‘We want to continue our legacy’
San Jacinto hopes to add another national title (or two) before program ends in 2018
Before Steve Francis and Sam Cassell began their NBA careers with the Rockets, they played for the San Jacinto College Ravens.
And before Walter Berry went to St. John’s and became the 1986 national player of the year, he also started his college career in Anders Gym.
As the men’s basketball program nears the end of its existence, the winning continues.
The Ravens (32-1) are the top seed for this week’s National Junior College Athletic Association Division I men’s basketball national tournament. Next year will be the final season of San Jacinto basketball. Last November, the school’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously to shut down a program that has won four national titles and is making its 21st appearance in Hutchinson, Kan.
“As hard as it is to win national championships, there might be a better shot that we would win backto-back national championships than there is for them to overturn their decision,” said fourth-year Ravens head coach Scott Gernander Jr., whose father Scott coached at San Jac from 1987-2011. “It is sad for me growing up here, my childhood. It’s sad for everybody involved.”
Men’s basketball, as well as three other athletic programs, will be
eliminated effective May 2018 at the Pasadena junior college.
This year’s team, led by sophomore guards Jorden Duffy, Corey Davis, James Kirksey and Elton Dyer, are playing for more than themselves. They are playing for history and for every player who has ever suited up wearing the blue and black.
Other former San Jacinto greats include Ollie Taylor (Houston), Ray Williams (Minnesota), Ledell Eackles (New Orleans), Alton Lister (Arizona State), Ollie Mack (East Carolina) and Billy Goodwin (St. John’s).
“We’re still hoping if we win the tournament that they keep the basketball program,” said Kabir Mohammed, a 6-5 freshman guard from Lagos, Nigeria, who is the team’s leading rebounder with 8.4 per game. “We hope so.
“This is a good place to be, players want to come here and play good basketball. We’re around Houston city. It’s going to be sad that they take the program out from people that love the game.”
The Ravens, who earned a first-round bye in the 24team national tournament, play their opening game at 2 p.m. Tuesday against Connors (Okla.) State (30-3).
‘It’s very important’
Dyer, from South Houston High School, understands the positive recognition the basketball team has given the school over the years.
“It’s very important, in the community and to the alumni,” said Dyer, who has set a program single-season record of 43 charges taken, including five against Lee College. “I knew there were great players that came out of here.
“I’m blessed to be a part of it, and now that I’m going to Hutch (Hutchinson) and might win a national championship, it feels good being part of that legacy.”
Duffy, who is from Upper Marlboro, Md., and was the regional XIV MVP in Jacksonville, was familiar with San Jacinto by way of Francis, who also grew up in Maryland.
“I knew about tradition because Gernander told me about it before I got here,” said Duffy, who averages a team-leading 19.4 points. “Once the sophomores leave and once the freshmen get done next year, we won’t be able to tell our kids about San Jacinto because (the program) won’t be here anymore.
“All we’ll have to talk about was the past. We won’t be able to bring our kids back to the gym and games. That’s pretty sad.”
In 55 years of basketball, the Ravens are 1,590-383, with national championships in 1968, ’83, ’84 and ’86, when the team went 37-0. From 1973-93, the Ravens won 20 consecutive conference titles. The Ravens have been national runners-up four times.
As much discussion as there is about the program’s past success, there is also a lot of attention being directed to this year’s Ravens, who play four guards and a true center (Konstantin Kulikov of Russia). The Ravens maintain their historically up-tempo spread-it-out, dribble-drive offense, averaging 98.2 points per game. San Jac has exceeded 100 points 13 times and holds a plus 34.5 scoring margin and 17.9 rebounding margin.
“We just play basketball, old San Jacinto basketball,” said Dyer, who redshirted as a freshman football player at the University of Houston. “We don’t worry about anything else outside. We play like we’re the No.1 team and I feel that’s the right (ranking).”
Unranked to open the season, San Jac won its first 22 games before suffering its lone loss — 9488 at home to Angelina on Feb. 4.
“At the beginning of the season, we felt we had so much to prove, so we came in every day, every game, we came in with a hunger that nobody really had,” said Davis, who is from Lafayette, La., and averages 17.2 points and is shooting 46 percent on 3-pointers. “Now we’re here.
“We play so well together; we play so hard. Our play style is unexplainable. It makes us different and helps out a lot.”
Chemistry class
Chris Harris, a 6-10 freshman center from Madison High School, said chemistry plays a vital role in the success of the Ravens, who routed Panola 92-67 in the regional championship game.
“We all like each other; there’s no personal issues on the team,” said Harris, who signed with UH out of high school and intends to play for the Cougars next season. “We play together, we buy into coach’s system, listen to what Coach says.”
A major reason for the board’s decision to shut down the basketball program in 2018 is that Anders Gym, built in 1967, needs improvements that could exceed $15 million.
“I’ll never agree with it; I know it was a tough decision for them,” Gernander said. “It all comes down to finances. I know our school has the money, but I speculate there was a little less state funding and they’re looking ahead to the future.
“Getting people out in the work force has become their focal point. Especially with the tax payers, they’re always under. … Every time there is a bond, for them to ask for a new building, they are a little hesitant. The other thing that doesn’t help us is P.E. is not required with the state anymore, so we have a lot less classes here. They know this building would need attention in the next decade and they’re not willing to do it.”
A number of people will be affected by the decision to close the basketball program at San Jacinto. None more than the players, past and present, and coaches.
“It’s going to hurt to know that the San Jac program is leaving, but we want to play out for our coaches and we want to continue our legacy,” Dyer said. “It’s going to be hard because as players, we would love to come back and visit where we started. It’s going to hurt, but there’s going to be some great memories.”