(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm welcomed the Central Bible College Spartans to Bethany this evening, where they defeated them 72-43. This victory moved SNU to 4-1 on the season.

Box Score

The first points of the game were put up by SNU’s Vladimir Bulut, who made a layup on a baseline drive. He was immediately followed by A.J. Thomas, who hit a three pointer to put the Crimson Storm up 5-0.

The very next SNU possession came on a steal by Thomas, who threw an alley-oop to Xavier Alexander, who threw it down for the first dunk of the night. Thomas would steal the ball again on the Spartans’ next possession, keeping it this time for an uncontested layup. Adrian Hunter would hit his first shot attempt of the night for 3 more points, putting the score at 11-3 before CBC could respond with anything consequential.

But respond they did, despite being out-sized and out-brawned in every position, the Spartans went on an 8-0 run to tie the game up.

Thereafter the extended runs by each team disappeared as each team sought to play to its strengths. With the referees calling the game very tightly, both teams found themselves struggling to gain advantage underneath the basket without drawing a whistle. Nevertheless, the Crimson Storm faithful were treated to another dunk, this one from Jeremy Lightfoot, who received a pass from Alexander has he came from the baseline.

Several of the Spartans’ points in the first half came from the foul line, a place they visited often at the demand of the referee’s whistle.

It was good to see Jon West back on the floor hitting 3-pointers, returning from his injury.  With 3:40 remaining in the half Alexander found the ball tipped to him off a steal, and the open court in front of him, his dunk was thrown down at such a steep angle that the ball bounced off his shoulders as he flew beneath the hoop. After twenty minutes of play, the score sat at 44-25.

Play was slow as the teams came out in the second half. SNU had scored only 4 points in the same number of minutes before Lightfoot put down his second dunk of the evening, this one over the top of a Spartans defender.

As the half continued, the margin of SNU’s lead increased bit by bit. With only 6:00 remaining, SNU had only scored 18 points since the half, but they were up 30 points as opposed to the 19 points they led by after the first half. Strong defense kept the Spartans from scoring much except at the foul line, which the refs continued to send them to. After attaining that lead, however, the Crimson Storm ceased to pull away, so that, with 3 minutes left in the game the score sat at 68-38.

Those last three minutes passed slowly, though the pace with which the ball was moved up and down the court sped up. Strong play off the bench maintained the SNU lead and the game ended with a score of 72-43.

Jeremy Lightfoot led the team in scoring with 16 points, followed closely by A.J. Thomas and Xavier Alexander who each had 12. Kyle Boen and Clement N’Gom led with four rebounds apiece.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm men’s basketball team fell 69-74 to Davenport University on Saturday evening on day two of the men’s basketball classic. SNU battled until the end, but the Panthers came out on top, capitalizing on their sound fast break throughout the game. The loss was SNU’s first of the season, dropping them to 3-1.

Box Score

Both Southern Nazarene and Davenport got off to a slow start offensively, and both teams struggled to reach double digits before the ten-minute mark of the half. The defensive battle early on left SNU trailing midway through the half.

With the chance to get into double digits just before the clocked ticked below ten minutes, SNU’s Xavier Alexander could not find the bottom of the net, going 0-for-2 from the line. The Panthers led 15-9 with nine minutes to play in the half, and the Storm continued to struggle on the offensive end, committing player control fouls and missing several shots.

Fortunately for SNU, the Panthers struggled as well, turning the ball over several times. With momentum on their side, the Storm looked to chip away at Davenports lead little by little. AJ Thomas knocked down two free throws to give SNU a little life, and after the Panthers responded with a short jumper, Thomas drained a shot from behind the arc to narrow the Davenport lead a little more. Trailing 14-17 with 7:31 to play in the half, the Storm looked to get stops on the defensive end in order to take a lead.

The Panthers continued to find the bottom of the net, however, and cushioned their lead by responding to most of SNU’s buckets. With 4:17 in the half, Davenport found an easy bucket in the paint and went ahead 25-18. But the Storm refused to back down, outscoring the Panthers eight to six in the final four minutes of the half. The effort left the Storm trailing by just five at the half, 26-31.

SNU came out hungry for a lead in the second half, and Vladimir Bulut knocked down a trey ball to cut the Panthers lead to just two points on the first Storm possession of the night. Davenport responded with a three of their own to regain a five-point lead, but Thomas knocked down a jumper on the other end for SNU to narrow the gap. Picking up a stop on the defensive end, the Storm gave themselves an opportunity to get the game within a point, and Bulut knocked down a jumper with 18:07 to play, making the score 34-33.

SNU continued to chip away at Davenport’s lead, eventually tying the game at 40 with 14:54 to play in the game following a buck from Jeremy Lightfoot in the paint. The Panthers took control again, however, regaining a four-point lead.

Xavier Alexander tied the game up once again for the Storm, knocking down to free throws on one possession and scoring a fast break bucket a few possessions later. With the game knotted at 44 with 12:46 remaining, the Panthers refused to let SNU take the lead, going back up by five before SNU would respond. Again, it was Alexander who got to the hole for the Storm, driving down the lane and hitting a jumper on the run to cut the Davenport lead to three, making the score 49-46 with 11:54 to play.

Like so many times before, the Panthers widened the gap one again, going on a 7-0 run to take their first double digit lead of the second half. With 7:44 to play in the game, Crimson Storm head coach, Adam Bohac, called a timeout to regroup his team who was now trailing 46-58. SNU finally got on the board again after the break with two free throws from Adrian Hunter. But the Panthers continued to use speed to their advantage pushing the ball up the floor and turning nearly every missed shot and Storm turnover into a fast break. With six minutes remaining, SNU trailed 50-63 and Davenport continued to pull further and further away. The Storm didn’t let up, battling for buckets on the offensive end and attempting to hold their ground defensively, but for every bucket the Panthers had an answer, and with less than four minutes to play, Davenport led 71-55.

SNU applied a high pressure defense in an attempt to claw their way back into the gave late, and the Panthers committed an offensive foul right away, putting the ball back in the hands of the Storm offense. Alexander knocked down a shot from behind the arc, making the score 58-71 with 2:54 remaining in the game.

The Storm continued to battle, forcing several Panther turnovers, and capitalizing on their opportunities by putting the ball in the bucket from the field, and from the free throw line late in the game.

SNU narrowed the gap four with 17 seconds remaining in the game with a long three from AJ Thomas, but the run started too late and Davenport picked up a 74-69 win over the Storm.

Xavier Alexander led the way for the Storm, finishing with 25 points. Thomas added 15 for SNU, and Jeremy Lightfoot finished the night with a double-double, scoring 12 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.

The Storm shot a mere 40% from the field (24-of-60), 20% from behind the arc (5-of-24), and 57% from the free throw line (16-of-27). The Panthers shot 50% from the field, 13% from three point range, and 72% from the charity stripe.

(Bethany, Okla.)---The Bethel College Threshers came to town this evening to play our very own Southern Nazarene University Crimson Storm. SNU triumphed in a 89-50 win that moved them to 3-0 on the season.

Box Score

The Crimson Storm started the game off right, with Xavier Alexander completing a three-point play. He was joined on the board by A.J. Thomas only a moment later. The Bethel visitors had failed to score in the first few minutes, but responded eventually, narrowing SNU’s slowly growing lead to 5-4, then 7-5 before the Storm found their stride. And stride they did, ahead to a 14-5 lead in the space of a single minute. After a remarkably slow start, SNU scored as many points in the sixth minute of the game than they had thus far. That being said, the Storm’s offense cooled immediately after their short run and, in the next five minutes, only scored occasionally.

Runs appeared to be the way scoring was to proceed, with lengthy lulls in between each. About the 10-minute mark the Storm went on another run, with Kyle Boen and Thomas hitting threes from outside, Jeremy Lightfoot and Shane Callaghan battling inside, and Alexander excelling everywhere in between. After another of these runs, with 3:40 remaining in the half, SNU was up 40-18. Slow but solid play over these last four minutes boosted the score to 48-28 before the Storm headed to the locker room for the break.

The second half started off slowly for both teams, but much more slowly for the Bethel Threshers. In eight minutes, while the Crimson Storm had only scored 9, the Threshers had only 5 points to show for their efforts. The game did not seem to have escalated physically, but both teams spent a much greater amount of time at the foul line than they had in the first half.

Momentum was never much of an issue in the second half. The Storm remained on top of the game throughout. So routine did the play seem, that it came as something of a shock when, with 7:15 left in the game, SNU went up by 40 points, 75-35.

The last 7 minutes of the passed smoothly, with strong play off the bench from Bradley Toone, Shawn Seymour, and Robert Brewer, all freshmen. The Storm threatened a 50 point lead a couple of times, but ended up winning 89-50, a 39 point margin.

Xavier Alexander led the Crimson Storm in scoring this evening with 18 points, closely followed by Vladimir Bulut who had 14. Jeremy Lightfoot led on defense with 2 blocks. Tonight’s win moves SNU to 3-0 on the season.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm men's basketball classic is underway from the Sawyer Center with game one in the books.  Davenport University of Michigan defeated Dallas Christian in the first game of the day, 95-64.  Southern Nazarene's women's basketball team follows next against Southwestern Chrsitian and the SNU men's basketball team is up at 8:00 p.m., hosting Bethel College of Kansas.

Day One Results

Davenport, Mich. def. Dallas Christian, 95-64, Box Score

(BETHANY, Okla.)---SNU is 2-0 on the year with three straight home games on the slate. The Crimson Storm did suffer a loss at the University of Tulsa on Monday night, 82-47, in an exhibition game, but the loss does not count against the regular season record, nor do the stats count towards individual averages.

While the loss to TU was a tough one, it should give the Crimson Storm plenty to build on for the remainder of the season.

SNU struggled at times the last time we saw the Storm on Homecoming. The Crimson Storm did manage a 73-58 win over Kansas Wesleyan, but struggled at times before pulling away late in the game.

SNU has been led thus far by Xavier Alexander, who is pumping in an average of 28.5 points per game. A.J. Thomas follows with a 14.5 points per game averaged and Kyle Boen is next up, scoring 13.0 points per game.

SNU’s opponent tonight, Bethel College, is 0-1 on the year after a 66-51 loss to Hastings College in their season opener on Wednesday night.

In that game, the Threshers were led by Justin Schneider and Brody Grove’s ten points apiece. Bethel struggled, shooting only 33% from the floor for the game.

All-time, SNU leads this series 3-1. The two teams last met back in the 2004-05 season in North Newton, Kansas. SNU won that game 70-62.

This weekend, SNU will also welcome Davenport College of Michigan and Dallas Christian College for other half of the SNU Classic.

To view a statistical comparison of the two teams, click here...

SNU vs. Bethel

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Game Day Program

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Live Audio

(TULSA, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm men’s basketball lost to the University of Tulsa on Monday night in Tulsa in an exhibition game, 82-47. The game will not count towards the season record, nor will any of the stats count for the year.

After an introduction that would have been at home in the Ford Center, the teams approached the center of the court. The Golden Hurricane 7 foot center All-American Candidate center Jerome Jordan tipped the ball out for his team.

The first Tulsa possession amounted to little, as the ball was almost immediately thrown out of bounds. The Storm’s first trip down the floor amounted to little as well, and missed shots for both teams left the game scoreless for the first few possessions.

SNU gained a place on the board first, as Xavier Alexander drove to the hole and laid the ball in. The Tulsa squad responded with alacrity, however, going up 7-2 over their next few trips down the floor. The Storm narrowed the margin slightly when Kyle Boen hit his first shot of the night for three points. SNU would not score again before the first scheduled time out where the teams went to the bench with the score 9-5.

Coming out of the break, the Golden Hurricane offense turned it on. And a scarce two minutes had passed before Tulsa had moved up 17-7. The Hurricane superior size presented the largest obstacle for the SNU players, as they were outclassed in size in every position, but gained no advantage in speed or quickness. Nevertheless, by the next scheduled break, the Storm had managed to cut the lead to 8 points, while the Tulsa squad went scoreless.

The flurry of Tulsa’s first few minutes slowed, but did not stop as the game reached the half-way point of the first half. Despite passionate, strong play by the Storm, the Hurricane moved up to 24-10 with 9 minutes still on the clock. A resurgence of SNU scoring came with good efforts from Alexander and Marchello Vealy, cutting the Tulsa lead to 10 points.

Momentarily frustrated beneath the basket by the SNU play, the Hurricane’s simply moved outside, shooting over the undersized SNU guards. With 5:37 remaining in the half, the score had reached 32-17.

The game progressed in this manner, with the Storm striving admirably against an opponent that was simply bigger and stronger. Only Alexander seemed capable of matching up in size with his defender, and he took a noticeable portion of the SNU offensive effort on his shoulders.

However, it was Vealy and Jeremy Lightfoot, with 7 points each who led the Storm in scoring as the teams went to the locker room at the half. The score at half time was 42-25.

The beginning of the second half saw the Hurricane immediately move down the court and score. SNU responded when Alexander went to the free-throw line after being fouled by Tulsa’s Jordan. Some of the first spirit of the night from the Tulsa student’s section sprang to life as Vladimir Bulut went to the line himself on the next SNU possession. He sank them both.

The Storm were on a streak, as three points from foul shots, plus a three from SNU point guard A.J. Thomas narrowed the score to 44-31. The high level of SNU play continued as Lightfoot soared into the air on the defensive end of the court to deny Jordan a dunk. The Storm continued to chip away at the Hurricane lead, reaching 46-34, the closest they’d been since early in the first half.

The Golden Hurricane reasserted their dominance quickly, however, and by the next scheduled timeout had moved ahead 57-36. The Storm played hard, very hard, but the Golden Hurricane size could not be overcome. Lightfoot, who had spent all game battling hard underneath the basket against an All-American candidate that had 3 inches on him, fouled out with 8:28 left in the game.

The Crimson Storm, tired from contending with opponents much larger than them, began to tire, and as they tired, they began to fall further and further behind. With 2:26 remaining the score sat at 78-39. Some light-heartedness remained in the exhausted SNU: As Vealy walked towards the bench after fouling out, the Golden Hurricane fans began the well-known chant of “left, right, left, right” corresponding to Vealy’s steps. As you all know, this chant culminates in a shouted “sit down!” once the player reaches the bench and sits. Vealy endured the jeers of the Tulsa fans as he reached the bench and as he bent to sit, the Golden Hurricane fans yelled as one “sit down!” But Vealy was not sitting. Straightening from his crouch quickly, he stood shaking his finger at the surprised, but amused fans. A good laugh circled the arena, and Vealy took his place with a smile.

Tulsa went on to win 82-47 in the exhibition game.

Marchello Vealy led with 9 points, for the Crimson Storm, followed closely by Kyle Boen who had 8. Vealy was also joined by Xavier Alexander as the blocks leader, each with 5.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---Sawyer is never so full for a basketball game than it is on Homecoming Weekend. The Crimson Storm welcomed the Coyotes of Kansas Wesleyan University to the Sawyer Center this Friday night, winning the physical game 73-58 to improve to 2-0 on the year.

Box Score

The game started with empty efforts for both teams before Xavier Alexander put SNU on the board with an athletic one-on-one move down low. The Coyotes responded by sinking three as the shot clock expired. That shot was to give them their only points till eight minutes of the game had passed as the Crimson Storm stepped up their defense to a smothering swarm. SNU’s Kyle Boen responded in kind, and the Storm was off to the races, quickly putting up a double-digit lead on KWU. The energy in the gym was palpable, as a very full student section served up a healthy portion of chants and just plain noise. SNU surged ahead to a 14-3 lead.

The feverish pace of the first five minutes cooled, and with it, SNU’s offense. The game settled into a physical grind with each team working from a half-court set, no longer pushing the ball up the floor. This new rate of play did not suit the Storm, and the Coyotes slowly clawed their way back into the game. With 3 minutes left in the first half, SNU found themselves only up, 29-27. A margin which the attacking Coyotes quickly negated, tying it at first at 29, then at 31.

A strong defensive stop, ending in a steal and a fast-break led to the decibel maximum for the evening thus far, as Marchello Vealy threw down the first dunk of the game. However, KWU responded with a 3-pointer with 0:34 seconds left in the half. Finding themselves unable to get a good look at the basket in the remaining time, the Crimson Storm went into the locker-room at half-time down 33-34.

The second half began as the first half ended. KWU hit another three. However, the Storm fought back into it, and on another fast break, this one by Alexander, took the lead with a high-flying dunk. A few minutes later, Vladimir Bulut increased the spread with his first three of the night. More strong play from by the Storm and another dunk from Alexander put SNU up 47-37.

The teams battled back and forth, with SNU remaining ever on top. The physicality escalated, and threatened to spill over as little pushes turned, momentarily, into a confrontation under the goal in front of the SNU student section.

The grind of the first half returned, and the Coyotes again began to eat into the SNU lead. With 5 minutes remaining in the game, the Storm was only up 4 points. However, a loss during Homecoming was not going to happen, and the Storm began to turn it on again, with a big three by Boen and two big shots in the paint by Alexander.

The redoubled effort began to pay off, as SNU pulled away to another 10-point lead. As the game entered its final minute, the Coyotes began to put a full-court press on the Storm. It was too little, too late, as the Storm continued to pull away, aided by several trips to the foul line, and ended the game up 73-58.

Offensively, the team was led by Xavier Alexander who had 29 on the night, shooting 11 of 15 from the floor. Also breaking double digits in points, A.J. Thomas put 18 on the board. Vladimir Bulut and Xavier Alexander had 8 and 9 rebounds respectively.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm got off to a strong start on Tuesday night in their season opener, crushing cross-town Bethany school, Southwestern Christian, 109-64 in the Sawyer Center.

Storm fans got a sneak peek at what could be a very good year for SNU basketball on Tuesday evening. Despite having four players who will see significant minutes this year in street clothes, SNU had little trouble dispatching the Eagles.

Much hyped newcomer, Xavier Alexander, did not disappoint in his SNU debut, pumping in 28 points on a blistering 71% shooting night (12-of-17). Alexander was 3-of-4 from three. Junior Kyle Boen also scored the nets for SNU on Tuesday, lighting up the Eagles defense with six three’s on the night. Boen hit 6-of-7 from beyond the arc on his way to a career high 20-point night.

Jeremy Lightfoot followed with 13 points and A.J. Thomas added 11.

Tonight, SNU will welcome Kansas Wesleyan to the Sawyer Center for Homecoming.

KWU is 1-1 on the year after downing Peru State of Nebraska in their season opener, 76-71. The Coyotes lost to York College of Nebraska on Halloween night, 80-72.

All-time, SNU and Kansas Wesleyan have met four times, with SNU holding a 3-1 advantage in the series. The Storm and Coyotes met last year here in the Sawyer Center with SNU winning 80-64.

To view a statistical comparison of the two teams, click here...

SNU vs. KWU

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Game Day Program

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Live Broadcast

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Live Stats

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm men’s basketball team opened up the 2009-10 season with a 109-64 rout of fellow Bethany college, Southwestern Christian University, on Tuesday night in the Sawyer Center. SNU improves to 1-0 on the year with the win.

Box Score

Tuesday nights season opener was never in doubt for the Storm as SNU cruised to a 54-38 halftime lead thanks to 55% shooting from the floor in the first half and 7-of-14 shooting from three. Despite not having four players who will either start or see significant action this year in the lineup, SNU had little trouble with the Eagles.

In the second half, SNU continued to pull away, out-scoring SCU 55-26 on a blistering 62% shooting performance from the floor.

Individually, SNU was led by Xavier Alexander’s 28 points. Alexander was 12-of-17 from the floor and 3-of-4 from three. Kyle Boen followed with 20 points on the night, hitting lights out from three, connecting on 6-of-7 from downtown. Boen only missed two shots on the night, finishing 6-of-8 from the floor. Jeremy Lightfoot followed with 13 points and 7 rebounds while A.J. Thomas added 11 points and 7 assists.

SNU will be in action again on Friday night against Kansas Wesleyan on Homecoming. Game time is set for 8:00 p.m. from the Sawyer Center.

(BETHANY, Okla.)---A new season of Crimson Storm men’s basketball is upon us as SNU opens the 2009-10 campaign tonight. Second year head coach, Adam Bohac, had a very successful debut last year, leading the Storm to a 20-12 record and a respectable 6th place finish in the 12-team Sooner Athletic Conference.

Expectations have risen for the ‘09-’10 season as Southern Nazarene is picked 4th in the pre-season Sooner Athletic Conference Coaches Poll released a couple of weeks ago. SNU is also receiving 20 votes in the pre-season NAIA rankings.

Much of the expectation comes from the highly anticipated debut of a strong recruiting class by Bohac and his staff. SNU added George Washington University transfer, Xavier Alexander, along with Walters State transfer, A.J. Thomas, Holmes C.C. transfer, Jeremy Lightfoot, and Oral Roberts transfer Marchello Vealy. These four, along with a host of other new recruits make SNU an intriguing team as the season starts up tonight.

The Crimson Storm also has a wealth of talent returning from their 20-win season a year ago. The Storm’s second leading scorer, Deonta Black, is back after averaging 11.0 points per game. SNU also returns Vlad Bulut (7.4 ppg), Daniel White (8.5 ppg), and starters Clement N’Gom, Shane Callaghan and Jon West.

It should be a fun one tonight as the Storm host fellow Bethany college, Southwestern Christian, to the Sawyer Center. SNU and SCU have met twice with the Storm winning both meetings. Their last meeting was in 2004-05, a game SNU won 112-46.

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Game Day Program

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Live Broadcast

(BETHANY, Okla.)---The Crimson Storm men’s basketball team is picked to finish 4th in the pre-season Sooner Athletic Conference Coaches Poll released on Tuesday. SNU received 83 total points in the poll.

Oklahoma Baptist is picked to finish first in the poll, receiving 120 points with ten first place votes. Rogers State, the 2008-09 regular season champion, is picked second with 106 total votes. Oklahoma Christian is picked third with 99 votes and two first place votes.

SNU finished 12-10 in Sooner Athletic Conference play a year ago, finishing 6th in the SAC final standings in the 12-team league. SNU posted a 20-12 record under first year head coach Adam Bohac.

To view the complete coaches poll, click here…
2009-10 SAC Pre-Season Coaches Poll

The Adam Bohac era got off to a good start in 2008-09 as SNU posted the program’s 23rd and third straight 20-win season. SNU finished off the 08-09 season with a 20-12 mark and a 6th place finish (12-10) in the brutal Sooner Athletic Conference.

SNU has plenty of optimism heading into the 2009-10 season, as the Crimson Storm will look to repeat their 20-win season and attempt to compete for a conference crown and return to the NAIA National Tournament.

First off though, the bad news for SNU is the Crimson Storm graduated do-everything point guard, Brandon Durham. Durham finished his illustrious career as the program’s 16th all-time leading scorer with 1,370 points and left SNU as the schools all-time steals leader with 292 career swipes.

The good news is that SNU looks to have replaced Durham with a host of talented recruits.

Guard
The guard position will see the return of 6’3 sophomore Daniel White, 6’4 junior Clement N’Gom, and 6’2 junior Kyle Boen.

White had a solid freshman campaign, appearing in all of SNU’s 32 games and averaging 8.5 points per contest. White was SNU’s third leading scorer a year ago and added 4.8 rebounds per game as a guard, which was second best on the team.

N’Gom arrived late to campus last fall, but was solid in his first year at SNU, starting 19 games and averaging 4.5 points per game.

Boen appeared in 30 games for SNU a year ago and connected on 32% of his three-point attempts, averaging 3.2 points per game.

6’6 junior Xavier Alexander and 6’0 junior A.J. Thomas will highlight the newcomers at the guard position.

Alexander is a transfer from George Washington University where he averaged 21 minutes a game last year, scoring 3.5 points per game. Alexander is local high school legend from Midwest City High School, where he scored 23.0 points per game as a senior, earning First Team All-State honors and leading Midwest City to the Class 6A State Championship and a 27-1 record as a senior.

Thomas is a transfer from Walters State Junior College, where was a Freshman Third Team All-American and earned Player of the Year honors for the TJCCAA conference.

SNU will also look to Central Michigan transfer, Adrian Hunter, to have an immediate impact. Hunter averaged 3.2 points per game last year for the Chippewa’s, hitting 36% from three.

The Storm will also rely on freshmen Robert Brewer, Shawn Seymour, Bradley Toone, and sophomore Malcolm McCarty for added depth at the guard position. All four had outstanding high school careers.

Forward
Returnees Vladimir Bulut and Jon West will man the forward position. Bulut, a 6’7 senior, appeared in 31 games last year, scoring 7.4 points per game and hitting a team high 43.5% from three (57-of-131).

West, a 6’6 sophomore started 12 games a year ago and averaged 5.1 points per game with 3.5 rebounds per contest as a freshman.

SNU has also added Oral Roberts University transfer, Marchello Vealy, to the mix on the front line. Vealy appeared in 27 games last year for ORU, averaging 4.6 points per game. As a sophomore, Marchello averaged 8.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game and earned the Mid-Continent Conference’s Sixth Man of the Year Award.

The Crimson Storm will also look to 6’4 freshman, Brett Frantz, for depth at the forward spot. Frantz had an outstanding career at Balko High School in Oklahoma.

Center
The post position will return two players from a year ago, second leading scorer, Deonta Black, and sophomore starter, Shane Callaghan.

Black scored 11.0 points per game a year ago and grabbed a team high 5.0 rebounds per game. For his efforts, Deonta earned Honorable Mention All-SAC honors.

Callaghan, a 6’8 sophomore, had a solid freshman year, starting 22 of 32 games, scoring 5.0 points per game and grabbing 3.7 rebounds per contest.

SNU will also add Holmes Community College transfer, Jeremy Lightfoot, to the post position. Lightfoot, a 6’9 junior, averaged 14.3 points per game and had 7.5 rebounds per game last year for Holmes and earned First Team All-State honors and was the Region XXIII Offensive Player of the Year.

Wrap-Up
Nothing is ever for sure until the season officially tips off, but on paper, Southern Nazarene looks to have loaded up on talent in the off-season under second year head coach, Adam Bohac. After posting an impressive 20-win campaign in his first year at the helm last season, Bohac is looking to guide SNU to the next level in 09-10, and if things play out on the court like they look on paper, SNU should be highly competitive in the SAC this season.

To view the 2009-10 men's basketball media guide, click here...

2009-10 Media Guide

(KANSAS CITY, MO.)---Southern Nazarene University senior guard, Brandon Durham, was named an Honorable Mention All-American by the NAIA on Tuesday evening.  Durham, a 6'0 senior from Oklahoma City, was a Third Team All-American as a junior.