Most Unsung 49er: Point Guard Works Hard in Unselfish Role : Basketball: Jeff Rogers endured media criticism but has the confidence of his teammates and coach.

LONG BEACH — Practice had been over for 45 minutes, but Jeff Rogers continued to shoot baskets in the quiet of the campus gym.

Sweat poured from his shaved head as the point guard for Cal State Long Beach worked on long-range shooting.

A shot hit the rim and rebounded onto the court, sending a dull echo bouncing off the walls. The next shot swished through the net. Just outside the 3-point line, the muscular 6-foot junior, his socks tucked characteristically inside black high-tops, sent the ball arching through the hoop.

Tired, but not satisfied, Rogers explained: “Just a little something I wanted to work on, you know. You never know when we might need it.”

Rogers is not expected to score for the 49ers, who have four starters averaging in double figures. It is his responsibility to bring the ball up court and get it to his teammates. Rogers tries less than four field goals a game, but averages more than four assists and fewer than three turnovers.

He had a typical game Monday night when the 49ers upset No. 1-ranked Kansas, 64-49. He made two of five shots for four points, had three assists and three turnovers in 39 minutes. And he played great defense.

“When I think of Jeff Rogers, I think of all the intangibles he gives us,” Coach Seth Greenberg said. “He gives us the things it takes to win. He takes care of the ball and is steady. Anything else he gives me is extra.”

It is a role Rogers has played before. He was the point guard at Dominguez High School in Compton in his junior year in 1988-89, but midway through the season, with the team struggling, he volunteered to move to the off-guard position.

“That’s the kind of guy Jeff is,” Dominguez Coach Russell Otis said. “We had this other kid who was creating problems. He was unhappy because he couldn’t play in Jeff’s spot, so Jeff volunteered to move to the off-guard.”

After that, Dominguez won 20 consecutive games and a CIF Southern Section title. Rogers averaged 18 points a game and was an all-CIF selection. As a senior, he was recognized as one of the state’s top guards and won honorable mention as an All-American.

He signed to play college ball at Texas El Paso but never returned there after his first visit. At that time, the NCAA had begun an investigation--later dropped--into allegations of illegal payments to players at that university.

Rogers came to Cal State Long Beach as a walk-on (non-scholarship) player in the fall of 1990. He failed to score the minimum 700 on his Scholastic Aptitude Test. As a result, he could not practice with the team, lost a year of eligibility and paid his own way through school.

As it turned out, Rogers, now 22, grew emotionally during the time off.

“It was the best thing that happened to me as a person,” he said. “I was just another student on campus. There was no basketball in my life.”

However, the lost year set him back as a player.

“I gained weight,” he said. “When I began practicing again I was slower. My skills weren’t there.”

After receiving a scholarship, Rogers started 10 games last season as a sophomore, mostly as the off-guard. He played in all 30 games, at times as a point guard, but averaged only 14 minutes.

This season, Greenberg called on Rogers to replace Bobby Sears, last season’s point guard who completed his eligibility. Rogers endured early criticism in the media but has drawn praise from his teammates.

“At the beginning of the year I think he was a little nervous,” said senior guard Lucious Harris. “Everyone was saying that this was going to be our big year but that our weakness would be at point guard. That’s a lot of pressure on him. Now I think he’s settling in.”

Harris, whose 24-point scoring average ranks second in the Big West Conference, has benefited from his roommate’s unselfish play. Many times Rogers is on the front end of a fast break that leads to a Harris basket.

“He gets me the ball and that’s what counts,” Harris said.

Rogers felt the criticism he received early in the season was unwarranted. He did not say a word about it, he just took extra practice.

“I was mad about it,” Rogers said. “I know I didn’t play a lot last year, but I played point guard in high school. I didn’t think it would be a question mark. I thought I did a pretty good job of it last year. I guess everyone else thought I didn’t.”

Rogers spends countless extra practice hours perfecting skills like shooting. Maybe it will come in handy some day, he said.

If not, he will continue as the team’s most unsung player, a role that suits him fine, according to his former coach at Dominguez.

“He’s so unselfish,” Otis said. “I hope my son grows up to be like him.”