OVER 400 YOUNGSTERS ATTEND SE HOOP CAMP

The summer college basketball recruiting season began Saturday, meaning coaches from all over the country hit the road in search of future stars.

But Southeast Missouri State University coach Gary Garner hasn't had to go far to take a look at a lot of players.

Garner's biggest basketball camp of the summer -- for high school teams -- began Monday and concludes today. Games are being played at the Show Me Center, the Student Recreation Center, Houck Field House and First Baptist Church.

"We've got 50 teams and over 400 players," said Garner Tuesday morning as he surveyed some of the action at the Student Recreation Center. "It's always our biggest camp."

While Garner said it's fairly rare to find a potential recruit at the camp, it at least affords him the opportunity to check out future talent close to home since virtually all of the area's high schools send teams to the camp each year, along with many other schools from Missouri and several surrounding states.

"A lot of the better kids play for AAU teams during the summer, so you usually won't find a player in a camp like this," Garner said. "But it lets us look at a lot of players, especially the ones around the area, and you never know who you might find.

"What can happen, if you see a player you like a lot, especially a younger player, you encourage his coach to keep bringing his team to the camp."

One of the Indians' incoming freshman for next season, recent Shawnee (Ill.) High School graduate Derek Winans, played with his squad in Southeast's team camp last summer, so Garner and his assistants were able to get a good look at Winans during that time.

"There will usually be some pretty decent players in camps like this," said Garner. "The majority of them won't be Division I-type players, but you never know when you might find one to keep an eye on."

This week's camp is one of six three for individuals and three for teams, ranging in ages from six years old to high school seniors-to-be that Garner and his staff conduct each summer on the Southeast campus. Assistant coach Keno Davis does much of the planning and organization for the camps.

"Keno does a great job, he really works at it," Garner said.

While Garner and his staff have a chance to look at potential future recruits during their camps, the same goes for many of the other coaches at Southeast as the school conducts various camps in most sports each summer.

And, even if no future stars are discovered at the camps, they still provide young athletes instruction at the hands of college coaches along with offering a look at the Southeast campus, since many of the camp participants will eventually attend the school -- even if they aren't talented enough to be college athletes.

"It's just a good opportunity for the coaches and the participants," said Garner.