No. 9 Ranked Flyers Host Lenoir CC in Wednesday's Hoops Opener
The Sandhills Community College basketball team opens the regular season at 6 p.m. on Wednesday at The Hangar with Lenoir Community College, providing the opposition.
Ranked No. 9 in the NJCAA Division III preseason poll, forwards Joey McMullin, a third team All-American last season, and two-time All-Region 10 selection Bryan Quiller, lead a strong group of returnees that helped produce a record of 26-9, along with a crop of promising newcomers.
Division III national champions in 2020, the Flyers will be seeking to repeat as Region 10 and Mid-Atlantic District champions, and earn a fifth trip in a row to the national tournament scheduled to be held next March in Herkimer, NY.
Basketball fans will also be able watch the team play at home in the Chatlee Classic with doubleheaders scheduled on Friday at 5 and 7 pm and and Saturday at 1 and 3. The Flyers will play in the late games, involving Shooting4Greatness Academy and Anne Arundel CC (MD).
Coach Mike Apple, who is in his 12th season at Sandhills (279-80), saw encouraging signs, but also plenty of room for improvement, during a busy preseason schedule of scrimmages, including two at home.
"The preseason is always a learning experience," he said last week. "We played some good teams that exposed what we need to work on. The positives are that we are really starting to embrace the way we need to play offensively. I'm very pleased with the way we're pushing the ball down the court. I think that will be a strength, going forward.
"The discouraging thing is we're not where we want to be defensively and rebounding the basketball, but those are fixable things. These guys are driven and motivated so I think we can do that."
The Flyers defeated Division II Lenoir twice last season. Quiller scored 29 points in a 94-78 home win over the Lancers in January when seven other members of the current squad saw action.
In addition to the 6-foot-5 Quiller, who averaged 16.8 points and a team-high 8.1 rebounds per game in an injury-shortened season, 6-3 McMullin, 14.4 ppg., and 5-11 guard LeNijel Robinson, 11.0 ppg., are returning double-figure scorers.
Chris Hunter, 5-10, the assist leader among the returnees, will be sidelined for an undetermined amount of time by a hand injury. Other members of Apple's guard rotation last year that are back include 5-10 Jordan Coleman, 6-3 Kendall Wooldridge, 6-3 Sam Stoltz, and 5-10 Alon Hanani.
The returning forwards also include the team's second-leading rebounder in 6-9 Zac Sledge and two players that red-shirted a year ago in 6-2 Jaquan Thurman and 6-6 Jamal Williams.
The freshmen include guards in 6-0 Jamori McDougald (Overhills) and 6-1 Chad Kinch (Southern Durham), and 6-6 forwards Ayden Gittens (Overhills) and Antonio Leslie (Alonso, FL).
Red-shirting this season are sophomore Isaiah Nelson and freshmen Angel Bowie, Mike Fee, Patrick Reaves, Tre' Williams and Kenston Skipper.
C. Bergmann
Last season came to an end for the Flyers with losses in the first two games of the national tournament in Rockford, IL. The No. 1 ranked team in the preseason poll is 2022 national champion Dallas-North Lake CC.
In order to get another shot at a national title the Flyers will first have to prevail in a Region 10 conference that includes Central Carolina CC, Mountain Gateway CC (VA), previously known as Dabney S. Lancaster, and Oxford Emory (GA) of Region 17. Central Carolina will host the Region 10 tournament.
"I really think this team has a great potential for growth," Apple said. "We're very athletic and they have a chance offensively to be a very solid team. To get better they need to be more determined on defense and on the rebounding."
Assistant coaches this season include Tramaine Pride, Philip Olbon, Daquain Towns, Markell Lotharp and Will Ellman.
C. Bergmann