Hernando puts ball in Brown's hands

If Hernando has had a problem this season, it has been turnovers. The Leopards average 22.5.

A solution might have presented itself Tuesday, when Jeff Brown made his Leopards debut against Crystal River.

Brown, a 6-foot-2 guard, is the 17th-ranked sophomore in the state, according to Break-down.com, and was selected as an all-star at the Rookie Sensations Camp in Ocala in the fall.

An offseason transfer from Gainesville, where he averaged 11 points off the bench, Brown was academically ineligible the first half of the season.

Taking two night-school classes in addition to his six courses at Hernando, Brown earned a 3.3 grade-point average this past semester to improve his overall GPA a full point to 2.7.

"He's really done the right things there academically," Hernando coach Jeff Laing said.

Brown is a cousin of former Hernando player Jason Byrd and a distant relative of the late Jerome Brown. He moved to Brooksville in June after his grandmother was awarded legal custody of him.

Brown is expected to make an immediate impact for Hernando (3-11).

He possesses the quickness, court awareness and ball-handling skills to break the press and the scoring ability to finish. His leaping ability should help improve the Leopards' rebounding.

Furthermore, Brown's presence will allow Hernando's leading scorers, Joel Hoogewind (10.9 ppg) and Chris Korbus (8.9 ppg), to return to their natural roles as spot-up shooters.

Laing said he sees the potential in Brown for about 20 points and 10 assists per game, production the team has lacked since Jerrell Graham graduated after last season.

"We look for him to fill that role we had with Jerrell," Laing said.

ON THE MEND: Central lost junior center/forward Kyle Swanston for an undetermined amount of time after he fractured an elbow in a Jan. 7 victory over Hernando.

Swanston averaged 8.6 points and led the Bears in scoring in three of four games before the injury, including 22 against the Leopards. He will be re-evaluated week to week, coach John Sedlack said.

Junior Kyle Keene replaced Swanston in the starting lineup the past two games. Jeremy Gambrel moved from the No. 4 to the No. 5 spot.

"We miss Kyle (Swanston)," Sedlack said. "He was playing very well. But I'm not one to cry about injuries."

LACKLUSTER EFFORT: Sedlack was disappointed with the intensity his team showed in the first half of a 61-53 loss to Mitchell in the GCAC/SAC Shootout on Saturday at Central. The Bears (9-5) fell behind 23-10 in the first quarter and never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.

"We're not defending this floor the way I know we should," Sedlack said. "It just doesn't have enough meaning right now to play at home.

"We did not come out strong. We kind of flopped around and dug a hole we could not get out of," he said.

BACK WHERE HE STARTED: Coach Scott Bennett hoped the Eagles Christmas Tournament on Dec. 20-21 would be a turning point for inexperienced Springstead. But in the three weeks since the Eagles beat Tarpon Springs and Hudson to win the event, they suffered lopsided losses to Citrus and Lecanto to fall to 2-6.

"After that tournament, it was like I went back to square one," Bennett said.

As in its pre-tourney games, Springstead stood around and let Citrus and Lecanto dictate the tempo. Bennett addressed the problem in practice.

"The last four days were probably the best four days of practice we've had," he said. "They've been busting their tails. They've got a good, positive outlook, and they're young.

"They haven't quit, I haven't quit. We changed some things. When you've got a young team, you've just got to keep trying things until you find something you're comfortable with."

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