Johnson County Community College
Press Release

College Information and Publications
913-469-8500
Julie Haas, Associate Vice President, Marketing Communications, ext. 3120
Peggy Graham, Writer, ext. 3425
Tyler Cundith, Sports Information Director, ext. 3122

11/4/08
Story by Tyler Cundith

Men’s Basketball Preview

OVERLAND PARK, KS -- Entering his 22nd season as a collegiate head coach, and his 18th at Johnson County Community College, Mike Jeffers fully understands the road that lies ahead if his team is to return to the national tournament in 2008-09. He was the architect of JCCC’s first trip to the NJCAA Division II Tournament in 2001, which ended with the Cavaliers cutting the nets, and he already has the blueprints in place to see that another journey to national prominence is in the not-so-distant future for the Cavaliers.

Fans of Johnson County men’s basketball have good reason to be optimistic about their team’s chances to win a third straight D-II Region VI title, and seventh in 10 years. The 2008-09 squad features a returning NJCAA D-I first-team All-American in Nafis Ricks, plus the return of guards C.J. Carter, David Yadrich and forwards Fred Patton and Anthony Dobson. Mix in a recruiting class which includes two sophomore transfers, and a redshirt freshman, and four talented true freshmen, it is easy to see a season ending short of a trip to Danville, Ill, in mid March would be a disappointment.

However, Jeffers and his assistant coach Ryan Morley, had to temper their excitement just a bit. Kyle Speed, the team’s starting point guard last year as a freshman and an all-conference and all-region selection, was lost for the season in late summer, and will sit out the campaign as a medical redshirt.

“That was a significant blow,” said Jeffers. “Kyle’s presence on the floor last year was a major reason we were so successful. We have depth at  point guard, we just don’t have that game experience there. We have several players who could be called upon to handle the point duties this season.”

The talent and depth is in place at JCCC this season, the main question facing Jeffers’ squad this year is this:  Can Johnson County live up to high expectations and preseason hype of a top 15 national ranking and make a serious run at the national tournament?

“We have more talent and depth than last year, and this team has a chance to be as good as the 2000-01 team,” Jeffers said. “Right now we just need to see if all the pieces to our puzzle fit. If we can play every game with our guys on the same page, pulling for each other, then I like our chances.

Leading the way for Johnson County is sophomore Nafis Ricks, who earned a suitcase full of accolades in his freshman year while leading JCCC to a 21-12 record and one victory shy of reaching the national tournament. Ricks earned first-team NJCAA All-American and NABC/State Farm Coaches All-American honors. He also earned All-Region VI and was selected the East Jayhawk Conference Freshman of the Year. Ricks led the team scoring (15.4) rebounding (7.4) and steals (87). He was twice selected the NJCAA D-II Player of the Week.

“Nafis is one of the premier players in NJCAA D-II and our conference,” Jeffers said. “He can take over a game as a scorer, rebounder and defender.”

Also back from last year are David Yadrich, Fred Patton and Anthony Dobson. All three saw significant minutes last year, and each will be expected to step up play an even bigger role as sophomores. Yadrich returns as JCCC’s top 3-point shooter from last year. He averaged 6.9 points and knocked down 36 long range shots. According Jeffers, the change in the 3-point line this year has not affected him at all.

Patton is an athletic forward who averaged 6.2 points and 5.6 rebounds last year. He also shot a team-best .517 from the floor.

Dobson came from a winning high school program and he was able to bring that “winning attitude” to the floor at JCCC. He is solid in all aspects of his game. Dobson averaged 3.5 points and 3.0 rebounds last year, and had the best assist-to-turnover ratio among the Cavaliers front court players.

Jeffers also welcomes back C.J. Carter, a key member of the 2005-06 JCCC squad. Carter is an extremely athletic guard who has the ability to get to the rim. He averaged 7.9 points and 4.0 rebounds his freshman year, but Jeffers expects Carter to have an even greater impact this season.

Another player familiar to the program is redshirt freshman Darren Givhan, a guard from Olathe South High School. Givhan joined the Cavaliers last year, but used a redshirt year to develop his skills, and now is in a position to play a vital role for the Cavaliers.

Among the newcomers to the program this year, two bring college playing experience to the table. Rory Spencer, a 6-6 forward from College Park, Ga., and Blake Baird, a 6-5 forward from Overland Park, Kan., each have a season of college basketball under their belt. Spencer spent his freshman year at the University of South Carolina-Upstate. He also spent one year at a prep school at Maine Central Institute. There, he was ranked No. 73 among all New England prep school players.

Baird attended Garden City Community College, and helped the Broncbusters to a 21-10 record last season. He average 3.0 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. He was a member of two state tournament teams at Blue Valley West High School prior to beginning his college career.

Rounding out the roster are four freshmen, forward Abdul Deen of Hampton, Ga., guard Jared Henry of St. Thomas Aquinas High School, forward Kenny Moore of Darby, Pa., and forward Haden Parks of Allen, Kan. Deen averaged 17.5 points and 14.2 rebounds his senior year at Tallulah High School. Henry averaged 10 points and had 68 steals and 72 assists in his first varsity season last year. Moore averaged over 20 points in both his junior and senior seasons, and ESPNU ranked him No. 73 among shooting guards in the country last year. Parks averaged 20 points, 11 rebounds and blocked 72 shots while earning Kansas 3A All-State as a senior.

The schedule is again a tremendous challenge, largely because JCCC competes in the rugged East Jayhawk Conference. Home-and-home dates with nationally respected  and East Jayhawk powers Coffeyville, Cowley and Independence highlight this year’s conference slate. JCCC also faces defending West Jayhawk champion Seward County and 20-game winner Garden City at the Jayhawk Shootout in early December. The non-conference slate has its share of strong programs as well. JCCC has home-and-home dates with Penn Valley, ranked No. 2 in NJCAA D-II, Brown Mackie, a two-time NJCAA national champion, and Hesston, runner-up to JCCC in last year’s region tournament. The Cavaliers schedule also features a trip to Atlanta, Ga., for games against Clinton and USC-Salkehatchie.

No matter what the year holds for the Cavaliers, one thing is for sure, Jeffers won’t rest an his laurels. He will get the maximum effort from his players every day.

“We can’t rely on our past success this year,”  Jeffers said. “Our goals for the program are to move forward and get our team to play the best they can possibly play and play has hard as they possibly can. If we do that, we will be successful.”