Miami Hurricanes forward Donnavan Kirk feels very much at home when he’s in the kitchen.

Whether he’s making a plate of fettuccine Alfredo or a tray of blueberry muffins, he isn’t afraid to roll up his sleeves and get to work.

“I like to eat good, and the best food is the food you make,” Kirk said with a laugh.

Before this season, finding that same comfort level on the basketball court wasn’t as easy for the fifth-year graduate student. After two college transfers and four lackluster seasons, though, Kirk is making the most of his final year of eligibility.

The 22-year-old has emerged as Miami’s (8-5, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) best two-way player this season. He leads the team in rebounds and blocks, and a personal-best 9.6 points per game. But on Saturday, Kirk’s newfound comfortability will be put to the test in the Carrier Dome against No. 2 Syracuse (13-0) at 2 p.m.

“I’m always aiming to come out and get double-doubles and do my job completely,” Kirk said. “But I can’t do that without my teammates, and our mindset on Saturday will be to go out and get a win.”

Kirk is fully at ease with his teammates and the weather in sunny Coral Gables, but his journey there had many different stops.

The first came after the Michigan native played one season as a star freshman at Notre Dame Prep. Frustrated after being consistently double and triple-teamed by opponents, Kirk transferred to Detroit Country Day (Mich.) High School.

After he was forced to forego his sophomore season, Kirk played there for two years. Kurt Keener, his coach at Country Day, said that Kirk was one of the most intelligent players on the squad.

No longer the unquestioned superstar of his team, Kirk’s status as a role player allowed him to thrive and become one of the top high school recruits in Michigan by his senior year.

“He came in and was the missing piece of a very talented group,” Keener said. “I remember him after a few games saying, ‘This is wonderful. I haven’t had a double team yet, and I’m free to do my thing.’”

Kirk chose to attend Miami over Michigan State, Iowa and USC. After redshirting his freshman season after four games due to injury, Kirk played in only 13 games during his second season under head coach Frank Haith.

Frustrated once again, he transferred to DePaul in search of more playing time and to reconnect with his family.

“That was such a big positive for me,” Kirk said. “They would come down to the games, and I could be more supportive with my granddad being pretty ill.”

After the Blue Demons sputtered through two losing seasons, though, Kirk opted to use his fifth year of eligibility elsewhere.

Many schools were interested, including the one where he started his college career. His familiarity with the city and campus steered him back to Miami.

“That process was much crazier than my high school recruitment,” Kirk said. “It was a wild, wild ride.”

Current Hurricanes head coach Jim Larranaga called the recruitment of fifth-year students the “new rage in college basketball.” He said many teams would rather have an experienced player than wait for a young freshman to develop. Miami fit that bill perfectly, after the team’s top six scorers departed through graduation or the NBA Draft.

Although Kirk is new to Larranaga’s system, his transition has been much easier than expected.

“You can see where there would be resentment towards the new player in many cases,” Larranaga said. “But for Donnavan, he already knows the other seniors from his first time here. They’re OK with each other.”

The Hurricanes still stumbled out of the gate, but one of the bright spots in their recent 5-2 stretch has been Kirk, who came down with at least nine rebounds in four of those contests.

“We weren’t ready to be a competitor when the season started,” Larranaga said, “but he’s helping us get there.”

Now on a three-game winning streak, the Hurricanes are finally starting to find the recipe for success.

In returning to Miami, Kirk has found a home and eased the Hurricanes’ otherwise back-breaking transitional period. Against Syracuse on Saturday, both Kirk’s comfortability and Miami’s stability will be tested.

“For me,” Kirk said, “this game is a great test to put yourself out there against some of the best players in the country and try to come out on top.”

Published on January 3, 2014 at 9:10 pm

Contact Tyler: tfpiccot@syr.edu