louis (Ill.), promising shooters Trent Windemuller (8.4 points, 41.4 3FG%) and Elijah Kinmon (7.9 points, 3.1 rebounds, 39.1 3FG%), and Mitch Wilfer (4.9 points, 3.2 rebounds). Millikin only plays two sophomores (Drew Bollier and Geoffrey Godwin) and a senior (Rodney Clark) and, in terms of next year's recruiting, the Big Blue are solely seeking immediately game changers like the ones leading their current resurgence.

Of course, No. 20 Wheaton represents a unique challenge Saturday in that this is the first big road trip for many with the Big Blue. Whatever happens will tell the story of where they currently are in Nadelhoffer's rebuildng effort, not necessarily where they are going, although their coach gives them a puncher's chance.

“If we can get over the fact that we're on the road,” Nadelhoffer said, “I think we're going to be in the game down the wire.”