Nine Motlow Bucks basketball players, including five returning sophomores, two incoming transfers, and two redshirt freshman have been invited to the prestigious Juco Journal basketball camp in Crestview, Florida. The 2012 Juco Journal Summer Invitational will be held at Crestview High School beginning July19. The camp annually attracts over 200 college basketball coaches from across the country. Returning sophomores Raul Tutton, Jr., Sean Gardner, JC Bonny, Michael Tomlin, and Darryl Bond are among the invitees. All played significant minutes for head coach Jerry Nichols during the 2011-12 season, and all will be counted on for major contributions during the coming season. In addition, redshirt freshman Christopher Hawkins has also been invited, despite sitting out last season at Motlow with a knee injury. Hawkins was highly recruited out of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin before being sidelined with the injury. He has completely recovered and has been working out throughout the summer. Redshirt freshmen Andre Brown comes to Motlow from Austin Peay, where he was a walk-on but did not play last season. Brown averaged 27 points and 10 rebounds two years ago as a senior at Clarksville Northwest. Incoming sophomore Kerrell Davis will also participate in the camp. Davis played his freshman season at Northwest Florida State College, the squad that finished runner-up to South Plains College, Texas in the NJCAA Tournament. Another sophomore who has transferred to Motlow and will join in camp activities is center Sterling Smoak, who spent last season at Northeast Community College in Norfolk, Nebraska. Motlow did not have any players participate in the Juco Journal camp last season. In 2010 the Bucks sent returning all-state performers Freddie Goldstein, Zamarius McLendon, and Darryn Frazier to the Crestview Invitational event. All three are preparing for their senior college seasons at four-year universities. McLendon and Frazier both were major contributors this past season at Francis Marion University in Florence, SC, while Goldstein was the second-leading scorer for the University of South Alabama.

 

For the first time in her life, Pat Summitt will serve as Grand Marshal at a NASCAR race. It’s the Nationwide Series Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 24. The announcement came at a news conference Friday in Thompson-Boling Arena. In addition, 2011 Daytona 500 champion and Knoxville native Trevor Bayne will drive an orange “We Back Pat” car in the Bristol race to promote The Pat Summitt Foundation. Fans will be able to donate money and have pictures put on the car. Summitt announced last August she had been diagnosed with early onset dementia, Alzheimer’s type, and stepped down in April after 38 seasons as Tennessee women’s basketball coach. She won an NCAA record 1,098 games and eight national championships.

Tullahoma High School has done it again, they have hired a new boy’s basketball coach. Tim Behrendorff, 31, was named the head coach of the Wildcats.
Greg Watson was originally chosen to replace Jeff Taylor, but the Florence, Ala., native stayed in Tullahoma for just one week. Behrendorff, who worked at Cascade High School for half of the 2011-12 school year, was to be Watson’s assistant.
Behrendorff, who already had a teaching position in the math department at the high school, takes over after the departure of long-time head coach Jeff Taylor.
Behrendorff is a native of Gold Coast, Australia. After playing four years of college basketball at Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, N.C., he returned to Australia where he played professionally in the National Basketball League.
Behrendorff will no doubt be the tallest coach in the area standing 6 feet 11 inches tall.