Feb. 8, 2008

The Nova Notebook, by Villanova director of media relations Mike Sheridan, appears during the basketball season with features highlighting the men's basketball team. In this out-take we visit with sophomore center Casiem Drummond, recently returned to the court after an absence of nine games due to a stress fracture in his right ankle.

There is just under an hour until practice is scheduled to get underway on the Pavilion court. Casiem Drummond stands at the free throw line, attempting one shot after another.

. For most of December and January, this scene played out daily with a slightly different twist. Then, Drummond was sporting a walking boot on his right foot. Each day the 2006 garduate of Bloomfield (N.J.) Tech would trudge into either the Davis Center or the Pavilion, and shoot standing still, usually from the free throw line.

"It was the only time I could be on the basketball court while I was hurt," he says wistfully.

The boot was officially set aside on Jan. 28. That's the day he was cleared to return to basketball activities and resumed practicing with his Wildcat teammates. Two nights later he was on the court against Pittsburgh. In each of Villanova's succeeding games, he has seen his role grow as he begins to wash off the rust accumulated from nearly eight full weeks on the sidelines.

"That first game at Pitt was tough," he says of a 69-57 loss against the Panthers on Jan. 30 in which he played seven minutes, scoring two points. "I was nervous before the game. Once I got in there, I felt like my conditioning was good. I got up and down the floor well. But the speed of the games is something you can't simulate. I had been out for eight weeks and I felt like my footwork was off in the low-post."

Now, as we enter the second week, of February, Drummond feels better equipped to help his teammates as they begin the critical second half of their BIG EAST schedule on Saturday evening at the Pavilion against Seton Hall (6:05 p.m./ESPNU/Sportsradio 950).

"It feels like I'm back to where I was before I got hurt," says the native of East Orange, N.J.

That must be considered good news for the Wildcats. For before the injury, Drummond's story of personal and physical growth was perhaps the season's most uplifting tale.

By his own admission, Drummond came to Villanova with work to do, off and on the court. The coaching staff was convinced that he could enhance his basketball and life experiences by shedding weight. A nutritionist worked with him after his arrival on campus to improve his diet. And though Drummond made progress and contributed on occasion in a reserve role as a freshman, he sometimes resisted the prodding of those in the program.

In the summer months of 2007, however, the soon-to-be sophomore turned a significant corner. As he reflected on his freshman campaign back in his native New Jersey, Drummond began to appreciate the message. Over the course of his time at home, he shed upwards of 40 pounds. When he returned to campus in late August, some of his teammates were startled by his appearance.

With new found mobility, Drummond's natural smarts and skills took over. He was a revelation at the camp prior to Villanova's late summer journey to Ottawa, Canada. By the time the season began in November, he had emerged as the team's starting center. When Wright announced prior to the season-opener that Drummond would start, the man himself said he thought his coach was joking.

Over the course of the season's first five games, Drummond's development was obvious. It was capped by a nine point, 17 rebound effort against a formidable front wall of North Carolina State on Nov. 25 at the Old Spice Classic just outside of Orlando, Fla. Entering the month of December, he was his squad's leading rebounder and averaged better than 7 ppg.

In the course of what would become an 87-61 victory over Penn on Dec. 1, Drummond noticed something in his right ankle.

"I was coming out for the start of the second half," he says. "It wasn't so much a feeling of pain as it was that it just felt weird."

Drummond pressed on and played in the second half. Yet he believed something was out of order and reported that to team trainer Jeff Pierce. Soon a very promising season looked rather murky. He saw limited action against LSU on Dec. 6 and Temple on Dec. 9. There wasn't much improvement, though, and the medical staff elected to place the foot in the walking boot and remove Drummond from the active lineup. After Christmas, a second MRI revealed the stress fracture.

"It was very depressing," says Drummond now of that period. "I had worked so hard in the off-season and things were starting to fall in the place. I guess I felt like most people who get hurt - that I didn't deserve this."

One of the unspoken concerns then was that the injury might cause Drummond to lose much of what he had gained physically in the preceding six months. Inactivity can frequently be anathema to a large man and this injury in particular limited Drummond to hydrotherapy, a workout that was among his least favorite.

"I am not a person who likes the water," he says.

Yet he logged his time each day on the new underwater treadmill in the Davis Center. There were extra weight lifting sessions with strength coach Lon Record. It was drudgery to be sure but it worked - Drummond actually lost a couple of pounds during his weeks on the sideline.

For the better part of a month, Drummond would don a suit with the ever-present boot and sit on the end of the bench when game time rolled around.

"You noticed things that you could do when you are out there," he says now. "I could see some of the little things that help a team when guys are playing hard."

On Jan. 14, the Nova Nation heard that Drummond was cleared to return to practice. He did so in short bursts and then played three minutes in the first half against DePaul two nights later. But the doctors had been clear that any pain meant that he wasn't ready and so when he reported discomfort that night, it was back to Idle City.

The news did nothing to bolster Drummond. He was back in a boot the next day and resumed his non-basketball rehab schedule. Wright mentioned the possibility that it might be in his interests to consider a medical redshirt, which was still a viable option so long as he did not play another minute in 2007-08.

At his next appointment with team orthopedist Dr. Rob Good on Jan. 28, it was determined that Drummond could return to the court again. The plan was to gradually ease him back into practice but in the days leading up to that game at Pitt, Drummond felt no ill effects. He met with Wright prior to the game and was clear in his intention.

"I wanted to play," he says. "I want to be out there to help my teammates in any way that I can. I knew it could cost me a redshirt season but I took that chance because of my teammates."

So Drummond has played. In his second game back he scored a career high 11 points and added four rebounds against Syracuse. He followed that with six points and four rebounds against Saint Joseph's, which marked his return to the starting lineup. In other words, so far, so good.

Now he and his mates are looking to get back on track in the BIG EAST.

"All I am thinking about is defending and rebounding," he says. "I need to get back to rebounding like I was before I was hurt."

With that, he wishes the interviewer a nice day, and resumes his work at the line.

A bootless Drummond is a welcome sight for the Wildcats.