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Men’s basketball The Mean Green men’s basketball team has two unexpected scholarships to fill after freshman guards Clarke Overlander and P.J. Hardwick requested releases. Overlander and Hardwick join more than 260 collegiate players transferring around the nation this offseason. Overlander has already committed to Arkansas Tech University, and Hardwick said he will be taking visits to Arkansas State University, St. Mary’s University, Virginia Tech University and one other school. Hardwick said the coaching system and style of play at UNT didn’t fit his fast-paced style. “It is hard because I built a great relationship with all of my coaches and the North Texas family,” Hardwick said. “But it’s a business decision. I had to make the best decision for me and my career.” Overlander said via Twitter that he only had one comment about his experience at UNT. “I loved every minute of being a member of the Mean Green,” Overlander said. “And I’m even more excited to be an ATU Wonder Boy.” The official signing period for basketball started April 17 and ends May 15. Benford said the difficulties in recruiting are both emotional and logistic. “You never want to lose kids, but I want them to be happy,” Benford said. “You have to be like a Boy Scout when you’re a coach. You always have to be ready. I tell my guys you have to recruit year round, and we are. We’ll get some quality players.” Preseason hopes were high for the Mean Green, but injuries and personal issues limited UNT’s success. The team finished 12-20 and was eliminated in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference tournament. Hardwick and Benford said things would be different if the season had been more successful. “If we would have won, things would have gone better,” Hardwick said. “I think I would have been a little bit happier, coach would have been happier and I think everyone would have been happier.” Hardwick said he waited until the season ended and had a meeting with his family before making the decision. “We thought about it and said, ‘No matter what the consequences are, you have to live with the decision,’” Hardwick said. “I said, ‘OK, I’m comfortable with it.’ I opened up my recruitment and tons of D-I schools are calling me, so I think I made the right decision.” Read more: http://wordpress1.cws.unt.edu/?p=4121