FAYETTEVILLE — After putting in nearly four years recruiting Ceira Ricketts to Louisville, Tom Collen spent last year undoing all that work.

Collen, now in his second season at Arkansas after a fouryear stint at Louisville, first saw Ricketts play as an eighth-grader. She was playing right under his nose in Louisville, a treasured hometown product.

By the time Ricketts was starring at Louisville’s Fairdale High School, Rutgers and Illinois had begun to recruit her, too. Ricketts added Arkansas to her list as a high school senior, after Collen came here to replace Susie Gardner.

Collen and Arkansas eventually won out over Louisville — which didn’t bother paying Ricketts a home visit — but not before a heated, last-minute rush.

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“They were on the phone with her the day she signed, trying to convince her not to come to Arkansas,” Collen said. “I think they assumed that they’d be able to keep her there if they wanted her, and we recruited her hard. We showed her how badly we wanted her and how badly we needed her.”

Ricketts showed why both schools wanted her in Arkansas’ season-opening victory over Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday, leading the Razorbacks in points (14 ), rebounds (7 ) and steals (5 ) in 24 minutes off the bench. Ricketts, a 5-9 combo guard who also can play small forward, figures to play another prominent role when Arkansas hosts High Point (1-1 ) at 7 Central tonight at Walton Arena.

“I was really happy that she stepped up and a had a good first game because I think she knows now that she can play at this level right away and be impactful,” Collen said.

What struck Collen immediately when he watched Ricketts play in Louisville was her natural athletic ability.

“She is what I call a next-level athlete,” Collen said. “Michael Jordan was a next-level athlete. She brings that to the table. I know she can run and jump.

“ What we weren’t sure of when we signed her is whether she would play full-speed all the time.”

Overriding any doubts Collen had, though, was Ricketts ’ knack for delivering plays in the clutch.

“The times that impressed me the most were the times when the game was on the line, and then that next level of athleticism came out,” Collen said. “You knew she had that potential.”

Even during practices at Arkansas, Ricketts has displayed a tendency to hold back at times. She said she simply brings a different mind-set to games than practice.

“It’s hard playing defense and offense against your teammates, but when the games come around, I’m competing against other people to help my team,” Ricketts said. “It’s like I’m fullspeed all the time. I don’t know, maybe there is something different when the lights come on.”

Sophomore point guard Shanita Arnold has seen enough to be impressed.

“When you get her playing full-speed, I think she can be one of the best players in the SEC,” Arnold said.

Ricketts said she is content settling into a role right now. She even acknowledged a major bout with butterflies before Arkansas’ exhibition game against an NAIA team.

“I got so nervous I forgot a couple of plays, then I got frustrated and couldn’t hit my shots,” Ricketts said. “There was just so much going on.”

Collen is willing to be patient. After just one game, he was reminded why he and assistant coach Greg Collins put in so much time selling Ricketts for a second time.

“I think what we’re finding out is that she’s probably the best person we have to start our ball-screen offense and to start our dribble-motion offense because she’s the most explosive kid we have off the bounce,” Collen said.