Bud Mackey back in basketball
Posted by Mike Fields on January 9, 2008
Bud Mackey, whose basketball career at Scott County ended when he was arrested on drug charges in September, has enrolled at Harmony Community School in Cincinnati and is expected to play for the Hurricanes on Saturday.
“He’s still getting acclimated with our system, but he’s a super talented kid and he’s definitely going to play some,” Harmony Coach Rodney Crawford said Wednesday morning. “He fits right in our mix.”
Harmony, a prep school, does not belong to the Ohio High School Athletic Association. The Hurricanes play at home against St. Catharine (Ky.) Junior College Saturday afternoon.
Crawford said Harmony “had been in talks” with Mackey and his family for a while. “We were waiting to see how everything panned out, how it played itself out. We figured we were best for him academic-wise, and as far as being convenient right up (Interstate 75) because he still has some legal issues to tend to. He can’t be too far away to do that. Academics are his main focus. We can provide that. It’s not about basketball . . .. we’re already strong. He’s another exceptionally talented kid, but we can help him out in other ways.”
Harmony, whose schedule includes junior colleges, NAIA junior varsity teams and other prep schools, is 9-1. Its roster also includes Terrell Holloway, who got the scholarship from Indiana University that was supposed to go to Mackey before it was withdrawn after his arrest; Toledo-bound James Davis, and Division I prospects Jason Henry and Lonnie Hayes.
Mackey, a 6-foot-4 guard, helped Scott County win the Sweet Sixteen championship last season, and was voted MVP of the State Tournament. He was expected to be a contender for Mr. Basketball this year before he was suspended from Scott County following his arrest on Sept. 28. He was charged with trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 yards of a school.
Mackey’s lawyer, Jerry Wright, wavied the case to the grad jury during a preliminary hearing in December. The grand jury has not yet returned an indictment.
