Rebuilding Atlantic Cape Buccaneers Men’s Basketball Team Looks to Build on Successes of Past Two Seasons in 2023-24

MAYS LANDING — It will be a season of change for the 2023-24 Atlantic Cape Community College Buccaneers Men’s Basketball team with only one student athlete returning this fall from last season’s roster. The team will look to build upon two consecutive years of positive growth, on and off of the court, that has yielded back-to-back playoff berths, top 15 national rankings, upset victories, and multiple Division I and II scholarship opportunities.

Last season’s 2022-23 team relied upon the contributions of a young roster that played aggressive defense and featured scoring threats from shooters who could sink three-pointers. The Buccaneers finished 19-10 overall, 17-7 in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region 19 and 16-6 in the Garden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) standings. In the Region 19 playoffs, the Bucs defeated the Sussex County Community College Skylanders 84-64 in the first round before falling to the Montgomery County Community College Mustangs 74-71 in the quarterfinal round.

Four student athletes turned successful athletic and academic school years at Atlantic Cape into opportunities at Division II colleges this fall. Guard Tyrese Myrick signed with Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama; Guard Najhae Colon signed with Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville, Georgia; Guard Justin Boston signed with Brewton-Parker College in Mount Vernon, Georgia; and Center Olyn Knox signed with Newberry College in Newberry, South Carolina. After the 2021-22 season, David Coit signed an offer to play for Division I, Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois.

The Buccaneers are blessed with tremendous size from the top of the roster down to the bottom. Tough defense, opportunistic rebounding and a quick, transition game led by scoring-by-committee will be crucial to the team’s success.

On a team loaded with potential, the Buccaneers will look to their one returnee, 6’3” sophomore Guard Jabre Mills, who is from Lawrenceville, Georgia, to help guide a roster that currently consists of six freshmen straight out of high school and three sophomore transferees from Georgia and California.

“I am looking for a big, big game from Jabre. I feel as though he could have been our best player last year,” Head Coach Allen Ragland said. Assistant Coach and Athletic Director Jamal Edwards praised Mills’ potential. “He has the capability of going to the Division I level. He has everything that a Division I guard has, but it’s all about learning the game and putting in that time for him.”

Maturing quickly at the college level and gelling as a team will play a key role in ensuring this team’s chances of winning.

“At the community college level, you get used to the turnaround because you get two years with the team. So, the biggest part is the maturing, the maturation of the team,” Edwards said. “College is a different story. Guys are stronger, quicker, faster and, of course, your grades are very important. Once they figure that out I think everything else will flow.”

Ragland’s team eschews the traditional center/forward/guard set up by deploying a lineup that lacks a center and instead utilizes the ability to play an all-around game at any position from every player.

“We try to make all of our players well-rounded, so we say everyone can play every position. We don’t want to just keep a player at one position because they are all trying to get to that next level,” Edwards said.

Here are your 2023-24 Atlantic Cape Buccaneers Men’s Basketball team player comments from Ragland and Edwards: 

• Antwan Bridgett, freshman Point Guard from Trenton, NJ: “Hard worker, local kid from Trenton, we named him one of our captains, look to him to be that general, run the team, put us in the right positions, great defender and overall good kid.”
• Omero Chevere, freshman Guard from Ocean City, NJ: “He has made an early impact, he is our second captain, one of the first in the gym, hard worker, he may be one of the best shooters on the team, he is a combo two guard, we are looking for him to come in, spread the floor and make shots for us.”
• Dave Gaetan, freshman Forward from Florida: “He is a Florida kid, young guy right out of high school, he has a huge upside, he has work to do when it comes to skill development, but he is a hard worker, he crashes the boards, runs the floor, we are looking to him to get a lot of rebounds, and bring a lot of energy and force.”
• Jaylen Jenkins, freshman Guard from South Carolina: “He has huge upside, he is one of those guys that can pretty much do everything from shoot and rebound to attacking the rim, he is a big guard/wing, he is another guy that needs skill development, but he has great potential.”
• Raheem Kone, sophomore Forward transfer from Atlanta, Georgia: “He is new to the school, new to the team, but he has already been in college, he can really take our team to the next level if he decides to take that responsibility, we hope as the season moves on he will take over.”
• Immanuel Lewis, sophomore Point Guard transfer from California: “He is a real good guy, headstrong, has struggled with injuries, when he is healthy he may be one of the main ones that we can rely on to put our team in the right position, and a great basketball IQ.”
• Mohammed Mbye, sophomore Guard from Atlanta, Georgia: “He played for us in 2021, but he did not play last season, he is back and ready, his grades are good, he is healthy and he is excited and ready to go, he is a combination Guard, a real big Guard, he has the capability of being our leading scorer, he is a real big piece to our success this year.”
• Christopher Parker, freshman Forward from South Carolina: “Great kid, quiet, but he may be the hardest worker on the team, he is always in the weight room, always taking extra shots, he is another one who has the ability of going to Division I, I can see him playing at the next level, he has to learn the college game, but he is physically prepared for the next level, we are looking to him to guard against the best players, to rebound, score and pass, we could pretty much put him in all positions.”
• Ashley Russell, freshman Point Guard from London, England: “He is trying to get used to being in the United States and getting comfortable being here in college, he is a good kid, he has a lot of work to do to learn the point guard position, we are looking for him to come in and give us some good minutes off of the bench, he just needs time to get used to everything, but we are happy to have him here.”

Once again, the players will be required to self-discipline themselves to ensure that their classwork is completed and handed in on-time, and their GPAs remain in good academic standing. Each student athlete at Atlantic Cape, not just in Men’s Basketball, is required to attend two to three hours of study hall each week and submit to weekly grade checks.

“When students first come to college they don’t realize the difference between high school and college. There is a lot more time management involved and freedom,” Edwards said. “So, we had to kind of buckle down to ensure the students get their projects done and are doing more study time. We are tightening up even more this year so hopefully that will help more this semester.”

Ragland continues to believe in his student athletes and their ability to compete at a high level against the toughest of competition that the NJCAA’s Region 19 can throw at them. He is, once again, setting his sights high.

“From top to bottom, I really love this team and I feel as though we are going to do it this year,” Ragland emphatically stated. “It’s like always, you know, I am looking at no less than the national championship. That is our goal.”

The Buccaneers open its home portion of the 2023-24 season on Thursday, November 16, 6 p.m. against Rowan College Gloucester County in Jonathan Pitney Gymnasium.

Visit atlanticcape.edu/mensbasketball for more information

About Atlantic Cape Community College

Atlantic Cape is a comprehensive two-year community college serving the residents of Atlantic and Cape May counties. The college offers over 40 career, transfer and workforce development programs to more than 8,000 students annually at three campuses in New Jersey: Atlantic City, Cape May Court House and Mays Landing.