Jarvis Jones named A-Sun Player of the Week

ETSU men’s basketball will be in action tonight against Atlantic Sun Conference leader Florida Gulf Coast.

For the first time all season, the Buccaneers will have the reigning A-Sun Player of the Week on the court. Senior Jarvis Jones was named the conference player of the week after setting personal bests of 23 and 36 points in back-to-back games over the weekend.

The Bucs lost to the Northern Kentucky Norse on Thursday. Saturday saw the team bounce back against conference rival Lipscomb to win in overtime inside the Mountain States Health Alliance Athletic Center. Both those games revolved around the senior guard.

The last second shot that missed against NKU came from the hands of Jones but would not fall through the net. That night, Jones set a personal best with 23-points, but the individual success was not what stuck with the point guard. Jones and head coach Murry Bartow both said the last-second miss kept them awake. “He didn’t sleep the whole night nor did his coach,” said Bartow. “We want the ball in Jarvis’ hands.”
Although Jones could not have predicted he would get his chance for redemption so soon, he knew the conference schedule and familiar opponents would give him an opportunity to make up for the last-second miss. The loss to NKU came on Jan. 31; Jones’ shot at redemption came two days later against Lipscomb during a Saturday night showdown.

“We’ve  been playing close games since conference started,” said Jones. “I knew this time would come again.”

ETSU trailed for much of the game against Lipscomb before using a full-court press to close the gap. When the final buzzer went off to signal the end of regulation, the game was tied and headed to overtime. For ETSU, things were not looking great.

The Bucs were short four men headed into the extra period with three players having fouled out during regulation and another away from the team due to a family illness. ETSU would play the entire overtime period with five guards on the floor, none of them taller than 6 foot 4.

Jones, the only upperclassman on the court for ETSU, took control of the game. Jones took and made four 3-pointers in the closing second of regulation and the overtime period to get the ETSU win.

Jones’ award-winning performance included three games, all against A-Sun members. In those games Jones totaled 78 points, 11 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block. Jones is appreciative of the award and the significance it represents for not only himself but the team as a whole.

“It’s great to be named the A-Sun player of the week,” said Jones. “I’m just happy to do what I can for our team, and our goal is to keep improving.”