Odi in dressing room before game
“We will be a lot stronger inside. We have the ability to rebound, score in the post, take care of the ball and we shoot it good,” Bellamy said. “We feel, to a certain extent, we upgraded from last year. We got stronger on the inside and our perimeter play should be solid.”
A big reason for Bellamy’s optimism is 6-foot-8, 240-pound Odi Onyekachukwu from Nigeria. The coach found out about him on the internet, liked what he saw, pursued him and convinced the freshman to sign with SCF.
He provides everything you want in a post player, particularly at the junior college level where speed and athleticism are essential with most teams playing an up-tempo style of basketball.
“We saw that he had no problem running the court, can block shots and can finish,” Bellamy said. “We had never gone out and tried to recruit a shot blocker, which he can do and he is a solid post defender. It took a lot to get him to come here, but we worked very hard at it.”
The Nigerian will be well complemented in the post with a pair of 6-foot-7 teammates in sophomore Markee Teal and freshman Mike Grinage, who played at Trinity Prep outside of Orlando.
The trio might give Bellamy his best set of post players since he took over the program, particularly if you add in 6-foot-8 freshman Giannis Stavrianidis from Greece, who brings a nice outside shot.
Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2010/11/02/2702274/bellamy-hopes-to-turn-manatees.html#ixzz14sA3axjJ
