Game Preview: Men's Basketball Hosts NJCAA DII Kishwaukee in Season Opener

11/3/2017 4:09:00 PM

Related Links

Rockford, IL – Rock Valley College Men's Basketball will kick off their 2017-18 season at home on Saturday, November 4th at 3:00 PM against NJCAA DII Kishwaukee College.

Probable Starters
1543

NJCAA DIII Rock Valley College (0-0)
PG- Darius Branch - 5'9, So., Chicago, IL; 11.9 ppg, 2.1 apg (2016-17 at DIII Albion College)
G- Malique Ross – 6'1, So., Montgomery, IL; 11.9 ppg, 5.5 apg*
SF- Elijah Pappas – 6'3, So., Rockford, IL; 7.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg*
PF- DeAnte Barnes – 6'6, So., Belvidere, IL; 2.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg*
C- DeMari Davis- 6'6, R-So., Indianapolis, IN; 9.0 ppg, 8.2 rpg*
*2016-17 stats

Kishwaukee College (0-0)
PG- Rudy Lopez – 6'0, So., Dekalb, IL; 6.6 ppg, 2.2 apg*
SG- Landon Griffith – 6'2, Fr., Rochelle, IL
SF- Troy Johnson – 6'3, So., Chicago, IL; 1.9 ppg*
PF- Treyson Johnson – 6'5, Fr., Chicago, IL
C- Luke Davis - 6'8, So., Dekalb, IL; 6.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg*
*2016-17 stats

Game Notes
Rock Valley is an NJCAA Division III member of the North Central Community College Conference (N4C)… RVC Men's Basketball finished the 2016-17 season 23-9…The Golden Eagles ended the season last year with a loss to Elgin Community College in the Region IV Championship... The Golden Eagles fell 84-79 at Kishwaukee last season… RVC was led by current St Cloud State University Huskie Jace Kitchen's 19 points… Sophomore guard Malique Ross added 17 points.

The Players
The Golden Eagles bring back 4 returners from last season's 23-9 team… Malique Ross (Montgomery, IL) started 30 of 31 games he appeared in last season… Ross was the Golden Eagles third leading scorer last season, averaging 11.9 points per game and leading the team in assists with 5.5 per game, good enough to place him ninth in NJCAA DIII basketball… Ross earned 2nd Team All-Region IV honors as a freshman… DeMari Davis (Indianapolis, IN) returns to Rock Valley for his sophomore season, averaging 9.0 points per game and 8.2 rebounds per game as a freshman, while leading the team in field goal percentage, sinking 54.9% of his shots... Davis started 30 of the 32 contests he appeared in last year… The Golden Eagles also return Rockford native Elijah Pappas, who started 24 games for RVC last year… He averaged 7.5 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game... The final returner for is DeAnte Barnes (Belvidere, IL)… Barnes played 13.4 minutes a game last year, while appearing in every contest… RVC added a sophomore transfer in Darius Branch (Chicago, IL), who finished his 2016-17 season at DIII Albion College averaging 11.9 points a game, while shooting over 36% from three-point range… Branch's older brother, Derick, was an All-Region guard in the 2011-12 season at Rock Valley… The Golden Eagles also added six freshman to the active roster as part of the 2017 recruiting class.

Tough Scheduling
RVC plays 15 of its 30 games against NJCAA DI and NJCAA DII opponents… Rock Valley has contests against DII Black Hawk, McHenry, Morton, South Suburban, Illinois Central, Glen Oaks, Lake County, Wilbur Wright, and Triton twice… The Golden Eagles will also play 3 NJCAA DI teams in Kankakee, Sauk Valley, and Malcolm X, all on the road.... N4C play begins January 3rd, 2018 with rival Joliet.

Kishwaukee College Notes
Kishwaukee College is a NJCAA DII member located in Malta, IL… Head coach of the Kougars, in his fifteenth year at the helm with a career record of 248-209, is Rob Buss…Buss, who attended Rock Valley College and was a member of the Men's Basketball team, coached RVC Head Coach Evan Lavery in the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons at Kishwaukee... The 2009-10 Kougars advanced to the NJCAA DII National Tournament in Danville, IL and placed sixth… The Kougars return Rudy Lopez (DeKalb, IL), who averaged 6.6 points per game last year… Kishwaukee also adds NJCAA DI Southwestern Illinois College transfer, Luke Davis (Dekalb, IL), who averaged 6.4 points per game and 4.9 rebounds per game last season.

1536

Evan Lavery enters his second season as the Head Men's Basketball Coach at Rock Valley College in 2017-18.

From assistant coach to associate head coach to head coach, Evan Lavery has helped build Rock Valley College in an NJCAA National Powerhouse. Since his arrival in 2013, the Golden Eagles have a 117-21 (.845) record, have made three trips to the NJCAA DIII National Tournament, and won two NJCAA National Championships.

Lavery was named head coach in May of 2016. Despite RVC losing seven players to graduation including two All-Americans and four starters, Lavery signed eight recruits and developed players who were role players as freshman into feature players as sophomores. Lavery would lead the Golden Eagles to a 23-9 (.719) record in his first season as head coach which is the highest first year win total for any head coach in the 51 year history of Rock Valley men's basketball.

The 2016-17 season marked the fourth consecutive year where Rock Valley College men's basketball finished the season with over 20 wins. The Golden Eagles also spent all 12 national polls ranked in the NJCAA DIII Top 10, the third consecutive season the Golden Eagles spent the entire year nationally ranked from start to finish. Lavery led Rock Valley College to the Region IV Championship Game while playing one of the toughest schedules in the county which included playing 17 NJCAA D1 & D2 opponents and 15 NJCAA D3 programs. In the classroom, the Men's Basketball program was recognized by the NJCAA, earning "Team of The Year" honors for their 3.11 team GPA for the 2016-17 academic year. Over two semesters, 13 total members of the Golden Eagle roster made the Dean's List (3.25 GPA). In addition, sophomores Dalton Menke and Alec Pena earned Academic All-American honors.

In Lavery's time on staff as an assistant, he played an integral role in all aspects of the Golden Eagles men's basketball program with a focus on recruiting, player development, defense, zone offense, out-of-bounds sets, strength and conditioning, and game preparation. Lavery was also instrumental in the development of All-Americans Jared Mayes (NJCAA National Player of The Year in 2014, 1st Team selection in 2015), LT Davis (NJCAA National Player of The Year 2016), and Elijah Williams (2nd Team selection in 2016). In four years, the Golden Eagles have produced 9 All-Region IV players, 8 All-Conference Players, 4 NJCAA All-Americans, and 2 NJCAA National Players of the Year.

In 2015-16, the Golden Eagles were ranked #1 in NJCAA Division III all year long for the second consecutive season. The Golden Eagles would avenge a three-point loss to Richland College (Dallas, TX) in the previous year's title game allowing RVC to win two National Championships in three seasons. En route to their National Title, RVC won their six post-season games by an average margin of victory of 21.3 points per game. For a third straight season, Rock Valley broke the single-season record for victories, posting a 33-3 record. The Golden Eagles started the season off 19-0 which is the best start in school-history. RVC knocked off two NJCAA D1 opponents who were nationally ranked, both of who made the NJCAA D1 tournament in Hutchinson this season. The Golden Eagles took down #6 Vincennes (IN) on the road to start the season off and the following weekend defeated #7 Indian Hills (IA) on the road.

In 2014-15 the Golden Eagles were ranked #1 in NJCAA Division III from the pre-season national poll until the final poll. Along the way, RVC broke the school record for wins going 31-4 on the season. Rock Valley played in the NJCAA Division III National Championship game in Loch Sheldrake, New York for the second year in a row. Additionally, the Golden Eagles won the N4C Conference and the Region IV/District 2 championship.

In his first season at RVC, Lavery assisted the Golden Eagles to the NJCAA DIII National Championship. In charge of team defense and nearly all scouts and game preparation, RVC was ranked #13 in the country in defensive FG% (40.2) and 14th in the nation in defensive 3PT% (29.7%). In the national tournament semi-final game vs. defending national champion Brookdale CC, NJ (30-1), RVC held the Jersey Blues to a dismal 31.1%. In the National Championship game, Rock Valley College held Caldwell Tech, NC (29-6) to 22-65 from the field for a chilly 33.8%.

Lavery joined RVC following a one-year stint as an Assistant Men's Basketball Coach at NCAA Division III Rockford University (IL). While at RU, Lavery was in charge of monitoring academics, on-campus visits, and assisted in recruiting.

Lavery played two years at NJCAA Kishwaukee College in Malta, Illinois where he was a two-year starter and captain. In his sophomore season, he helped lead the Kougars to a 6th place finish at the 2010 NJCAA DII National Tournament. Lavery went on to finish his playing career at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri. A native of Dyer, Indiana, Lavery graduated from Lake Central High School in 2007. In his prep career, he was named an all-area selection by both the Northwest Indiana Times and the Post-Tribune.

Lavery holds degrees from Kishwaukee College (AS), Central Methodist University (BS), and Fort Hays State University (MS).

Print Friendly Version