The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE country’s basketball pipeline to Missouri West Plains Grizzlies continues this season with a pair of Bahamians on the roster for the upcoming season.

Franklyn Petion is a member of the incoming freshman class while D’Andre Vilmar returns for his sophomore season with the junior college programme.

Petion has accumulated various all-tournament and MVP accolades playing for St George’s High School in the Bahamas, and was a member of the Bahamian junior national team.

He was a member of the recruiting class that also includes Nico Hill, Malik Tidwell and Zavien Smith-Morales.

“These four addressed needs. With the core that we have returning, I am excited about the direction we are going,” Grizzlies head coach Chris Popp said.

“Franklyn is an explosive athlete. He is strong and aggressive with the ability to get downhill and finish. He has been a winner and comes from a great programme at St George’s in Freeport. Coach Sears has produced a number of high level players and can’t say enough about the young man.

“Getting to know Franklyn through the recruiting process, it is clear that he is very driven and willing to work. He adds to a group that has a lot of that, and I believe he will fit very well with us.”

In his freshman season with the Grizzlies last year Vilmar received The Defensive Player of the Year and the Most Improved Player awards.

He spent his high school senior season at the Paul VI programme in New Jersey following a transfer from Roman Catholic High in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

By the end of his junior season, Vilmar was making his way toward the ESPN 60 rankings. He was listed as a four-star recruit, ranked fourth in the state and 27th nationally at his position. That momentum stalled after just a few games into the preseason as a senior.

After an injury shortened his senior season at the high school level, Vilmar took the prep school route in an effort to strengthen his recruitment for the class of 2018 when he joined the Redemption Christian Academy Lions prep school in Northfield, Massachusetts.

The pair continues a recent Bahamian legacy with the Grizzlies after Radshad Davis completed two impactful years with the programme prior to his transfer to the Division I University of Texas - Arlington.

The Grizzlies open the season November 1 and play the runners-up at last year’s NJCAA Division I Men’s National Basketball Championship – Ranger College – in their first official game of the season.

The contest against the Ranger, Texas team is part of the Preseason Elite 8 Classic taking place in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, November 1 and 2.

“We pride ourselves on playing one of the toughest schedules in the country. We have done that each year I have been here, and I believe going through the wars early has yielded results with our success late (in the season) and in the region,” Popp said.

“It is a schedule without breaks. There are no easy nights for us. Overall, we have 24 NJCAA Division I opponents, three NJCAA Division II opponents and three prep programmes.”