Battlers Sign Big Time Guard from Cleveland

The Alderson Broaddus men's basketball staff has been on a roll lately when it comes to recruiting. But the latest commit has what many high school basketball followers and writers describe as one of the top players in the Cleveland area. The Battlers have landed Anthony Carmon, an athletic scoring guard from East Tech HS in Cleveland, OH. Carmon will come to Philippi after averaging 20.6 points, 5.1 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 3.6 steals during his senior campaign at East Tech. He put this production up despite playing with another talented teammate who took his talents to the ACC. Carmon is more than just a scorer. His videos show a tremendous defender with excellent instincts away from the basketball.

Individuals in the Cleveland area that follow basketball closely raved about Carmon's talents. Dave Cassilo of the Cleveland Plain Dealer wrote a column in mid-February of Anthony's senor season which had Carmon as one of 6 players that would qualify for the Cleveland-area High School Player of the Year. And Carmon wasn't in bad company on that list. Cassilo mentioned five other players in that column that all went on to play Division I basketball. Such notable names as Markell Johnson (NC State), Carlton Bragg (Kansas University), Esa Ahmad (West Virginia) and Antwon Lillard (Bowling Green) joined Anthony Carmon as players who Cassilo felt were noteworthy of player of the year in his mid-February column of that year.

This was not the only significant recognition that Carmon was receiving during his senior season. Ohio Elite News called Carmon "Ohio's most underrated guard". Zach Fleer reported that Ohio University went to visit Anthony at an open gym during his senior season. Steven Newton of 3rdcoast blog called Carmon "Ohio's most underrated and entertaining guard". Carmon also garnered the 3-point shootout champion at the prestigious 3rdcoasthoops High School All Star Game. Some of Carmon's videos that we linked throughout this story show an electrifying player that brings a lot of talent, energy and heart to Rex Pyles Arena next year. We have reached out to Anthony, and he has agreed to an in-depth interview. Look for that story later in the month. In the mean time, enjoy the videos.

Battlers Sign Martinsburg Standout Jarrell Jones

Alderson Broaddus men's basketball team signed Martinsburg HS (WV) all-state player Jarrell Jones. The 6'4" standout for the Bulldogs will bring a tremendous amount of versatility to the Battler squad. As a junior for Martinsburg, Jones averaged 22 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. He would follow that up his senior campaign by averaging 18 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Martinsburg advanced to the West Virginia AAA boys state basketball tournament during Jones' junior and senior seasons. Jones has the ability to bring the ball up the court, read screens for an open jumper or attack the rim with a tremendous jump that gets Jones above the rim. He brings another athletic and explosive player that can attack the rim on offensive rebounding opportunities which Alderson Broaddus basketball is known for. Jones shows the versatility to play multiple positions on the floor as his size and athleticism allow him to guard three positions at the Division 2 level. He can run the point or play the wing where he can create off the dribble by breaking a defender down.  Stay tuned to Battler Beat for more on Jarrell Jones in a more in-depth article later in the month.

ABU Women's Hoops Sign Guard from Maryland

The Alderson Broaddus' women's basketball team has signed Nayieh Miller from Laurel High School in Laurel, Maryland. Miller played point guard for the Spartans for the past four years. She averaged 13.8 points per game and 8.4 assists per game during her senior campaign. She is noted in the Baltimore Sun as to have once had 14 steals in a game. Miller will come to Philippi to compete for the point guard position that has been vacated due to the graduation of Lorin Clark. Nayieh's recruiting video package shows a cat-quick point guard when bringing the basketball up the court. She demonstrates good court vision when looking for an open teammate. She also has good defensive basketball instincts where she is able to get a hand in the passing lane to get a steal. Nayieh played in the prestigious Hagerstown Roundball Class during the first weekend of April. She played in the Girls Civil War on the Floor Elite Game as a member of the Mason-Dixon squad. She had 5 points and 4 assists during that event.

Alderson Broaddus' First Men's Basketball Championship

In 1936, the Alderson Broaddus men's basketball team won their first WVIAC championship by defeating the Concord Mountain Lions by a score of 59-37. The tournament was held in Clarksburg, WV. The Battlers had defeated Potomac State in the quarterfinal round by a score of 36-30. A-B would advance to the championship game by defeating Glenville State 49-37 in the semifinal round. The Battlers placed two players on the all-tournament team. Both Don Kelley and Neil Sappington received all-tournament honors for their effort in leading A-B to the championship.

An interesting twist to this 1936 WVIAC tournament comes from the Concord Mountain Lion team that Alderson Broaddus beat in that championship game. One of their players is still alive today at the age of 103. Lewis D'Antoni played both football and basketball for Concord during this era. He was also selected to the all-tournament team that year. D'Antoni would graduate from Concord and begin a 35-year teaching/coaching career in Mullens, WV where he would accumulate over 450 wins as a head coach including a 1955 state championship. He is the father of two sons: Mike D'Antoni, current head basketball coach of the Houston Rockets and Dan D'Antoni, current head basketball coach at Marshall University. Mike's team is currently in the NBA playoffs squaring off against the San Antonion Spurs. Dan's Thundering Herd team finished as runner up this past season in the Conference USA men's basketball tournament.

CCBC Catonsville's Montaque Wright Commits to Alderson Broaddus

Battler Beat has learned from CCBC Catonsville's men's basketball head coach Greate White that 6'2" wing player Montaque Wright has given a commitment to Alderson Broaddus University. CCBC Catonsville finished this past season with an overall record of 20-8 and 11-3 in the Maryland JUCO conference. The Cardinals were runner-up in the regular season standings in the Maryland JUCO conference. Wright averaged 18 points per game this past season. He also averaged 4.4 rebounds per game, 3.1 assists per game and 2.5 steals per game for the Cardinals. As a sophomore, he shot 36.4% from the floor and 32.6% from beyond the 3-point line. For his efforts, Wright was named to the 2016-17 All-MD JUCO Men's Basketball Second Team. Wright scored in double-figures in all but three games this past season.

As a freshman for CCBC Catonsville, Wright averaged 22.6 points per game. He was a 1st-team All Region XX junior college selection. He concluded his freshman campaign by dropping 53 points against Rowan College of Burlington County. As a freshman, he shot 44.3% from the floor and 37.4% from beyond the arc. Wright is a native of Baltimore, Maryland. He will have two-years of eligibility for the Battlers.

Prep School Coach Says Expect Big Things from Recent ABU signee Parker Dortch

Alderson Broaddus University's men's basketball program recently signed 6'6" Parker Dortch from Isaiah Christopher Academy (ICA). There was little knowledge about Parker at the time it was announced that he had signed with the Battlers. But looking at his production on the floor at ICA and hearing the comments from his prep school coach Allen Ragland, Battler fans should be excited about the potential he brings to the program. Dortch played his high school ball at Northern Burlington High School in New Jersey. He decided to go to the prep school route upon graduation from Northern Burlington. He chose ICA as his destination, and it turns out that he has blossomed into quite the versatile player that can help the Battlers at multiple positions for the next several years.

Isaiah Christopher Academy played several quality junior college programs throughout the season. ICA played such notable names as Allegany Junior College, Cape Fear Community College, Monroe JC, Richard Bland CC, Niagara CC, Jamestown CC and Genessee CC.Two of those programs made it to the JUCO Elite Eight. Richard Bland JC made it to the junior college national final four and Niagara CC made it to the elite eight round of the juco national tournament. ICA also played top-flight prep academies along the way such as Commonwealth Academy, Massanutten Military School, Scotland Performance Institute and Notre Dame Prep. Most of those prep schools had multiple players that signed on with Division I programs.  It was against this type of quality competition that allowed Dortch to showcase his talents to the ABU coaching staff. His production against many older players that he played against is impressive to say the least.

Coach Ragland is not a coach to hold back on what he feels Parker Dortch brings to the Alderson
Broaddus program. "I truly believe he could develop into an All-American by his sophomore season. I feel he is really a Division I player. I don't think he has even scratched the surface on being the type of player that he can be." said Ragland. Those are strong comments and lofty expectations for an incoming player. But one has to like the confidence and mindset that Coach Ragland puts on his players.

One can see why Ragland feels this way about Parker after looking at his production during this past season. Dortch's numbers were very good against some of the top junior college programs in the country. When ICA visited Cumberland, MD to take on prestigious Allegany JC, Dortch put up an impressive 33 points in an overtime loss. He had several other quality performances against junior college programs: 21 points and 9 rebounds against a 24-8 Cape Fear CC team, 23 points and 10 rebounds against Jamestown CC, 19 points against Monroe JC. These are impressive numbers considering that most of the time Dortch was squaring off against players that were one to three years older than he was at the time.

Beyond the numbers lies an important attribute that Dortch possess  that will enable him to see the floor immediately upon his arrival to the Philippi campus. "Parker has the ability to guard any one on the floor. He has the ability to give you a doulbe-double every night, but his intensity and ability on defense will be big for Coach Zimmerman," stated Ragland. Any one that has followed the Battler men's basketball program under Greg Zimmerman knows that man-to-man defense comes first before you see the floor in a game. ABU has led the conference on multiple occasions in the category of opponent's scoring average.

Coach Ragland also went into detail about Parker Dortch's versatility on the floor which is unique to the Division 2 level for a player with his size. "He is a true 6'6" player that can play multiple positions. He can dribble. We actually played him at times during certain points of games at the one and two position. He has a good outside jumper. He can score inside or outside. He was primarily a back-to-the basket player in high school. Now he can face the basket and has moves to the basket. We got him to play above the rim at ICA."

Dortch's versatility and skill set on the floor led many Division I programs from such conferences as the Northeast, Sun Belt and Big South to contact Coach Ragland about Parker Dortch. He also had multiple offers to continue on with his education and game at the junior college level. But as fate had it, he landed at Alderson Broaddus University with high hopes of continuing on his production and education at the Division 2 level.

Coach Ragland compared Dortch's game to a notable NBA player. He was quick to note that he was
not as good as this player. But he felt his overall game and style of play was very comparable. "He reminds you of a Dennis Rodman like player. Parker's intensity level is incredible on the floor. He runs like a deer.He is a hungry kid, but also a great kid. He was a lanky kid when he arrived to us. He filled out here with muscle by working hard in the program," stated Ragland.

Coach Ragland left us with a little tidbit about Parker. He stated that he is a good singer and even likes to write songs. "He told me that when I come to AB to watch him in a game that he was going to sing the national anthem before the game," said Ragland. "I feel he is leaving prepared to go to AB. He is a great kid." The coach gave the recent ABU signee high praise throughout the interview about his game and about his character. Now things move into Operation 'Show & Prove'.

Here is a link to a highlight package of Dortch's play in high school:
Parker Dortch Basketball Highlights

Young Battlers Meet Experienced Squads at the G-MAC / GLIAC Crossover

The Alderson Broaddus University men's basketball team will open play this weekend at the G-MAC/GLIAC Crossover Tournament held Friday and Saturday at the Owensboro Sportscenter in Owensboro, KY. The Battlers will bring a squad of up to 8 freshmen to this event. The dilemma facing ABU is not only their inexperience but the fact that the two squads that they will be facing bring veteran lineups to the floor each day. It will be a tough challenge for the team to earn a victory against two talented and seasoned teams. Many of the 18-year old players that the Battlers will have on the floor will be playing against players that are 21-22 years of age. Add to this fact that many of the players that ABU will be up against have years of D2 basketball experience while many of the Battlers will be playing in their first D2 game.

The Battlers will open play on Friday, November 11 at 5PM against Tiffin University. The Battlers fell to Tiffin last season 88-84 in overtime in a game held in Detroit, MI. In that game, ABU led by seven points at halftime and held 60-41 advantage with 11 minutes to play before squandering the lead late. Most of Tiffin's squad from last season returns for this matchup while all five of the players for ABU that started in this game are no longer with the team.

The Dragons return Khaleal McCormick who was named a preseason 1st-team All-GLIAC selection. McCormick is a versatile 6'6" swing player who averaged 21 points per game and 6.5 rebounds per game last season. He had 23 points against ABU and hit the game-tying three-pointer that sent the game to overtime. He was Tiffin's leading scorer and rebounder for the 2014-15 season as well. The preseason honor given by GLIAC coaches is quite impressive considering McCormick only played in two games last season before suffering a season-ending injury. Tiffin went 11-18 last year with McCormick only playing two games. That record could have been turned around had the Dragons had him all season. 

Tiffin's talent goes beyond McCormick. The Dragons return Tony Kynard (6'1" junior guard) who averaged 16 ppg last year. Kynard had 20 points against ABU last year. Tiffin return the services of Alex Brown (6'1" junior) who averaged 12 ppg/6.4 rpg last year. They also return (6'1" senior) Juwan Johnson who averaged 11 ppg last season. This amount of production and experience could be very pivotal in this game especially when you have that many quality players that have played together.

The Dragons bolstered their lineup of talented players during the recruiting period. Tiffin added Travon Howard from Alpena CC where he averaged 17.5 ppg and 6.2 rpg. Tiffin also strengthened their inside play by the addition of two transfers. Brandon Wilkins is a 6'6" forward brought in from Mercyhurst Northeast CC where he averaged 12.3 ppg and 8.4 rpg. The Dragons added D-I transfer Ellis Williams who is a 6'8" post player that arrives from Bryant University. On paper, this Tiffin team is better than the squad from last year.

Alderson Broaddus will also play Wayne State University on Saturday, November 12 at 1PM at the Owensboro Sportscenter. The Battlers defeated Wayne State last year on Wayne State's home floor by the score of 82-75. Wayne State is coming off an impressive exhibition win over Division I Detroit Mercy. The Warriors defeated Detroit by a score of 85-79 over the Division I squad that went 16-15 last season. ABU will again be facing a well-oiled machine as the Warriors return their top 7 scorers from last season. Their top five leading scorers from last season are comprised of 3 seniors and 2 juniors.

The experienced Wayne State lineup will be comprised of: Ronald Booth who averaged 15.5 ppg last season and contributed 14 points last week against Detroit Mercy. Michael Lewis averaged 11.7 ppg and 6.2 rpg last season. Marcus Moore averaged 7.8 ppg and 5.5 rpg last season and had a monster game against Detroit with 22 points and 12 boards. Clark Bishop averaged 7.8 ppg last year and had 16 points against Detroit. If that was not enough talent to deal with, Wayne State went out and signed junior college transfer Jalen Adams who average 17 ppg and 6 rpg at the JUCO level last season. 

ABU's young and inexperienced squad will have a lot of tough work to do this weekend to carve out victories. Fans that follow the program know that this team will take time to develop. This crossover event will give us a good look at two experienced and talented squads. That experience that we gain will help this young Battler team as the season continues. What ABU gains from this weekend should far outweigh any numbers that develops on the win-loss record.