CARTERVILLE (WSIL) -- John A. Logan men's basketball went undefeated in conference play last year for the first time ever. If not for the national tournament being canceled due to the pandemic, some experts say Logan might have been crowned national champion. The Vols return six players and two of them are the most coveted big men in the country.
“Working on trimming my body up, me moving faster, improving my whole game,� John A. Logan sophomore Sydney Curry said.
“I’ve been working on my weaknesses, getting every rebound, making shots, running the floor, working on all my weaknesses so I can get better for next year,� John A. Logan sophomore Jamarion Sharp said.
John A. Logan’s Sydney Curry and Jamarion Sharp are piling up the college offers. Curry averaged nearly 14 points, 8 rebounds last year. He slimmed down and put on some muscle. Has scholarship offers from Seton hall, Ole Miss, Kansas and Florida to name a few.
“I worked on my jump shot, it’s really improved my overall game, just trying to expand my game as a whole,� Curry said.
“With Sydney, I remember when he came on campus last year, I watched him six threes in a row on the gun,� John A. Logan Head Men’s Basketball Coach Kyle Smithpeters said. “He has that ability to step out and hit shots. I think a lot of that comes with confidence and definitely comes with that maturity we talked about.�
“You definitely don’t want to get away from what you’re good at and want to make sure you’re in and around the basket and rebound, turn and score because he’s really good at those things. He has great hands but people don’t realize too that he does have the ability to step out and hit shots from 16, 17, 18 feet.�
Sharp grew two inches over the summer. His shot blocking ability makes him a game changer. Listed at 7 feet, 3 inches tall, San Diego State, Cincinnati, Oregon, Arizona and Seton Hall all want the Vols center to play for them.
“He just turned 19 last week too. He’s a young kid but has worked extremely hard. He’s come a long way, extremely proud of him.�
“The taller you are, the higher your metabolism is so it’s hard to keep calories in your body so for me I have to eat over 2,000 calories a day,� Sharp said.
“His best basketball is way ahead of him,� Smithpeters said. “We probably won’t see the best of it here at John A. Logan. It’ll probably be somebody after us, maybe after that.�
“I’m the first person someone sees in the room and with the team, I’m also a sophomore so they expect me to step up and be a leader,� Sharp added.
“Kind of saw it click for him mid-season,� Smithpeters said. “If you look at the first college basketball game he played, he had 0 points, 2 rebounds and almost fouled out compared to the last game he played at the region tournament where he had I think 12 points, 8 rebounds, 5 blocks and that’s just a big change especially at that level of competition you’re playing.�
“I’ve been extending it out and every now and then Coach, to improve my game, he makes guard the guards so I can guard guards and bigs during the game,� Sharp said.�
