By Rob Potter
LOCH SHELDRAKE — December 3, 2010 — The weather may be turning cold, but the Generals are certainly heating up the Sullivan County Community College (SCCC) campus.
Undefeated in Region XV play and sporting a 6-2 record overall on the young hoops season, SCCC has already knocked off the defending national champs.
For example, on the weekend of Nov. 13-14, SCCC hosted the first annual The Lodge at Rock Hill Classic Tournament at Paul Gerry Fieldhouse. During the tourney, the Generals defeated the Joliet (Ill.) Junior College Wolves, 80-70, and the MassBay Community College Buccaneers, 79-71. Joliet CC, which is the defending National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division III national champion, was ranked No. 1 in the NJCAA Div. III preseason poll. MassBay CC was ranked No. 5 in that same preseason poll.
Then from Nov. 18 to Nov. 20, SCCC played in the College of Southern Idaho Tournament in Twin Falls, Idaho.
The Generals lost to the College of Southern Idaho and Western Nebraska in the tournament, but SCCC Coach Kevin DeVantier noted that both of those teams are very good.
The College of Southern Idaho and Western Nebraska, which are both NJCAA Div. I teams, were ranked 13th and ninth, respectively, in the NJCAA Div. I poll at the time of the tournament.
Heading into a Region XV game at Bronx Community College on Tuesday night, SCCC had a record of 6-2 overall and 2-0 in Region XV. After defeating Joliet JC and MassBay CC, SCCC took over the No. 1 ranking in the NJCAA Div. III poll and held the top spot for two weeks. Following their losses in Idaho, the Generals dropped to No. 5 in the poll.
Coach Kevin DeVantier, who is a Roscoe Central School graduate, is in his second year of leading the Generals. Helping him guide the team are Assistant Coaches Gregg Semenetz Jr. and Dan DeVantier and Staff and Managers Randy Armstrong, Mark Jones and Miguel Montaz.
Dan DeVantier is Kevin DeVantier’s younger brother. When Kevin was the head basketball coach at Columbia-Greene Community College prior to coming to SCCC, Dan was one of his players.
The members of this year’s Generals team are: Kareem Bernard, Joshua Borden, Kenny Bradshaw, William Davis Jr., Frankie Drayton, Cleanthony Early, David Haughton, Sidney Hedge, Marvin Jean, Bobby Jones, Dashawn Joyner, Chris Larmond, Jordan Thorpe, Dustin Van Lieu, Brandon Williams, Curtis Williams and Travis Wright.
Kareem Bernard, Jordan Thorpe and Travis Wright are sophomores, while all of the other players are freshmen.
Dustin Van Lieu, a Liberty Central School graduate, is the only player who grew up in Sullivan County.
Coach’s Outlook
Kevin DeVantier is excited about this group of Generals.
“We have a very young team this year,” he said. “At the same time, we have a very talented basketball team.
“We have 14 freshmen on the roster,” DeVantier continued. “They are going to have to adjust to the college game.”
DeVantier is confident the first- year Generals will make that adjustment to college-level basketball. And the team has set some big goals for the season.
“We knew coming into the season that these guys were a very talented class,” DeVantier said. “Our goals for the season include winning the Region XV Tournament to get to the National Tournament and then trying to win a national championship. To do that, we need to improve our game and be lucky in terms of keeping everybody healthy. We know we need to work to achieve those goals and our guys have been working very hard.”
Coach Kevin DeVantier offered some thoughts on the Generals’ five starters and some of the key reserves. Those thoughts were as follows:
Jordan Thorpe, sophomore, center: “He’s the only guy who has college basketball playing experience. He is going to be the glue that helps hold the team together and he will be one of our leaders. Jordan is averaging eight points a game.”
Dashawn Joyner, freshman, point guard: “Dashawn is one of the most talented players I have ever been around. He is explosive offensively and is getting better with each game. He is our leading scorer with 16 points a game and our assist leader with eight assists a game.”
Marvin Jean, freshman, shooting guard: “Marvin is a solid basketball player. He is our lockdown defender and plays well whenever he is on the floor. He is averaging 11 points a game.”
Cleanthony Early, freshman, guard/wing: “Cleanthony is an extraordinary talent. He is long and athletic and an outstanding basketball player. He is averaging 13.5 points and nine rebounds per game.”
Kenny Bradshaw, freshman, power forward: “Kenny plays outstanding defense against the other team’s big guys. He also has a great presence down inside the lane on offense. He is averaging 14 points and nine rebounds a game.”
Kareem Bernard, sophomore, guard: “Kareem is an excellent shooter. Right now, he is making 57 percent of his shots from behind the [3-point] arc.”
Frankie Drayton, freshman, guard: “I think everyone saw what a great player Frankie is when he was named the MVP of The Lodge at Rock Hill Classic. He’s our backup point guard and with his ability, he can play well anywhere on the court.”
Dustin Van Lieu, freshman, guard: “Dustin has seen some time at point guard and shooting guard. He is the hardest worker on the team. Because of that hard work, he should be earning more playing time very soon.”
The Generals will be on the road for their next several games, including games at the Onondaga Community College Tournament in Syracuse on Dec. 11-12. They will return home to Paul Gerry Fieldhouse on Wednesday, Dec. 15 to face Westchester Community College in a Region XV game. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.