Mullins High School celebrated the signing of their second basketball star this past week and both will be attending the same school. Auctioneers all-star Kenny Wayne Jackson signed a letter of intent to take his game to USC Sumter, joining teammate Trevor Dantzler in the fall. The 6-foot-7 senior has been playing basketball since the age of four, getting started at Marion-Mullins Christian School before playing two seasons on junior varsity and his final two years at the varsity level. Jackson said one of his memorable moments was helping his team reach the Class 2A state championship. He also played four seasons of varsity baseball along with two seasons of varsity football. This past season, Jackson was selected to the North-South All Star team, averaging over eight points and four rebounds per game.
James Island basketball player Jamel Prioleau recently signed to play basketball for Spartanburg Methodist.
Prioleau was a two-year starter for James Island and an all-region selection. He averaged 13 points and 2.5 steals per game and led the 18-7 Trojans with 5.0 assists per game.
(Gordon) Gibbons announced on Wednesday the signing of center Tim Budd and forward Tyrone Black for the upcoming season. The 6-foot-9, 265-pound Budd comes to Clayton State (NCAA D-II) from Spartanburg Methodist in Spartanburg, S.C. Budd was a two-year starter at Spartanburg Methodist for head coach Jeff Brookman. This past season, he averaged 12 points and seven rebounds a game while shooting 59 percent from the field to earn NJCAA All-Region honors. Budd helped pace Spartanburg Methodist to a 19-11 mark.
His top games from this season including a 21-point performance against Walters State, 20 points against Denmark Tech. Budd averaged seven points and six rebounds a game and shot 60 percent from the field as a freshman. He was a prep standout at Fort Dorchester High School in Ladson, S.C., where he was selected to play in the 2009 Carolinas Basketball All-Star Classic.
Darlington's Sammie Davis has told WPDE NewsChannel 15 Sports that he will sign a national letter of intent on Monday to play at junior college USC Salkehatchie in Walterboro, South Carolina. Davis was voted 2011 Mr. Hoop Zone after leading the Falcons to the Class 3A Regon VI Championship.
Davis is a 6-foot-3 all-state selection. He averaged more than 15 points and seven rebounds a game duing his senior season at Darlington.
DJ Brown, Spartanburg Methodist / Wren HS - Lees McRae College
Four student-athletes have signed a National Letter of Intent to attend Lees-McRae College (NCAA D-II) and join the men’s basketball program, announced head coach Scott Polsgrove Wednesday. Joining the Bobcats this season are BJ Battle (Orlando, Fla.), Gideon Oji (Wake Forest, N.C.), Asad Lamont (Oak Ridge, N.C.), and DJ Brown (Belton, S.C.). DJ Brown comes to Lees-McRae from Spartanburg Methodist College, where he led the team to a 19-11 record last season. A native of Belton, N.C., Brown averaged 8.5 points per game last season, knocking down 65 three-pointers while earning the Outstanding Pioneer Award for academic and athletic excellence at Spartanburg Methodist. Brown was also a recipient of the Pinnacle Award for Academic Excellence in 2011, which recognizes NJCAA Academic All-Americans. “DJ had an excellent career at Spartanburg Methodist,” said Polsgrove. “He is an outstanding shooter, and will add some veteran leadership to our team.”
Limestone College men’s basketball and head coach Brandon Scott have announced the addition of three players for the 2011-12 season, including a pair of transfers from Division I USC Upstate and Division II Flagler.
Marquis Sloan joins Limestone following a year at Division I USC Upstate in Spartanburg, S.C. Prior to his time at USC Upstate, Sloan was the starting point guard at Greenville High School and was a two-time South Carolina All-State selection and was named All-Region all four years. As a senior, he averaged 20.6 points, 6.8 assists, 5.2 rebounds and 3.2 steals while leading GHS to the third round of the 3A South Carolina State Tournament.
A versatile player that can play either guard or forward, Jakoye Pinson comes to Gaffney, S.C. following a pair of impressive varsity seasons for Southside High School in Greenville, S.C. As a senior he averaged 16.5 points and 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 blocks per game as the Tigers finished at 18-9 overall and No. 14 in South Carolina. Pinson was named an All-County selection that season and was recognized as All-Region as a junior. As a senior, he was chosen to play in the Greenville/Spartanburg County All-Star Game.
Throughout his career at Abbeville High School, point guard Jericho Jackson made his impact scrambling around the court as he attacked the cracks in opposing defenses to open up shots for teammates. For most of the spring, he just scrambled to find a place to continue his basketball career. Jackson, a two-time Lakelands boys basketball player of the year, will attend Caldwell Community College in Hudson, N.C., this fall.
Joining him on the Cobras will be teammate Kendall Agnew, a raw 6-foot-6 center.
Lander head men's basketball coach Jeff Burkhamer announced today that Sumter native Travis Fredimon, a 6-3, sophomore point guard/wing, will continue his collegiate basketball career in a Bearcat uniform beginning this season.
A transfer from Meridian (Miss.) Community College, Fredimon led the Eagles to 16-13 record last season while averaging 14 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. He connected on 51 percent of his field goals and 75 percent from the free throw line, while dishing off 6.5 assists per game.
"Travis is an outstanding player," said Burkhamer. "He was an All-State basketball and football player at Sumter High, so he will bring some toughness to our team."
SMC announces their 2011-12 recruiting class and the roster is all South Carolina players.
Head men's basketball coach, Jeff Brookman, has announced the addition of 12 student athletes to the 2011-12 men's basketball roster.
High school standouts:
Travis Black (Spartanburg Christian Academy), Ben Johnson (Boiling Springs HS), Brian Kidd (Chapin HS), Da'john Rowland (Chesnee HS), Kelsey Terry (Westside HS), Ronell Crockett (TL Hannah HS), Jalen Nesbitt (Chapman HS), Marshall McClary (St. James HS), Matt Harrison (Spartanburg Christian Academy), Jamel Prioleau (James Island HS)
will join NJCAA Junior College transfers: Cory Rush (Ranger College/Andrews HS) Terell Magazine (New Mexico JC/CA Johnson HS)
as the newcomers to the 2011-2012 Pioneers. The 12 newcomers will join six returnees, including 2010-2011 2nd Team All-Region X selection Mario Pendarvis, as the Pioneers look to improve on their 19-11 record from a year ago.
Also included on the 2011-12 roster is Greg Honeycutt (Broome HS).
Included on the Lincoln Memorial University (NCAA D-II) 2011-12 roster is Zycorrian Robinson (Spartanburg HS / SMC / USC Salkehatchie).
It is good to see that Zycorrian, Omar Sanders (SC State) and Darrion Booker (University of West Alabama) will each have a chance to earn a four year degree while playing basketball after being dismissed from SMC in 2008. Each one took a different path after SMC, but hopefully they can all reach the goal of obtaining a degree.
A native of nearby Spartanburg, S.C., Bomar joins the Saints following one season at Western Oklahoma State, an NJCAA Division I institution. The 6-5 forward saw limited playing time for a team that went 22-10 on the season... Bomar will redshirt this season and will take the court for the Saints in 2012-13 following a year of practicing with the team.
The IUPUI Athletics Department and head basketball coach Todd Howard announced three signings on the opening day of the fall signing period on Wednesday (Nov. 9). All three student-athletes inked National Letters of Intent to attend the university and will be true freshman beginning in the fall of 2012.
The trio of Cortell Busby (Chester, S.C./Fishburne Military [Va.] School), Elijah Ray (Gary, Ind./Bowman Academy) and Linwood Ross, Jr. (Miramar, Fla./Westminister Academy) all penned their NLI’s on Wednesday, joining Howard’s first full recruiting class.
“We’re extremely excited to welcome these three young men to our Jaguar basketball family,” Howard said. “They all come from winning programs and great families and have had a high level of success in the classroom. They fit our needs and standards here at IUPUI are exactly what we look for in our student-athletes.
“All three are great shooters and they’re special players because they have a defensive mindset as well.”
Busby, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound guard, is attending Fishburne Military School for a year of postgraduate education after a standout career at Lewisville (S.C.) High School. Busby is among 10 student-athletes on Ed Huckaby’s squad expected to ink an NLI during the early signing period.
At Lewisville, Busby was the 2011 Enquirer Herald Player of the Year after averaging 21.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 3.9 steals per game his senior year. The lefty hit 49.5 percent from the floor and 71 percent from the foul line while earning S.C. Basketball Coaches Association Class A All-State honors for the second straight year. In addition, he was a two-time runner-up for player of the year honors and finished his high school career with 2,111 career points. He was a two-time First Team All-Area pick and three-time First Team All-Region selection. He later played in the N.C./S.C. All-Star Classic following his senior season. Busby initially signed with South Carolina State before opting to attend Fishburne this season. He chose IUPUI over a group that included UT-Chattanooga, Missouri State and Boston College.
“He’s a great point guard with a knack for scoring and is one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around. He’s a leader personified,” Howard said. “He’s a coach’s son and he’s currently the leader of a talent-laden, nationally ranked Fishburne Military School team. In the classroom, he epitomizes what we look for in student-athletes.”
Although from the Class of 2009, Quinton Thomas (Southside HS) is playing his first year of collegiate basketball as Mountain State University prepares for the NAIA Division I national tournament. MSU, in West Virginia, is a stong contender in NAIA yearly and they have had quite a few players from SC on their national tournament teams.
Philip "Scooter" Holmes (Lee Central HS) played this year at Cal State - San Bernardino (NCAA D-II) after two years at Oxnard College (JUCO in California).
Originally posted by jhill_1996: Davon Thomas (Gaffney) of Jamestown College (ND) prepares for the NAIA Division II national tournament. Last year he played for Garden City CC.
This guy is from Gaffney? Where did he play HS ball because it wasn't for Gaffney High. I've never heard of him.
Posted on 3/8 5:46 PM | IP: Logged
@mrcjmann. Yes Davon Thomas played at Gaffney High during the 2005-2006 season. Thomas was mainly used as a reserve player by Mark Huff, as he was very raw and inexperienced. I saw him at basketball camp that summer and he was a kid that had a lot of potential and appeared to be a late bloomer. He reminded me and some of my collegues of Sidney Rice by the way he looked physically, and we all thought he was Sid's brother. At 6'5 200 Thomas is a tremendous athlete. He is very bouncy and a very good rebounder. I think he has been staying in the Kansas area since his graduation from Gaffney High. But its certainly always good to see an overlooked kid like this succeed.
Posted on 3/9 12:00 PM | IP: Logged
Dominic Digenova played this year for Notre Dame College (NCAA D-II) in Ohio. He finished at Hilton Head Prep 2009-10 and played a year of prep at Old Avon Farms during 2010-11.
Originally posted by jeremylin: @mrcjmann. Yes Davon Thomas played at Gaffney High during the 2005-2006 season. Thomas was mainly used as a reserve player by Mark Huff, as he was very raw and inexperienced. I saw him at basketball camp that summer and he was a kid that had a lot of potential and appeared to be a late bloomer. He reminded me and some of my collegues of Sidney Rice by the way he looked physically, and we all thought he was Sid's brother. At 6'5 200 Thomas is a tremendous athlete. He is very bouncy and a very good rebounder. I think he has been staying in the Kansas area since his graduation from Gaffney High. But its certainly always good to see an overlooked kid like this succeed.
I don't know how I don't remember him being on the team. I don't even recognize the name.
Posted on 3/9 2:11 PM | IP: Logged
The Davon Thomas kid from Gaffney is a very good athlete. I watched him play in a tournament in Shelby, NC last year.
Posted on 3/9 5:08 PM | IP: Logged
What about the following players from the class of 2011? Possibly Prep Schools for 2011-12?
Jerry Holmes, York Dershawn Dawkins, Gaffney Kendall Rogers, Silver Bluff Gregory McDonald, McBee Jon Jackson, Brashier Middle College Steven Walker, Wade Hampton Jamaal Jackson, McBee Kelden Moore, Blue Ridge
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