Logan Bradley isn't sure if he'll be back for his junior or senior basketball seasons at Southern Arkansas. The redshirt sophomore is on course to graduate next May.
Whether or not he returns is purely academic, the former Booneville standout said.
The Southern Arkansas basketball player has enjoyed every minute of his collegiate experience.
"Honestly, I expected college for it to be a lot harder than high school," Bradley said. "I expected that I would have to make new friends. [But] I think college kind of exceeded my expectations. I made a lot more friends than I thought I would.
"Honestly, college wasn't as tough as I thought it would be in the classroom, either."
Bradley didn't just opt for the basketball end of it. His "new" friends coerced him into running for president of his fraternity, Phi Lambda Chi.
"I was surprised, but I wasn't at the same time," he said. "I had a lot of guys telling me they wanted me in that position. I knew I was going to be running for it."
A 2019 Booneville graduate, Bradley is weighing his post-athletic options.
"Currently, I'm still planning to come back and finish out my master's [degree]," he said. "Master's of public administration. School has been going great for three years; I have a 3.7 GPA. I've had some of the best memories, here."
Bradley appeared in two games during the 2020-21 season. So far in 2022-23, the 6-foot-8 post has appeared in three games, scoring a career-high seven points during a Nov. 18 win over Springdale-based Ecclesia College.
The Muleriders (3-2) open Great American Conference play Thursday against Henderson State.
"Basketball has been going pretty good," Bradley said. "We have a new coach this year [Logan Quinn]. Our old coach [Andy Sharpe] got out to spend more time with his family. It's been a good year so far, but it's kind of a rebuilding season; we have eight or nine new players."
Running a fraternity, working part-time, playing college sports and managing 15 hours of academic time per semester has taught Bradley a lot about time management.
"Really, when you get free time, you have to know what to do with it," Bradley said. "You have to get stuff done. My professors usually give me a week in advance of when things are due. When you know you have things to do, it's good to get them done and out of the way.
"The payout, in the end, is worth it."
Even with two years of playing time ahead of him, Bradley isn't sure if he'll be back for Quinn's second season.
"I still have two more years if I want to use them," he said. "I think it's more of a drive to finish it out [career]. It's [college sports] a lot tougher than I expected. It's really a job. During our preseason, I had days where I was in the gym for five or six hours.
"The drive and having the love for the game is what keeps you going."
Brown hits court gunning
Payton Brown has picked up where he left off at the end of the 2020-21 season.
The former Waldron great, who averaged 31.5 points per game in high school, is averaging 19 points per game for the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith Lions (2-2). Brown led the team in scoring in the shortened 20-21 campaign.
He transferred to New Mexico Junior College last season but missed the entire campaign due to an injury. Back at UAFS, Brown has averaged 15 points per game during the Lions' previous two games, both wins.
Brown and Co. open Lone Star Conference play this week at West Texas A&M and Lubbock Christian University.
Brewer still scoring plenty
Former Northside great Tevin Brewer scored a season-high 14 points in Duquesne's 85-80 win over Colgate on Nov. 18.
Brewer scored five points on 2-of-6 shooting in 21 minutes of playing time in the Dukes' 75-57 victory over Alabama State this past Wednesday. Brewer also dished out two assists.
The former Grizzlies point guard, who transferred to Duquesne from Florida International, where he averaged 11.5 points per game over two seasons, had four points (2-of-6 shooting) and three assists during the Dukes' 83-82 win over North Florida this past week.
Brewer is averaging 6.2 points per game and 1.8 rebounds through five games this season, while averaging 21 minutes of playing time. He's started three of the five games he's appeared in.
Duquesne (4-1) will host UC Santa Barbara this Tuesday.
Koeth breaks XC record
Ouachita Baptist University's cross country team placed 13th out of 36 teams at the 2022 NCAA Regional Championship Nov. 19 at Missouri State.
Taylor Koeth (Greenwood) led the way by breaking OBU's 6K record with a time of 21:38.0, smashing teammate Jaci McGregor's previous mark of 22:05 set at last year's regional. Koeth finished 36th overall to lead the Tigers.
Koeth's former Greenwood Lady Bulldog teammate, Macie Cash, was 80th overall with a time of 22:32.36.
Just a junior, Koeth averaged 5:48.0 per mile during the event.
Douglas, Peay fall 62-59
Tiya Douglas (Northside) and the Austin Peay State Governors dropped a 62-59 decision to the University of Illinois-Chicago this past week at the Hostilo Community Classic in Savannah, Ga. Douglas, the former Northside standout who transferred to APU from Ole Miss, was 1-for-6 from the field with three points in the team's loss.
The Govs (3-3) went 1-2 at the Georgia tournament. UIC (5-1) led by as many as 14 points.
Douglas had a season-high 14 points during a Nov. 17 loss to Vanderbilt. The Governors have dropped 3-of-4, all on the road, since starting 2-0. They'll host Gardner-Webb on Dec. 1.
The former Northside standout is in her first season with the Governors after transferring from Ole Miss. In 2019-20, Douglas averaged 13.9 points per game at Trinity Valley (Texas).
Mann fitting in well
Cejay Mann is settling in nicely with the University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma Drovers' men's basketball team.
The former Alma guard caught fire from beyond the arc and finished 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including 5-of-10 from the three-point line, in the Drovers' 81-80 win over Oklahoma City University. Mann has averaged 13 points per game in the Drovers' two Sooner Athletic Conference games, including nine points in the team's 70-68 win over John Brown on Nov. 17.
The 6-foot Mann, who transferred to USAO from Arkansas Tech, is averaging 13 points a game in his last four games. For the season, Mann is averaging 9.4 points a game.
The Drovers host Southwestern Assemblies of God on Dec. 1.
Free Throws
Former Alma standout Zac Henson's 2022 football season came to an abrupt end last week. Henson, a starter for the Tigers' offensive line, was on the wrong side of a 47-17 playoff loss to Northwest Missouri State. ... Braden Gleason (Muldrow) and Emporia State (8-3) play Southeastern Oklahoma State this Saturday in the Turst LIVE UNITED Bowl Gleason, who is sixth in the nation in points responsible for, eighth in passing, and ninth in total offense, was named second team All-MIAA (Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association). ... Alicia McCloria (Muldrow) had 10 points and Megan Gray (Greenwood) six in Hendrix's 77-47 blowout of Centenary on Nov. 21. The Lady Warriors host Texas Lutheran on Tuesday. ... University of the Ozark's Dillon Cheater (Sallisaw) scored 8 points in the team's 69-66 loss to Centenary College on Nov. 20. ... Ozark's Makya Perryman (Roland) scored eight points in the Lady Eagles' 78-74 loss to Belhaven on Nov. 19.
Bradley
Mann
Brown
Koeth
Brewer
Douglas
Henson