He “ain’t from around here,” and he has more experience in team offices than on basketball courts, but Southwest Mississippi Community College’s head coach for men’s basketball believes he can maintain the Bears’ position as the top community college program in Mississippi.
“We’re known as the school that gets players to Division 1,” coach Bryan Bender told the McComb Lions Club recently. “We signed five of the top seven players in the state of Mississippi this year. There are probably 11 or 12 Division 1 players on this team.
“We’ve got a fun year coming up.”
Bender also bragged that the Southwest team has among the highest collective grade-point averages among community college teams nationwide.
“We get things right off the floor, and we get things right on the floor,” he said.
Bender is an Illinois native who grew up in suburban Chicago and Madison, Wis., before attending the University of Minnesota. Unable to get hired as a coach after graduation, he was a volunteer coach in West Plains, Mo., then moved into office roles, eventually becoming director of basketball operations at Appalachian State University.
His acquaintance with former SMCC head coach Thomas Gray at other schools led to an offer to be an assistant coach in Summit, and then the opportunity to move up to the head spot came when Gray left to be an assistant at Ole Miss.
The team goals Bender is pursuing with his players are “ships”: championship, scholarships, relationships, leadership, ownership, craftsmanship and battleship.
Playing to their potential can bring another state championship to Southwest, and perhaps finally propel the team to the national tournament, while also boosting the chances of team members getting scholarships to play at the next level.
The players’ performance and their personal development can be improved through their relationships with each other and their coaches, and taking ownership of their actions and their goals can help them succeed, Bender said.
“This is their program. This is their life,” Bender said. “This is about, how do they get a better life?”
Getting an education and a degree could be life changing for a group of players in which only three have at least one parent with a college degree, Bender said.
The craftsmanship the players put into game mechanics is important, the coach said, as is battleship, with players battling each other in practice for improvement and playing time, and battling together against other teams when the season gets underway.
Bender said he’s excited about the team Southwest can put on the floor this year, though only three players are returning from last year, and only two actually played in a game.
Four players, however, stand at least 6 feet, 7 inches, with 6-10 Avery Diggs of Brandon, Fla., towering the tallest.
“He’s got a 7-foot wingspan, and he can really shoot the ball,” Bender said.
Diggs is already on the radar of Division I schools, with interest so far from Missouri and Loyola Marymount in California.
Atticus Taylor of Davenport, Iowa, and Denijay Harris of Columbus, both at 6-foot-7, look to figure prominently into the Bears’ attack plan, as well as 6-foot-4 Arturro Bingham of Edwards, 6-foot-1 Bob Boyd of Tchula and 6-foot-8 Roderick Smith of Crystal Springs.
Optimally, every player will have a chance to get on the court, Bender said.
“We want to play fast, press our opponents and change defenses,” Bender said. “That will let us play 12 guys. If we play slow, we may only get seven to nine on the court.”
Southwest’s approach to the game and the talent up for display is already drawing attention, with visits made or coming soon by West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins and members of the Virginia Tech coaching staff.
Keeping up a high level of play will be key to Southwest’s postseason fortunes.
If we con’t keep them interested and excited, they could get complacent,” Bender said.
The Bears opened their season at home Friday against Royal Ambassador Prep with a 123-67 win, and will play again at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Ala.
The Bears then return home to host the Coca-Cola Classic, with games at 7:15 p.m. Monday against LSU-Eunice and Tuesday against Southern University-Shreveport.
