HNT College Corner: Rudowitz learned tricks of trade

COMPILED BY JACK GENUNG
December 7, 2009

Being a 6-foot-6 power forward was easy in high school. On the college level, though, A.J. Rudowitz discovered that rebounds didn't automatically fall into his hands.

So the former Monroe standout learned a few tricks of the trade, and today he's a beast on the boards, averaging 19.8 points and 10.0 rebounds per game as a senior at emerging Division II power Stonehill College.

"Rebounding is more about getting position than size or athleticism," he said via phone last week. "In high school I really didn't have to rely on position. It took me a couple of months on the college level to realize I'm not going to be able to rebound just because I'm bigger. I had to learn to get position."

Rudowitz is in a good position right now. He was named Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Week on Nov. 30 after going crazy in an upset of preseason league favorite Merrimack. He tallied 24 points on 9 of 13 shooting from the field and 6 of 7 from the free-throw line, added 15 rebounds, four assists and three blocks.

Saturday's 75-63 win over Southern was a more typical day at the office: 20 points, 14 boards and four blocks as the Skyhawks improved to 5-1. It was the 13th career double-double for Rudowitz, who was a first-team All-Conference selection as a junior and has scored more than 1,200 points since arriving on the picturesque Easton, Mass. campus.

So it's safe to say he gets a bit of attention from opposing defenses.

"If I get the ball on the block, as soon as I turn my head I see one or two other people at me," he said. "I know when I go up to take a shot nothing is going to be easy. I'm going to get hit on every shot. I've got to be ready for that."

Rudowitz set the career scoring record at Monroe (1,556 points) and found Stonehill with the help of Nick Smith, a former Colonia High School star who was playing there at the time. He started 21 games as a freshman, making the Northeast-10 All-Rookie team, and would lead the Skyhawks in rebounding as a sophomore.

"When I came to Stonehill I was basically starting all over again," he said. "Everything was new because everyone was so much physically stronger. You just have to work that much harder to get to their level."

He works hard in the classroom, too, earning conference and district All-Academic honors with a 3.4 GPA in business administration. He currently takes courses in decision support systems, business policy, general psychology, sales management and public speaking.

"It's pretty tough, especially when we travel for road games," he said of the balancing act. "We put in pretty long hours."

One particularly memorable road trip was to Notre Dame last year. Rudowitz matched up with Division I All-American Luke Harangody and held his own, posting 17 points and six boards on 8 of 12 shooting while Harangody had 21 points and 10 boards on 8 of 15 shooting. Stonehill hung around for a half before falling by 28.

"He's real big," Rudowitz said.

But size, as he knows, isn't everything.