Not good news on Kiwi

Midland College fell to Odessa College 56-54 on Monday but the takeaway for Bay Area basketball fans is this: "...had to play more minutes at point guard Monday because starting freshman point guard Kiwi Gardner has been suspended indefinitely for violating team rules..."

Midland and Gardner win

Oscar Leroy writes about Midland College's recent 81-69 victory over Howard College, the second-ranked team in the nation. There's a photo of Kiwi Gardner accompanying the game report as he scored 14 points while nabbing eight rebounds during the game.

Gardner doing the job

Midland (Texas) College gets back into action tonight and frosh backcourter Kiwi Gardner is averaging 11.5 points per game and a team-leading 34 assists.

A Kiwi Gardner update

If these Midland College numbers are correct and up-to-date, Kiwi Gardner, in seven games so far, is averaging 8.9 points per game while shooting 38%, 41% and 76% respectively. Also three assists and two rebounds per contest.

Kiwi to the Lone Star State

Kiwi Gardner has landed at Midland College in Midland, Texas.

The Chaparrals are led by Coach Craig Craig who is in his second season after assisting at Northern Colorado and heading the program at the College of Eastern Utah.

Midland is a member of the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and a two-time national champion.

A Kiwi Gardner update

Dave @ FriarBlog offers an update of sorts on Kiwi Gardner -- scroll down to the fourth paragraph.

Gardner is not on the CSI 2012-13 roster here.

Gardner has apparently also dropped his Twitter account.

Kiwi after Providence

Bonta Hill ventures into Kiwi Gardner's next destination territory.

Providence paper confirms Gardner's status

It's stashed behind a paywall but various twitter posts are confirming what was already known: Kiwi Gardner is no longer at Providence.

Welcome to Friartown: "Full Kevin McNamara ProJo piece on Ledo: "Ian Baker isn’t likely to join the program, and neither will Kiwi Gardner" per Ed Cooley"

This was already apparent due to him not in summer school in Rhode Island and also not participating in the NCAA newly approved summer training conducted by the respective college coaches but some held out hope.

Josiah Turner & Kiwi Gardner

Kiwi Gardner and Josiah Turner. Josiah Turner and Kiwi Gardner.

What's with the scorn and the I-told-you-so's? Is such a behavioral reaction providing some degree of warped satisfaction?

Jeez.

Two young men, regardless of basketball-playing capabilities, are stumbling and struggling in life.

It's a situation which calls for empathy, understanding, a willingness to help with a steady and sturdy hand and a reasonable mindset.

Yes, a DUI is a deadly serious matter.

And tossing a basketball in the face of an opponent is a blasphemy on the game but, more so, an outright act of cruelty. 

But wishing for woe or taking some sort of glee from personal difficulties is not exactly getting your mail at a high moral address.

Don't get it wrong -- absolution isn't being offered here.

That would be inappropriate.

First, both young men need to earn their way back into respectability, beginning with their selves.

However, don't forget it's also a number of the adults in the life equations of these individuals who have come up short. You know them -- the card-carrying what's-in-it-for-me crowd who either cannot see beyond the moment or could care less.

Is it really too much for adults who invite themselves into the lives of kids to look out for the long term healthiness of the youngsters in their orbit?

Some are providing aid to the pair at this moment. Call them the actual adults, the ones who can see and act beyond the me-me-me and focus on concern for building the fabric of a life because it, in turn, will also benefit community.

That's really what is at stake here -- not simply basketball-playing futures.

With both consistent and appropriate guidance and a willingness to change their respective mindsets and decision-making processes, Turner and Gardner can turn it around, on and off the court.

That should be what everyone is wishing to see.

Kiwi gone from Providence?

The following is a line from a Jim Donaldson/Providence Journal column: "...Kiwi Gardner appears to be gone, never having played a game for PC...

Now this isn't definitive but, if true, please realign your values if this happens to bring you some sort of warped satisfaction.

Providence counting on Kiwi

A pair of highly regarded frosh points at Providence are injured thus making the availability of Kiwi Gardner even more crucial for Coach Ed Cooley. Here's predicting that DickieV immediately falls in love at first sighting of Kiwi and offers a Diaper Dandy designation.

Looking forward to Kiwi-time

Finally, come the 2012-13 season, Kiwi Gardner will enjoy the opportunity to display his basketball talents.

The Providence roster has been changing of late due to transfers coming and going but here's what the Friar backcourt currently looks like:

* 6-foot-2 senior-to-be Vincent Council is the leading returning scorer (15.9 points per game) and assist man (231 assists) for the Friars but has shooting limitations (39%, 29%, 67%).

* 6-foot-3 junior-to-be Bryce Cotton came in second at 14.3 points per contest last season (203 of his 351 shooting attempts were behind the line)

Coming in are 6-foot-3 freshman point Kris Dunn, 6-foot-5 freshman shooting guard Ricardo Ledo, 6-foot-1 freshman point Ian Baker and 6-foot-5 freshman shooting guard Joshua Fortune. The first three are highly acclaimed recruits with Dunn the highest rated.

It's worth noting however, that Dave @ FriarBlog on March 30 wrote: "With Vincent Council recently announcing he would return for next year and Kris Dunn on his way, the Friars are either going to be incredibly deep at the PG position (is it me, or have we had 1 PG every year for the last 10 years), or Kiwi Gardner isn’t in the plans..." 

I haven't checked specifically in Kiwi's case but all seemed set not that long ago for him to get on the court for PC. The competition will be fierce but he's not one to shy away from challenge.

A Kiwi Gardner update

From Scott Cordischi/GoLocalProv.com:

"... Rumors were circulating around the Dunk that freshman guard Kiwi Gardner may be no longer be with the program. Those rumors are simply not true. Cooley told GoLocalProv.com after the game that Gardner was told to go home to Los Angeles and enjoy the holidays with his family since he has been ruled ineligible to play by the NCAA. A source also said that Gardner did very well in his first semester at PC despite the NCAA saying that he did not have the proper credentials coming out of high school to be eligible to play as a freshman at PC. Because of the NCAA's ruling, Gardner cannot practice with the team or sit on the bench during their games.  However, he is expected to return to Providence before the start of second semester ..."

We don't think Los Angeles is the correct home destination but it's good to read that Kiwi is doing it academically.

Kiwi Gardner ruled ineligible

Kiwi Gardner has been ruled ineligible to play this season.

In the long run, this may actually be a good thing, giving him time to focus on academics and adjusting to college life.

More on Kiwi Gardner

John Rooke has the latest on Kiwi Gardner, now at Providence:

"... [Providence Coach Ed] Cooley said Thursday night during his debut radio show on WEEI-FM that the school and athletic department are still working through the eligibility issues plaguing [Kiwi] Gardner, which stems from one of his classes taken in the past year at Westwind Prep in Arizona. Until Gardner is cleared to play, he’ll work out – but not suit up with the team. Gardner also just had 16 stitches removed from his mouth and tongue as a result of an injury sustained in practice ..."

Kiwi Gardner ineligible

The Friar Blog has the news that former Manteca guard Kiwi Gardner has been declared ineligible for this season by the NCAA.

Providence is appealing the ruling.

A couple of Kiwi Gardner notes

From John Rooke's GoLocalProv column:

"...Friar freshman Kiwi Gardner didn't win the slam dunk contest Friday Night at Alumni Hall (sophomore Bryce Cotton did, again)...but I swear he was jumping on a trampoline ..."

and

From Peter Gobis' Sun Chronicle article:

"... Coach wants everybody in the front of the class, sitting up in front is a requirement," related Friar freshman guard Kiwi Gardner of the new academic rules in place for members of the PC basketball team, taking to the floor for the first time under Cooley's eye as a team. "He's on us all the time about that (academics), but it's in our best interests. If you're not here to learn, then you won't learn wherever you go, it's on the kid - you've got no choice, but to do the work, so we might as well get something done ..."

"... "It's a lot of work, but not too bad," said Gardner. "Western Civ, that's my toughest class." Gardner has 8:30 a.m. classes every day so he better be awake ("I didn't get no break that way") and not miss a class because Coach Cooley keeps attendance figures. "We've got no choice," said Gardner. "It gets me up every day, so I'm ready for the day every day ..."

There are additional quotes.

A Kiwi Gardner update

The (Providence) Friar Blog folks check in with Westwind Coach Adam Desautels for his take on Kiwi Gardner, one of his former players.

Kiwi on ESPN

ESPN's Diamond Leung makes note of Kiwi Gardner's Summer Pro-Am outburst, of course, using Travis Ferris' video.

Kiwi scores over half a hundred

Providence-bound Kiwi Gardner dropped 51 points in a recent San Francisco Pro-Am game and, of course, the ubiquitous TravisF/Yay Area's Finest caught the display.