The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

AFTER a storied high school career, Stephen Strachan Jr is set to begin his collegiate career this fall in the NAIA.

Strachan, a 6’ 3” guard out of Potters House Christian in Jacksonville, Florida, will suit up for the Faulkner University Eagles in Montgomery, Alabama, as a part of a four member recruiting class for the 2013-14.

Strachan led Potters House to the Final Four of Florida’s Sunshine Independent Athletic Association, when he averaged 18 points, four rebounds and two assists a game, while making 45 per cent of his 3-point shot attempts.

He said he is excited about joining a successful Eagles programme which won last year’s Southern States Athletic Conference tournament championship and earned an NAIA Sweet 16 tournament berth.

Strachan recently participated in a summer basketball camp at the university where he got an early opportunity to get accustomed to the Eagles system and head coach Jim Sanderson.

“We should be ranked a top five school in the nation this year and the staff expects big things so we have to produce. The competition will be pretty tough. Everything is upbeat, everything is done at a quick pace. It’s a fast tempo, the coach wants everything done to perfection, which will help me because that’s the motivation I will need to keep pushing and keep getting better,” he said. “He [Sanderson] is a real strict coach on the court.”

Strachan was a part of a talented junior boys BAISS team at Kingsway Academy that won a league championship before he transferred to RM Bailey and several schools in the US before ultimately finishing at Potter’s House.

“I think my game has grown a lot, especially my basketball IQ. The game is played at a higher level over there so you just have to stay engaged and work on your basketball IQ. You just have to watch a lot, study a lot and learn on and off the court. I worked on my weaknesses a lot, going left, having a quicker release and being able to finish in traffic,” he said, “I’m a shooter, a high scorer so I look to get better at that.”

Strachan will be a key piece of a highly touted recruiting class which also includes point guard Nick Waters from Meridian Community College, swing player Cortez Riley from Middle Georgia State College and center Cheraldo Beverdijk from Impact Academy in Sarasota, Florida.

In a release issued on the Faulkner University Athletics website, Sanderson said he was optimistic about the expectations of the incoming freshman class.

“Along with what we have coming back, I think we’ve added some strength to our wing position with Stephen and Cortez, and we feel Cheraldo will bring us a little punch in the post, and then Nick will bring us some good depth at the point and will allow us to pressure the ball for 94 feet and help create opportunities in our offense. On paper at least, I think we have the opportunity to be a better basketball team next season,” he said.

They join a talented group of returnees, which includes All-SSAC guards Jamarious Alderson and Jake Mitchell, and forward Cyrille Sandjon.

According to the Eagles, the The 5’ 9” Waters, who will be a junior, turned in a solid two years at MCC, and averaged 11 points and six assists last season. The 6’ 4” Riley, also a junior, posted 10 points and six rebounds a game, second on the team in both categories.

The 6’ 6” Beverdijk, originally from Suriname, averaged 12 points, seven rebounds and three blocks per game.

Strachan is currently a coach at the Stingers Summer Basketball Camp, co-ordinated by his father, nationally renowned coach Stephen Strachan Sr.