Jan. 10, 2006

1. After scoring 8.3 points last season, you have almost doubled your scoring average to 15.9 pts. /game this season. What brought about the increase in scoring this season?

TK: More opportunities and my work ethic. I thank God that I hit most of my shots this season, and I have been shooting the ball well.

2. What are your thoughts on potentially becoming the 38th member of the 1,000-point club at USC? (He currently has 823 career points with 15 regular season games plus the postseason left.)

TK: That is big. I feel great about having the opportunity to be one of the 1,000-point scorers. If I keep putting up the numbers that I am now, hopefully I’ll make it. I’m not aiming for it, but if I get it, it will be huge.

3. Being the only four-year senior this season, what type of leadership responsibilities have you taken on?

TK: I’m just trying to be more vocal, but my best way is to lead by example. Most of our former leaders were more speech and spiritual leaders. I’m not really like that. I lead by example.

4. What did you learn from past leaders like Mike Boynton, Jr. and Carlos Powell that you are trying to pass on to the team?

TK: I just try to lead by example, and I learned that from Mike.

5. Six of Carolina’s next eight SEC games are on the road, how will you prepare mentally for these tough SEC contests?

TK: We got a feel for it with the tournament in Alaska. We played all of those games on the road and that helped us, plus we have had some tough games on the road already this season. Really, the only way that you can prepare for it is from past experience. Basically, we just try to follow coach’s game plan and that gives us a great opportunity to win the game every time.

6. What did you enjoy the most about Alaska when the team traveled there for the Greater Alaska Shootout?

TK: I enjoyed just being somewhere new. There was a lot of snow, and I had never seen that much before.

7. How do you see this year’s team progressing through the SEC games and into the postseason?

TK: We’re connecting more but we are just not finishing games. When we play like we do in the first half of a game, we can beat any team in the nation. We seem to unravel in the last few minutes of the game, but we still seem to get better.

8. You wear #21. Is there a story or reason behind why you chose the number?

TK: There is no reason behind it. It was my number in high school and they just gave it to me when I got here.

9. You chose USC over Boston College, Massachusetts, Florida, Arkansas and Georgia Tech, what factored into your decision of choosing Carolina?

TK: I didn’t want to go too far up north where it is too cold. I wanted to get out of Florida because I didn’t want my family to be too hard on me. I could start new here at Carolina.

10. It may be too soon to ask but what do you want to do after your basketball career at USC is up?

TK: Hopefully, basketball will take me somewhere. If not, I’m graduating in May. I’m a criminal justice major so hopefully I can do something within that field. If all else fails, I can go back to Tampa and work with my grandfather. He’s a representative for Les Miles.