ABU's Chavez Harper Gets 'Battle Tested' in the Cleveland Pro-Am

Philippi, West Virginia is home of Alderson Broaddus University. But from a historical prospective, Philippi is known as the first land battle of the Civil War which occurred in June of 1861. Although many historians consider the Battle of Philippi to be nothing more than a skirmish, it was hailed by the northern press as a major victory in the war. The troops of the Union and Confederacy that took part in this battle were considered 'inexperienced'. But the battle did have consequences. It would propel Major General George B. McClellan into a status symbol of the Union military. It is from this brief account that ABU gets the nickname the Battlers. ABU's mascot is known as Skirmish.

Forward the account of Philippi to this past basketball season for Alderson Broaddus. A young 6-5,
205 pound freshman forward from Cleveland, OH named Chavez Harper arrived on campus to join a team that returned all but one player from the previous basketball season. Harper was coming off a senior season at Euclid High School where he averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds per game. But as many freshman will attest, the transition from the high school ranks to college isn't always a smooth one. In fact, some say that it takes a season to get 'battle tested'. Harper would be the first to say that he too experienced the transition highs and lows. "My first year at AB was a roller coaster ride. I struggled mainly because of myself. I was not confident at all. I was always worried about making a mistake. And I worried so much about not making a mistake that I made more mistakes than I should have." stated Harper.

Battler Beat won't make it out that Harper didn't have his moments as a freshman. In the always competitive Gary Miller Classic at Gannon University, Harper showed glimpses of the potential that he was bringing to the Battler basketball program. The first game of the classic was against Slippery Rock. Harper put in nine points on 3 of 3 shooting from the field including one 3-pointer. He did this in 14 minutes of play. That performance caught the eye of head coach Greg Zimmerman who would insert Harper into the starting lineup the next evening against eventual PSAC regular season and tournament champion Gannon. Harper would not disappoint. He contributed 13 points in the winning effort on the road. The Hammermill Center isn't always the easiest venue to get a victory either. And it is certainly not an easy place for a freshman to get his first start and contribute a double-digit point effort.

But what happens to many freshman would happen to Harper during the 2014-15 season. He would play his share of minutes during certain games. But other games would see Chavez watch and learn from the bench. He was a forward competing for minutes against two experienced all-conference forwards in juniors Richard Lemon and Thylas Perkins. Both of those two had been through the 'battles' of D2 basketball. They had both been starters on the 2013-14 G-MAC regular season and tournament champion season. Harper was still trying to find his niche on the team.

Despite the ups-and-downs in playing time, Chavez Harper was never forgotten during his freshman season. His most telling time,that may have changed his whole outlook, occurred during the 2015 G-MAC tournament championship game against Kentucky Wesleyan. Thylas Perkins was limited in minutes due to an ongoing back problem that plagued him earlier in the season. The player that Coach Zimmerman turned to was Chavez Harper. It was during this championship contest that Harper started to gain some confidence again. His stat line may not seem that imposing. He had zero points and four defensive rebounds in ten minutes of play. At the same time though, he didn't hurt the team during a tight defensive contest. He had zero turnovers and played well on the defensive end. "The championship game was a great experience for me. The longer I stayed on the floor, the more relaxed I got. Prior to the championship, my goal was to prove to every body that I was good enough. I doubted what I could do every day, and it affected my game negatively. When the championship game came, I had one goal and that was to win that title. Whatever the team needed, I wanted to do. The championship game is where I started to believe in myself more. I was just so happy to a part of something so special. Ever since that day, I haven't doubted myself one bit." stated Harper.

Chavez Harper is now proving to be prophetic in his exclamation of self-confidence. One only has to look at his production in the highly competitive Cleveland Pro-Am League that occurs every summer in the Cleveland/Akron area. It is a league home to many professional and division one players. It is also stocked with players who have honors in the D2, D3 and NAIA ranks of college basketball. This summer Chavez Harper has not only been getting 'battle tested' but he is winning many of the key 'battles' on the court. This is the second straight summer that Harper has been a part of the Cleveland Pro-Am. He played in last year's league upon graduating from high school. But Harper is the first to say that this summer has been totally different than last year's experience. In part because Harper has already experienced what the league was like. You could say that he was battle-tested coming into this summer. "Stepping on the court in the Cleveland Pro Am and performing consistently is not easy to do. I tried to play after I graduated high school and I really could not hang. I was not ready for the style of play and how physical it was. Before I played like I just wanted to play good. Now, whenever I step on the court, I want to dominate." said Harper.

We asked Chavez how this experience this summer has been different. He replied: "My experience this summer has been great! I have been blessed enough to grow my game, and showcase my talents by competing against some of the best players from all over the state of Ohio. I think being able to complete against many athletes who play at a higher level than I do currently, and players who have been through the same path I am on now, has helped me to elevate my game. The mindset going into the summer was to prepare myself to be an asset to the team for my sophomore season at AB. Without a doubt, competing against professional athletes and players who play at other colleges around the country, has helped me a lot. Every time I step on the court I think of what I can do to be better for my teammates and coaches at AB. I look forward to guarding players who play professionally, and matching up with the players who many people know are really good. Competing against players who have proven they are great has made me relentless in my approach to dominate. It put a chip on my shoulder feeling like I wasn't good enough to compete. Now whenever I step on the court I am confident that I can compete no matter who is in front of me."

One only has to look at the numbers that Chavez Harper has been putting up night-in and night-out at the Cleveland Pro-Am to see that he certainly has played with a chip on his shoulder. He was named one of the Day 7 Top Performers after his 15 point/12 rebound performance in a league game. It didn't stop there however. On Day 9, he was once again named one of the top performers on the Cleveland Pro-Am website due to his 24 point/8 rebound effort in leading his team to victory. He would notch another top performer award for a 25 point/15 rebound outburst. For his efforts, Chavez was honored with the accolade of being named to the 1st-team Cleveland/Akron Pro-Am team. The slate for the 1st-team was pretty good too. Joining Harper on the 1st team were: Todd Brown Jr (former double-digit performer for Wright State who now plays professionally), Jimond Ivey (a member of Akron's basketball team), and Justin Jamison (who played for Texas Tech). To put things in perspective, Jesse Hardin, who was Walsh's leading scorer last season, was named to the 3rd-team in this league. There were many other notable players in this league. Harper competed against Kwan Cheatham, Pat Forsythe and Demetrius Treadwell who played for the University of Akron last season. The latter two players were double-digit scorers for the Zips. He also went against Garrick Sims who plays professionally in Europe and Nick Harney, who once played for Akron, but was a 1st-team all-MEC pick last season for Fairmont State last season. But maybe his biggest battle came against Jared Sullinger. Sullinger played basketball for Ohio State University and was a 1st-round pick of the Boston Celtics. Needless to say, Chavez put up his numbers against many a high-level player when he took the court in the league each night.

But all good players now that there is more to honing their skills than playing league ball. We asked Chavez what Coach Zimmerman asked him to work on in the off-season. Harper replied: "Coach Zimmerman really wanted me to spend a lot time on my jump shot. Making the mid-range jumper consistently and shooting within the flow of the game have been big for me this summer. He also wanted me to get stronger. He wants me to be able to guard multiple positions such as small forwards and power forward. Lastly, he wanted me playing with more mental toughness. Being able to handle adversity and block out things that don't go my way are all things he really wanted me to be able to do by the time I returned for my sophomore season." He didn't stop their in going over his weekly routines for the summer. Chavez has kept himself occupied beyond playing in the league and working individually on his game. Chavez told us that he has been "running on the track, running up bleachers and lifting weights" all summer long.

While the whole summer experience has been great for Chavez, he doesn't forget the many roller coaster rides that he experienced his freshman season at ABU. He feels there are many factors that will lead him to having a better sophomore year and career at AB. The Cleveland Pro-Am was certainly one factor. But the overall school experience was another. "I learned a lot from my freshman year. I now know what it takes to be a part of something special and what it takes to be a college athlete. Adjusting to college was tough but with the support of my teammates, coaches and the great community, it was easier to adjust as the school year progressed." But Harper also noted that those freshman roller coasters would now lead to much smoother rides upon his arrival in Philippi in August. He notes that he now knows what to expect not only as an athlete but as a student as well. "School was great," noted Harper. "I changed my major from education to business, and I am very happy with that decision. Business fits me more, and I enjoy the professors who teach it. AB is a great place to focus on school and basketball without having too many distractions. I look forward to my future at AB."

It appears on the surface that the Cleveland/Akron Pro-Am League has helped Chavez's game, confidence and overall approach to winning. He stated that the league provided an awesome experience to better his future on the court. But Chavez was the first to note that he doesn't plan on stopping his progress in Cleveland. He had strong words for the AB Battler fans, alumni and community: "I will do whatever it takes to be successful. I will continue to work hard to be the best I can be on and off the court. Our team will continue to work as hard as we possibly can to make sure our fans are happy. Thank you to all the fans for your unparalleled support and love and I look forward to helping the team defend our conference championship, and also earn a national championship in the near future."

Those are good, strong words for a sophomore-to-be. But Chavez has backed those words up with strong performances in a tough league that features quality players every night. Just like Major General McClellan became an experienced leader in the Civil War after the Battle of Philippi, we think it is safe to say that Chavez Harper is now more "Battle Tested" as the 2015-16 basketball season approaches.