Monday, November 8, 2010

IHCC Three-Pointers Shoot Down Ellsworth

Ottumwa -- Indian Hills used a three-point barrage to open up a big halftime lead and the Warriors cruised to a 97-75 win over Ellsworth CC in the Reed Overhead Doors Classic on Saturday night at the Hellyer Center.

The Warriors hit 10-of-15 shots from behind the arc in the opening half and made 14 in 25 attempts for the game in winning their third straight game to start the season. Indian Hills made eight 3's in the second half of Friday night's game and the 14 they made Saturday equalled the high-game total from last year.

Ellsworth took an early 8-7 lead, but Trey Starks got the Warriors' three-train going with his first of three treys in the opening half. A few minutes later, Derrick Hill nailed three consecutive three's allowing IHCC to open up its first double-digit lead at 32-21. Starks hit another three and Hill added a rare two-point basket as Indian Hills continued to widen the lead.

The first half ended, fittingly for the Warriors, when Kelvyn Valdez hit a three-pointer just before the buzzer.

Chad Dillard and Jerome Jones got in the act for IHCC early in the second half as each made his first 3 of the night. Jones' trey made the score 61-36 and the Panthers didn't get closer than 16 points the rest of the game.

Indian Hills shot 60% overall and 56% from long distance. Gary Ricks, Jr. led six Warriors in double figures with 18 points. Hill had 16. Trey Starks just missed a double-double with 13 points and 9 assists. Bill Freeman led ECC with 19, 18 of those coming in the second half.

The Warriors are idle until hosting Mid-Michigan CC on Nov. 11.

FINAL SCORE: INDIAN HILLS 97, ELLSWORTH 75

ELLSWORTH Jacques Coleman 4 0-1 9, Tut Jikany 0 0-0 0, Bill Freeman 6 4-6 19, Kewal Shiels 0 0-0 0, Darren Galloway 1 3-4 6, K.J. Evans 6 3-4 15, Charles Leans 0 0-0 0, Alfreeman Flowers 3 2-4 8, Mario Donaldson 2 0-0 5, Cody Olson 1 0-0 2, Luke Lamb 2 5-6 11 Team 25 17-25 75

INDIAN HILLS Stephen Coles 4 2-4 10, Jerome Jones 4 2-2 10, Derrick Hill 5 2-4 16, Dijon Farr 2 0-0 5, Kelvyn Valdez 4 0-1 9, Trey Starks 4 2-2 13, Bruno Ferreira 0 1-2 1, Riley Stuve 1 0-0 2, Chad Dillard 5 0-0 11, Gary Ricks, Jr. 8 0-1 18, D.J. Bennett 0 0-0 0 Team 37 9-16 97

Halftime score: Indian Hills 51, Ellsworth 33; Three-point field goals: Ellsworth 8 (Freeman 3, Lamb 2, Coleman 1, Galloway 1, Donaldson 1), IHCC 14 (Hill 4, Starks 3, Jones 2, Ricks, Jr. 2, Farr 1, Valdez 1, Dillard 1)

Saturday, November 6, 2010

Warriors Get Back on Track, Pound Southwest Academy

Ottumwa -- A night after struggling to find a rhythm on offense, the Indian Hills Warriors had no such problem on Friday night, scoring early and often in a 119-48 dismantling of Southwest Academy on the first night of the Reed Overhead Doors Classic.

IHCC scored the first 14 points of the game, in the opening four minutes, and steadily built on the lead after that in winning their second game in a row to start the season.

The margin was 36 points at halftime, 62-26, and the Warriors had already scored more points at the half than they did in their overtime win against Quakerdale Academy the night before.

Indian Hills showed off its long-range shooting prowess in the second half, hitting 8-of-15 three-pointers in the final 20 minutes. Six different Warriors made a three in the game and seven players scored in double figures.

Leading the balanced IHCC attack was Trey Starks with 17 points. Gary Ricks, Jr. scored 15, Jerome Jones had 14, Stephen Coles and Dijon Farr 13 each, and Derrick Hill 12 for the winners. D.J. Bennett gave a glimpse of his potential with 10 points and 10 rebounds for IHCC.

Indian Hills shot 55% from the field and only turned the ball over 13 times after committing 19 turnovers in their opening game.

The Warriors will battle Ellsworth CC in the final game of the Classic on Saturday night at 7:00.

FINAL SCORE: INDIAN HILLS 119, SOUTHWEST ACADEMY 48

INDIAN HILLS Stephen Coles 6 1-2 13, Jerome Jones 5 2-3 14, Derrick Hill 5 0-1 12, Dijon Farr 5 1-4 13, Kelvyn Valdez 3 0-0 8, Trey Starks 8 0-0 17, Bruno Ferreira 1 5-6 7, Riley Stuve 2 1-2 5, Chad Dillard 2 0-0 5, D.J. Bennett 4 2-3 10 Team 47 15-24 119

Halftime score: Indian Hills 62, Southwest Academy 26; Three-point field goals: Southwest Academy 6, IHCC 10 (Jones 2, Hill 2, Farr 2, Valdez 2, Starks 1, Dillard 1)

Friday, November 5, 2010

Great Escape, Warriors Win Opener

Ottumwa -- It wasn't pretty -- opening games often aren't -- but, in the end, the Indian Hills basketball team made enough plays to win their opener, 60-52 in overtime, against Quakerdale Academy on Thursday night at the Hellyer Center.

The Warriors trailed 48-41 with around four minutes to play after Quakerdale's Nathan Freeman knocked down four straight shots, three of them three-pointers. Indian Hills then ran off eight consecutive points to grab a 49-48 lead with two minutes remaining. Chad Dillard scored off an assist from Trey Starks to put the Warriors on top.

The lead didn't last long though as Quakerdale's Chris Oliveria hit a baseline shot as the shot clock was running out to make it 50-49 in favor of the visitors.

Indian Hills' Stephen Coles was fouled with 10.4 seconds to play, but missed both free throws. Teammate Jerome Jones rebounded the second miss and was fouled. Jones made the first foul shot to tie the score at 50-all, and made the second one too. But that shot was wiped out by a lane violation against Indian Hills.

The Warriors then survived a last-second potential game-winning shot attempt by Quakerdale to extend the game to overtime.

In the extra session, Starks opened the scoring with a three-pointer and Gary Ricks, Jr. added another three for IHCC. Starks hit a pair of free throws and Bruno Ferreira scored on a layup as the Warriors outscored the Eagles, 10-2, in overtime.

Quakerdale jumped out to a 19-13 lead in the first half as the Warriors got off to a slow start offensively.

Indian Hills took a 27-23 lead at the half when D.J. Bennett scored on a tip-in late in the opening half.

The visitors though ran off the first five points of the second half and battled the Warriors on even terms until Quakerdale opened their seven-point lead.

Jones started the IHCC comeback with a bucket and Starks then took over, hitting two free throws and a shot in the lane and assisting on Dillard's goal to give Indian Hills its 49-48 lead. Starks had all but two of his team-high 11 points at the end of regulation and overtime.

Ricks had 10 points for the Warriors. Freeman led all scorers with 15 for Quakerdale.

Indian Hills will host the Reed Overhead Doors Classic this weekend with games against Southwest Academy on Friday night at 7:00 and Ellsworth CC on Saturday at 7.

Final score: Indian Hills 60, Quakerdale 52 (OT)

QUAKERDALE Nathan Freeman 6 0-1 15, Jamal Johnson 0 0-0 0, Jamell Johnson 0 0-0 0, Yuri Leath 1 0-0 3, Dejoni Norris 4 0-2 9, Chris Oliveria 6 1-4 13, Mario Redmond 0 0-0 0, Tyler Washington 0 0-2 0, Frederick Young 4 4-6 12 Team 21 5-15 52

INDIAN HILLS Stephen Coles 1 2-10 4, Jerome Jones 3 3-3 9, Derrick Hill 3 0-0 8, Dijon Farr 3 0-0 7, Kelvyn Valdez 0 0-0 0, Trey Starks 3 4-5 11, Bruno Ferreira 1 0-0 2, Riley Stuve 0 0-0 0, Chad Dillard 1 2-2 4, Gary Ricks, Jr. 4 0-0 10, D.J. Bennett 2 1-1 5 Team 21 12-21 60

Halftime score: Indian Hills 27, Quakerdale 23; Three-point field goals: Quakerdale 5 (Freeman 3, Leath 1, Norris 1), IHCC 6 (Hill 2, Ricks, Jr. 2, Starks 1, Farr 1)

Monday, October 25, 2010

No. 14 Preseason Ranking for IHCC

Ottumwa -- The Indian Hills Warriors will take a No. 14 national ranking into the upcoming season. The preseason National Junior College Athletic Association poll, released Monday, has the Warriors ranked higher than at any time last year, when Indian Hills finished 25-8.

The Warriors were ranked for only three weeks in the 2009-10 season and never higher than 19th in the national poll. This year’s ranking marks the fifth time in the past six seasons that Indian Hills has been ranked in the top 14 in the preseason poll. The only time in the last six years the Warriors entered the season unranked was last year when the Warriors won the conference title for the third time in four years.

Indian Hills’ schedule includes games against five teams that are nationally ranked in the preseason: Moberly Area Community College (No. 18) and Three Rivers CC (No. 23) in the Division I poll, Kirkwood CC (No. 4) and DMACC (No. 20) in DII and Milwaukee Area Technical College (No. 12) in DIII.

Two Texas schools, Midland and defending national champ Howard, are ranked one-two in the Division I poll. North Idaho is third. Indian Hills is the only member of its four-team conference that is ranked in the preseason.

Indian Hills opens the season at home against Flint CC on Nov. 4. The Warriors will then take on Southwest Academy and Ellsworth CC the next two nights in the Reed Overhead Doors Classic. The first six IHCC games are at home with the next six on the road.

Monday, September 13, 2010

IHCC Hoops Tix Now on Sale

Ottumwa -- Season tickets for the Indian Hills Community College basketball team’s 2010-11 season are now being sold in the IHCC Athletic Office in the Hellyer Student Life Center on the Ottumwa campus.

Season tickets are $80 if purchased by the end of September. After that, they’ll be $96.

The schedule includes 16 home games, three home tournaments and a host of games against opponents that the Warriors either haven’t played before or haven’t met in a number of years.

The season opener is against Flint CC from Michigan on Thursday, November 4. Flint is also in the field for the Reed Overhead Doors Classic Nov. 5-6. Indian Hills will play Southwest Academy and Ellsworth CC in that tourney.

The following weekend, in the Klyn Automotive Classic, Indian Hills will battle Kennedy-King and John Wood CC.

After opening the season with six straight home dates, the Warriors will hit the road for six consecutive games. That stretch includes a game at Kirkwood CC, a perennial NJCAA Division II power; games against Three Rivers CC, last year’s Division I national tournament runner up, and Mineral Area in Missouri; and three games, all against quality opponents, in a Thanksgiving weekend tournament hosted by Western Nebraska CC.

The final home tournament, sponsored by Hy-Vee, is Dec. 10-11. The second half of the schedule starts with two games in a tournament at Southeastern CC. Indian Hills goes right back to West Burlington the following weekend to start the conference season against the BlackHawks. The final regular-season game is at home against Marshalltown Feb. 19.

Southeastern ended the Warriors’ season last year with back-to-back wins in the series to determine the Region 11 postseason champion. Indian Hills won the regular-season conference title with a 5-1 mark and finished the season with a 25-8 record.

The 2010-11 IHCC basketball schedule can be found on the Indian Hills website at www.indianhills.edu/athletics/basketball.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Kidder Provides Recruiting Update

Ottumwa -- Three players who played in high school state championship games last year are included in Indian Hills Community College basketball coach Jeff Kidder’s 2010 recruiting class. Those three athletes, along with a Division I transfer and a player from the Chicago area, are among the recruits announced by coach Kidder.

The signees include Riley Stuve, a member of the Ames High School team that finished an undefeated season by winning the Iowa Class 4-A state title in March. The 6-5 Stuve was the third-leading scorer for the Little Cyclones.

Kidder said, “Riley has been part of a winning culture at Ames and he’ll bring that winning attitude to Indian Hills. He was a starter on a team that was very special. He can really shoot the ball and will bring a level of toughness to his position.”

Trey Starks led Hillcrest High School in Springfield, Missouri to a state championship, the school’s first in 26 years, and he’s headed to IHCC this fall. Starks, a 5-11 point guard, scored 22 points in the state title game and earned first-team all-state honors as a senior.

Starks gained national attention for an alley-oop dunk he had in the championship game, a play that was shown on ESPN SportsCenter and has gotten thousands of views on YouTube.

“Trey is an outstanding player and will impact his position right away,” said Kidder. “He can play both point guard and shooting guard and will develop into an elite player before his IHCC career is done.”

The third title game participant to sign with Indian Hills is Latroy Taylor, a guard from Lew Wallace High School in Gary, Indiana. Lew Wallace lost in overtime in the championship game. Taylor is a lightning-quick 6-2 guard who averaged 19 points a game as a senior with a high game of 37.

“Latroy is a powerful guard who can take over a game on both ends of the floor,” said the IHCC coach. “He can score and defend with a great deal of passion. Latroy comes from a winning high school program. He will lead by example and his effort will be contagious around his teammates.”
Jerome Jones played last year at Missouri State in the Missouri Valley Conference and will transfer to IHCC this fall. Jones is 6-5 and was a three-year standout at Miller Career Academy in St. Louis. He led his squad to its first-ever trip to the Missouri Class 4 final four as a senior, averaging 24 points a game with a high game of 65 points. Jones played in 27 games at the D-I level last year.

Kidder said, “Jerome is an explosive forward who can play inside or outside. He’s a great kid who plays with a chip on his shoulder. He will provide strong leadership and is highly motivated to have a great season for the Warriors.”

The fifth recruit announced by Kidder is D.J. Bennett, a 6-9 center from Carl Sandburg High School in Orland Hills, Illinois. Bennett averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds as a senior.

“D.J. is very athletic with great hands,” said Kidder. “He was highly recruited by a number of Division I programs and has loads of potential. The hardest position to recruit with results is the center position and we feel we got a very good one in D.J.”

In addition to the five incoming players, Kidder will welcome back five players from last year’s team that went 25-8 and won the regular season region title. Dijon Farr will return for his sophomore campaign along with Brian Wilson, Bruno Ferreira, Derrick Hill and Chad Dillard.

Farr led the Warriors in scoring as a freshman at 11.9 points a game and was named second-team all-region. Ferreira was an honorable mention all-league choice and IHCC’s leading rebounder at 5.2 boards a game. Wilson scored as many as 20 points in a game and Hill had a 27-point game.

Coach Kidder hopes to round out his recruiting class before the start of classes at the end of the month.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

New Dates for IHCC Hoops Camp

Ottumwa -- Indian Hills Community College basketball coach Jeff Kidder has announced a change in the dates for the summer Warrior Basketball Camp. The camp, for those ages 6 through 16, will now be held from 8 a.m. to noon August 9-11 in the Hellyer Student Life Center on the IHCC Ottumwa campus.
Members of the Indian Hills coaching staff and Warrior players will provide instruction during the camp.
Registration cost is $60 which includes a camp t-shirt and prizes. For more information, call 641-683-5288 or 641-683-5190 or register online at the IHCC website at www.indianhills.edu.