From the first time he walked onto the campus at Southwest Missouri State, Kevin Ault knew things were going to be different.

No longer was last year's Indiana Mr. Basketball the big fish in the small pond as he was playing with Warsaw High School and its established basketball program. No, despite being heralded as one of the best recruits in the history of SWS athletics, Ault found himself back at square one in trying to show people what he could do.

And he was doing it against the best players he has ever played with or against.

"Once I got there, I noticed a big difference in size and strength of the players," Ault said. "The conditioning of the program in the fall was a lot different than what I was used to. Right there, I knew it was going to be difficult coming in."

The Bears then opened up the season, their second under former Manchester College coach Steve Alford, but Ault was a little slow getting off the snide.

"I didn't fit in well right away," Ault said. "It took a month or two before I got used to things. The strength and quickness of the players was a lot different. In the preseason, when we are just playing around, is a lot different than when we get into practice with the coaches and get structure."

Ault gained his first start of the season in the fourth game of the season and held onto that starting role for 22 straight games before a change put him on the bench, but no less important in the game plan.

"I wasn't shooting well or playing well, but he (Alford) kept me in there and had confidence in me," Ault said. "At about midseason, my shots started to fall and that is when I got a lot more confidence."

Southwest Missouri State finished 24-8 in the regular season and lost to Illinois State in the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conference. Despite having the best RPI (rating system based on strength of schedule) of any other MVC team, the Bears didn't get an at-large bid to the NCAA tourney and ended up with a first-round NIT date at North Carolina State.

It was there that Ault had his most disappointing point in the season. Not because of how he played, but because of the fact he didn't play that much. Because of stomach virus, Ault saw only spot playing time as the Bears lost to the Wolfpack.

"It was a bad finish to my season after playing well," Ault said. "You get sick, and there is nothing you can do about it. That is the kind of game I really wanted to play in, and when I wasn't (playing) I was really disappointed. I had got sick the night before. I guess it was something I ate."

Still, Ault had a solid freshman season with 8.7 points and 2.7 rebounds a game. Ault was fourth on the team in scoring and first in free throw percentage at 86 percent. He added 80 assists and 48 steals.

"I was happy with the way everything came out," Ault said. "From a team standpoint, we finished second in the conference. Just to be a part of that, to start and put up some numbers is a good accomplishment for me."

After coming from a solid, well-established program at Warsaw, Ault said he found it a challenge playing in an up-and-coming program at SWS. After only two seasons at the school, Alford seems to have waved his magic wand on the program as he did at Manchester just a few short years ago, going 79-28 with the Spartans.

"It is a growing program," Ault said. "He is a bringing in a lot of good players. He is a doing well there, and he likes it there. It takes awhile. It takes years and years just to get a program started. I am looking forward to the next couple of years.

"Coach (Al) Rhodes had his program for years," he said. "Going there (SWS), playing in a new program is a lot different."

Because of his success in turning the Bears' program around, Alford has been rumored to be going to several other coaching jobs, most notably Ohio State. As far as Ault is concerned, Alford is his coach and that is the way he will approach it.

"Nothing has been publicly announced or anything," Ault said. "I am just going to approach this the same way I did last year, he is my coach, and I am going to play for him. I am not going to say what he is going to do, that is his decision."

And would Ault follow Alford and transfer to wherever he might end up?

"There are a lot of rumors going around," Ault said. "It would be a decision I would have to make then. Right now, I am not really thinking about if (he would leave). I am just thinking about right now." [[In-content Ad]]