Lumberjacks Sign Denzel Barnes
5/22/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
May 22, 2009
NACOGDOCHES, Texas - Stephen F. Austin basketball coach Danny Kaspar announced Friday the addition of Denzel Barnes for the 2009-10 season. Barnes marks the seventh player signed to the 2009 class, leaving the group just one shy of tying 2007 for the largest class signed under Kaspar.
Barnes is a 5-7, 170-pound point guard from Oakland, Calif. He comes to SFA following a two-year career at Howard College.
"Denzel should make our point guard situation very competitive," Kaspar said. "He is a hard-working player who has the skills and desire to win. He has led his team to a great two-year record at Howard College, and I am hopeful that he will continue that here at SFA. He will provide some outside shooting for us and make it difficult to press us. He and Eric Bell should have some great battles in practice."
Barnes was a first-team selection to both the Western Junior College Athletic Conference and Region V teams as a sophomore. He was also named to the Region V vs. The Nation All-Star game after helping to lead Howard to a 22-7 overall record and a trip to the Region V semi-finals.
Barnes' 12.4 points per game ranked second on the team. He shot .429 from the field with a .333 percentage from 3-point range. His 2.7 steals per game ranked third in the nation this season, and he was 13th in the country in assists with 4.2 per contest. Barnes finished the year with a 1.432 assist/turnover ratio, which ranked 28th in the nation.
Barnes played his final two seasons of prep ball at Oakland Tech after moving across country from his home town of New York as a junior.
Barnes joins prep recruits Cory Garrett (Center, Texas) and Will Reinke (Lawton, Okla.), along with collegiate transfers Jordan Glynn (Waco, Texas, by way of McLennan Community College), Mark Gomillia (Atlanta, Ga., by way of Neosho County Community College), Lionell Holmes (Oswego, Ill., by way of Antelope Valley College), and Orren Tims (Ruston, La., by way of McLennan Community College) in the 2009 signing class.
(Photo courtesy of TClaxton1 at flickr.com/photos/tclaxton1.)
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