Freshman lets game do talking

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — So far KeVaughn Allen is letting his play do most of his talking at Florida.

Gators senior forwards Dorian Finney-Smith and Alex Murphy said at SEC media day they like Allen, a freshman guard from North Little Rock, and are impressed by his talent and work ethic but that he barely says a word.

“He’s so quiet I call him ‘Mute,’ ” Finney-Smith said. “He just laughs. You can’t get him riled up. We’ll play video games and I’ll talk trash talk to him and he doesn’t give me anything back.”

Murphy said the Gators are trying to help Allen become more vocal.

“We’ve got to get him to open up, because you can’t play basketball and not talk,” Murphy said. “There’s so much communication that needs to go on throughout the game.”

Allen averaged 25.2 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 3.1 steals as a senior at North Little Rock.

“KeVaughn’s a really talented young man, and he really works hard,” Florida Coach Mike White said. “He spends a lot of time in the gym on his own. He’s got the ability to go get his own shot about any time that he wants, and he’s improving defensively.

“I expect him to have a good career, and he’s got a chance to make a big impact as a freshman.”

Nothing happened

Arkansas junior forward Moses Kingsley took an official recruiting visit to Louisville as a high school senior but said he didn’t attend any parties involving strippers or prostitutes.

The NCAA is investigating Louisville after allegations surfaced in a new book that former Cardinals staffer Andre McGee arranged for strippers and prostitutes to entertain recruits.

“I don’t have any comment on that because I didn’t experience any of that,” Kingsley said of his visit to Louisville. “Nothing happened.

“If it’s true it happened with other guys, then I’m glad it didn’t happen with me, because I don’t want to get in any trouble.”

Picked 11th

Arkansas is picked to finish 11th in the SEC in a preseason media poll released Wednesday.

The Razorbacks are down to 10 scholarship players and have no returning starters from last season’s NCAA Tournament team.

“Polls are just people’s opinions,” Arkansas Coach Mike Anderson said. “I always worry about what takes place when it’s all said and done.

“I was the third choice for my wife, and I didn’t turn out bad.”

Anderson said he understands there are a lot of questions about the Razorbacks.

“We’ve got some work to do, there’s no question about that,” he said. “We’ve got our work cut out for us, but I think it’s a challenge we’re looking forward to as well.”

Arkansas has been picked to finish between 10th and 13th in the SEC in some other magazine preseason polls.

“People can say whatever they want,” senior guard Anthlon Bell said. “We’ve just going to go out there every night and play as a team, and I feel like we’ll hold our own.”

Ready to go

Mississippi State freshman Malik Newman, a McDonald’s High School All-American from Jackson, Miss., plays point guard.

That’s the same spot I.J. Ready, a junior from Little Rock Parkview, has played for the Bulldogs the past two seasons.

Newman, though, doesn’t figure to cost Ready playing time.

Mississippi State Coach Ben Howland said he plans to have Newman and Ready on the court together most of the time as part of a three-guard lineup with senior Craig Sword.

“We’ll be small, but we’ll be able to shoot and pass,” Howland said. “We’ll have five guards playing those three spots.”

Howland said he’s impressed by Ready, who averaged 8.2 points and 2.0 rebounds last season.

“I think he’s a really smart player, he’s tough,” Howland said. “He’s shooting the ball well. He’s distributing the ball well. He has good toughness. He’s got a good basketball IQ.”

Newman said Ready is helping him make the transition from playing in high school to the SEC.

“He’s teaching me the ropes of being a college point guard, telling me what’s going to happen,” Newman said. “He’s real cool about it.”