By Patrick Hayes

Former Frankenmuth star and Michigan Mr. Basketball winner Brad Redford has had an up and down college career, including a serious knee injury that limited his effectiveness last year as he tried to return from it. Now, as a fifth year senior, Redford is hoping he can have his best college season. Hugh Bernreuter of the Saginaw News talked with Redford as he readied to leave for a trip with other college seniors to play in the Four Nations Cup tournament. From the story:

Injuries have taken their toll on Redford since his freshman year at Xavier. A hip injury slowed him down his sophomore season, then a torn ACL sidelined him for the entire 2010-11 season.

Despite intensive rehab, the knee still bothered Redford last season.

“This is the best I’ve felt since my freshman year,” Redford said. “My knee feels good. I’ve spent the summer in Cincinnati, working with the team and going to a place in Mason (Ohio) called Ignition, which trains NFL players for the combine.

“I do a lot of cardio, a lot of strength and quickness training. I’ve lost seven pounds, my knee is great, and I feel quicker and stronger.”

But he won’t be 100-percent sure until he plays against some top competition, making the timing of the Estonia tournament perfect.

“This trip gives me a chance to test my knee out, test myself after going through all this work,” Redford said. “They were looking for a shooter, and they asked me if I was interested. I was looking for a place to go overseas to get some experience. My goal is to finish my career strong.”

As the article notes, Xavier loses star guard Tu Holloway to graduation and Mark Lyons, the team’s other starting guard, transferred to Arizona, so this could be Redford’s best opportunity to earn a consistent role and playing time.