The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Showing support for one of their own
12.11.2006 | Men's Basketball
HOUSTON -- A group of 45 people, including coaches, teachers, support staff and fans from Brother Martin High School in New Orleans, La., stepped off a charter bus in front of the Toyota Center after traveling 350 miles to Houston. They had come to watch Texas and ninth-ranked LSU do battle in a nationally televised basketball game.
Those in this special group, all decked in matching yellow t-shirts, came all the way from eastern New Orleans not to cheer on LSU. Instead, they had come to root for one of their own, Texas freshman point guard D.J. Augustin.
Augustin starred for two-time Louisiana Class 5A state champion Brother Martin High School from eighth grade through his junior year. He was forced to leave the school after Hurricane Katrina destroyed his family's home in August of 2005.
Sunday night's contest marked the first time since Augustin's playing days at Brother Martin High School that many of those familiar faces on the charter bus had the opportunity to watch the UT freshman play.
"We love to watch D.J. play," Brother Martin athletics director Barry Hebert said. "We missed having him at Brother Martin during his senior year. He was a part of our family."
Once Augustin's family determined they could not return to New Orleans, he enrolled at Fort Bend Hightower High School in Missouri City. He played his final season of high school basketball for Hightower's team, ironically nicknamed the Hurricanes.
"We wanted to see him play during his senior year, but we didn't make it to Houston," Hebert said. "In September, when I saw this game on the schedule, I purchased 50 tickets and offered them to faculty, staff members and fans that went to games while D.J. was here and could make the trip."
Augustin put on a show for his supporters, recording career highs in points (25), field goals made (9-of-16), rebounds (six) and free throws (7-of-7) to lead the Horns to a 76-75 overtime victory against the ninth-ranked Tigers. With the win, Texas recorded its third straight victory against an AP Top 10 opponent dating back to last year.
Augustin returned to Louisiana last May to participate in an emotional graduation ceremony for his senior class and received his high school diploma from the school.
"This is a different situation because normally, players leave to go to college, not to another high school," Hebert said. "The Augustins are always going to be a part of our family. D.J. grew up here. The years you spend in high school are important. That's when you realize and think about what you want to do with your life.
Even with all the chaos that took place in the months following Katrina, Hebert and the Augustin family still remained in touch, and the Brother Martin family watched Augustin continue his development from a distance.
"I went to San Diego to see him play in the McDonald's All-American game," Hebert said. "(D.J.'s mother) Vanessa (Augustin) and I talk once a month. I told his parents that we were coming to this game. New Orleans is their home and its been washed away. The only home they have in New Orleans now is Brother Martin. We want to keep that connection alive for them and for us. That's what they knew and that has continued."