Bradenton, Fla - The SCF basketball team (3-4) return home to Hal Chasey Gymnasium after a successful road game as they prepare for the second annual Thanksgiving Classic. The Manatees will welcome Gordon State College (5-1) and Georgia Highlands (3-3) on Thanksgiving weekend, November 24-25 (4 pm vs Gordon State College on Nov. 24; 7 pm vs Georgia Highlands on Nov. 25).
Polk State (3-2) and Indian River State (6-1) will also be participating in the classic, but will not face SCF until later dates.
Last Time Out:
The Manatees are coming off of a road win rematch after defeating Santa Fe College 92-85 in Gainesville. They have won three straight games so far going into the classic.
Origin of The Classic:
Last season, head coach Tom Parks originated the Thanksgiving Classic through a humorous Twitter war against a few head coaches from Georgia. One tweet lead to another and it was confirmed and made official with Georgia Highlands, South Georgia Tech and Albany Tech representing Georgia. Soon after, Eastern Florida State, Indian River State and Chipola entered the fray and joined SCF in the classic to make it official.
In the inaugural opener of the classic, the Manatees would tie as co-champions with Indian River State after defeating then #17 South Georgia Tech (103-98, OT), then RV Georgia Highlands (75-72) and Albany Tech (73-67). Both SCF and Indian River State
Then sophomore James 'Pop' Weathers was named Co-All-Classic MVP with then sophomore AJ Cajuste (Indian River State) and a member of the inaugural Florida vs Georgia Thanksgiving All-Classic Team with then freshman Ametri Moss.
Reach for the Sky:
Redshirt sophomore Skylar Wicks has been one of the leading factors for the Manatees offense. The transfer from Missouri State University is currently averaging 19.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game while also averaging three 3-pointers a game (56.8 %). Against Santa Fe, Wicks set a new career-high with 34 points (5-for-7 at the 3-point line) and six rebounds.
Harraway Hot Streak:
Sophomore Cobey Harraway has scored in double figures in five straight games this season. Harraway currently is averaging 15.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He had 15 points and six rebounds against Santa Fe.
Rebounding Hammers:
In rebounding, freshmen Josh Ijeh and Dresean Knight and sophomore Ronnail Tape lead the way.
Ijeh is averaging 8.3 rebounds, 5.9 points and 1.6 blocks per game, including nine rebounds, six points and four blocks against Santa Fe.
Knight is still averaging 2.3 rebounds, 2.7 points and 1.7 blocks per game. He had two points, three rebounds and two blocks in his last outing.
Tape, who has started the last four games, is currently averaging 5.9 points and 3.7 rebounds per game and has improved on his 3-point shooting. Tape had five points and four rebounds in his last game.
Kash Flow:
Freshman Kasheem Grady has played a strong role off the bench and has provided sparks for the team's offense. Grady is averaging 5.1 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. He had 11 points and three rebounds in his last outing.
Wild Cards:
Sophomore Ziggy Josue, redshirt freshman Zach Smith and freshman Elijah Terry and Malyk Rebetez are the wild cards in the game.
Josue is averaging 8.6 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. The transfer from CCCAA Porterville College had eight points and five assists in the last game.
Smith is averaging 5.4 points and two assists per game. He had five points and two assists last game.
Terry is averaging 8.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. He had five points and four rebounds against Santa Fe.
Rebetez plays as the primary pass-first guard. The Swiss native is averaging 3.6 points and 4.3 assists per game. Rebetez had two points and three assists last game.
Scouting Gordon State College:
Gordon State College is located in Barnesville, Georgia and are a part of NJCAA Region 17/GCAA. They are lead by head coach Darryl Stinson. The Highlanders are coming off of their first loss of the season as they fell to Denmark Tech by a score of 83-69.
Sophomores Zyterious Wright (16 ppg and 5.5 rpg) and Kameron Battle (16 ppg and 4.2 rpg) and freshman Chaydon Stone (16.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 2.2 apg) lead the offensive front.
This will be the second time the Manatees play the Highlanders. The first encounter between both team was on December 14, 2018 where the Manatees won 76-72.
Scouting Georgia Highlands:
Georgia Highlands also representing NJCAA Region 17 (Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association) and are lead by head coach Jonathan "JJ" Merritt, who enters his third season as head coach. The Chargers are entering the classic on a two-game losing skid after falling to Gulf Coast State (95-84) and #4 Chipola College (94-82) at the Milton Johnson Classic in Mariana.
Sophomore PJ Carter leads the team with 21.3 points and three rebounds per game, while redshirt freshman Akili Evans follows with 12.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and two assists per game and sophomore Varun Danak is averaging 8.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
This will be the third time both teams. Last season, the Manatees won both matchups against the Chargers by scores of 85-82 and 75-72.
How to Keep Up:
Both games will air on the SCF Sports Network and fans can keep up with both teams on all social media platforms.
Livestream Link: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/scf/
Social Media:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFMensBasketball
Twitter - https://twitter.com/SCF_Basketball
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/scfbasketball/
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