Interview: Desmond Ferguson at U of D Legends Weekend
September 25, 2012 in Cover Story, Division I
Editor’s Note: Here is my fourth and final interview from the University of Detroit’s Legends and Traditions Weekend Sept. 22. — P.H.
Former Lansing Everett star Desmond Ferguson (read my feature story on Ferguson here) was among the many University of Detroit greats who participated in an alumni game Sept. 22 during Legends and Traditions Weekend.
Ferguson played with former teammate Rashad Phillips (read my story on Phillips here), and the two almost led their team to a big comeback against Willie Green‘s (my interview with Green is here) team, bolstered by Phillips’ ability to finish, shoot and make plays and Ferguson’s hot outside shooting.
I was able to catch up with Ferguson for a few minutes after the game.
How has this weekend been for you, getting to see so many former Detroit greats and some of your old teammates?
It brings back a lot of memories. That’s what I miss about the game, is the camaraderie, and that’s what we had here at U of D. I got to see guys I played with like Rashad Phillips and Will Green and Jimmy Twyman and also got to connect with some of the guys from other eras like Terry Duerod and those guys. It was a great weekend and hopefully something we can continue to have.
Did you get a chance to meet or talk to any of the guys on the current team or give those guys any advice?
We just talked to some of the guys and told them they can hopefully build on what they did last year and get back (to the NCAA Tournament) again this year.
So many of the guys from the era you played here not only had good, long basketball careers, but you’re all very active in your communities and working with kids. What motivated you guys to do that?
If you look at the collection of guys Perry Watson put together, we were very unique individuals. With it being a small campus and small school, we really had a family atmosphere here. That carried on beyond basketball into some of the things we’re doing now.
It was an exhibition game out there today, and everyone played kind of laid back until it got late there, then you started hitting those threes and you and Rashad were running that two-man game a lot. How fun was that for you being on the court with him again?
It brought back some good memories. He was hitting some shots, then I started hitting some shots. It looked like it was gonna be a blow out, so it was a lot of fun for us to get hot and make it a competitive game there at the end. It was fun for not only us, but for the fans too.
Previously:
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