Emery's quick start off mission a surprise

When he exploded up, grabbed a rebound in traffic then crashed to the floor, he cut his elbow and banged his head so hard he never returned to the game at Tulsa. But the effort by Jackson Emery inspired the rest of his BYU squad.

Emery is the exception for a major college basketball player who took two years off to serve a mission.

The norm is for guys to struggle and even falter, get injured, limp around with stress fractures, experience tendonitis in the knees, get ankle sprains or suffer sore backs that go into spasm after a few hard practices. Many simply don't get their legs back for a year to 18 months and their productivity is unpredictable and inconsistent. Sometimes they can shoot, but with some, you can barely wedge a dollar bill under their sneakers when they jump.

Emery breaks the mold.

This time last year, Emery was an LDS missionary in Mexico. Like most missionaries, he had little time to physically work out or get in any routine.

Unlike Noah Hartstock, a highly publicized recruit out of Oklahoma who got off his mission last August, Emery had all summer after his mission to work out and prepare for this, his sophomore season. And he's now averaging about nine points and four rebounds a game for the Cougars, who open league play this weekend against Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colo.

And he's married.

"I'm still not there yet," Emery said. "I have a ways to go with my skills and conditioning, but I'm getting there."

Emery ranked No. 1 in the MWC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.69) early this week.

"He's a phenom," said BYU basketball conditioning coach Justin McClure.

So, why isn't Emery struggling?

"First, he's a crazy-hard worker. The way he plays is the way he practices and lifts," McClure said. "Second, he's just a great athlete. He is very talented. Third, he didn't get sick or come back completely out of shape or with a bug like some do. In fact, he put on weight, about five pounds — all muscle — since he came home."

While redshirt guard Michael Loyd might beat Emery on a running jump and dunk contest, "Emery could get him on a jump with both feet," said McClure.

One problem Emery experienced this summer was unusual. He had played hours a day growing up before his mission without any physical problems, but this summer he noticed his legs would tighten up on him. It got so bad his knees would hurt, especially in the back, behind his kneecap. He started wearing slip-on sleeves on both knees and was worried that he had knee problems, like many guys just off missions experience.

One day, trainer Rob Ramos told Emery the problem wasn't knees but his hamstring muscles. They were simply knotting up on him.

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