Penguins Land Outside Threat in Juco Guard Tom Parks
Thursday, May 29 2008
Youngstown State Head Basketball Coach Jerry Slocum announced Wednesday that Sheridan College guard Tom Parks has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the program.

Prior to signing with YSU, Parks (6-foot-6, 210 pounds) played last year at Sheridan College in Sherdian, Wyo. He attended Air Force Prep School after graduating from Cheyenne Central High School. He will have three years of eligibility remaining for the Penguins.

Slocum said Parks has similar skills to current Penguin guard Vytas Sulskis, who was named the Horizon League's All-Newcomer team last year. Both players are similar in size and Parks averaged 2.3 3-point field goals made per contest in 30 games.

"Tom will allow us to have more of an outside presence and his range should only help with the extension of the 3-point line," Slocum said. "He has good size and a tremendous work ethic both on the court and in the classroom."

To keep his three seasons of eligibility, Parks is trying to earn his associates degree from Sheridan in just one year.

In his lone season with the Generals, he averaged 14.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He shot 41.5 percent from the field making 137-of-330 field-goal attempts. He drained a team-high 70 3-pointers while attempting a team best 184. From the free-throw line Parks was solid making 81-of-101 attempts (80.2 percent). For the year he scored 425 points, grabbed 137 rebounds, had 43 assists and 23 steals.

Parks said making the choice to leave Wyoming for Youngstown was not difficult.

"The coaches seem like good people and I really liked the campus a lot," he said. "I had a good feeling when I visited. My parents talked to the coaches on the phone and we felt like it was a great place for me to spend the next three years."

Parks said he spent nine years in Maine and coming back east was a motivating factor as well. He picked the Penguins after receiving interest from Wyoming and Cal Poly.
After getting an opportunity to sign with a Division I school, Parks said he is not going to rest on his laurels.

"My strength I would say is my shooting ability," Parks said, "I have to keep working at that because you can always become better. I need to work on my foot speed and my on-the-ball defense especially playing the three position."
The Cheyenne, Wyo., native averaged 20 points and six rebounds per game as a senior at Central High School. He was a first-team all-state (Class 4A) and all-conference selection.

Parks joins a group of signees that includes junior college players Sirlester Martin, Dallas Blocker, Kelvin Bright and DeAndre Mays along with freshmen Ashen Ward and Eddie D'Haiti.

Penguins Sign Orlando Area All-State Product Eddie D'Haiti
Thursday, May 15 2008
Head Coach Jerry Slocum announced Thursday that Eddie D'Haiti, an honorable-mention Class 6A selection from Orlando, Fla., has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the Youngstown State men's basketball program.

D'Haiti, a 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward from Oak Ridge High School in Orlando, Fla., was an honorable-mention all-state selection in Florida's biggest class. He earned first-team All-Metro and All-Orange County honors and was named second-team All-Central Florida by the Orlando Sentinel. He was also ranked as one of the top 40 seniors in the state by various websites and services.

Slocum said D'Haiti brings a lot to the table at the forward postion.

"We are very excited to get a player with Ed's size and ability," Slocum said. "He has a chance to be an important contributor at our level. He comes from a successful program at Oak Ridge and he played at the highest level in the state of Florida. He fits the quality of person that we have filled this recruiting class with."

D'Haiti helped lead Oak Ridge to a 21-8 record last season as the Pioneers reached the regional quarterfinals of the state tournament. For the season he averaged 16 points and 11 rebounds per game for Coach Matt Turner's squad.

He said he was impressed with the overall atmosphere of the program and the university during his visit last week.

"I like Youngstown State a lot and the program that Coach Slocum and his staff have going there," he said. "I think they will have a winning team next year and I want to be a part of that."
"I liked the people a lot and the campus was beautiful. I met some people who I will love to be around."

The move to Youngstown from Orlando will not be a challenge, D'Haiti said.

"It would be a big issue if I was going to a place that had some negative people," D'Haiti said. "But I am going to be around positive people at Youngstown State and I will feel right at home."
He said he plans on adding some weight and working on his strength before coming to campus this fall.
"I'm gifted with my scoring ability so hopefully that will be an asset for the program," D'Haiti said. "I have pretty good range and can play both in and out."

D'Haiti joins a group of signees that includes junior college players Sirlester Martin, Dallas Blocker, Kelvin Bright and DeAndre Mays along with fellow freshman Ashen Ward.

Sirlester Martin Signs Letter to Join Program
Thursday, May 1 2008
Youngstown -- Youngstown State men's basketball coach Jerry Slocum announced on Wednesday that junior college forward Sirlester Martin has signed a National Letter of Intent to join the program.

Martin, a 6-foot-7, 200-pound forward from Walters State College was a solid all-around player the past two years for the Senators. In his two seasons, he scored nearly 800 points while grabbing 500 rebounds. He is a native of Memphis, Tenn., having attended Carver High School prior to attending WSC.

Slocum said Martin will be a key addition because of his size and athletic ability.

"He will bring some needed strength to our forward positions," Slocum said. "Sirlester shoots, defends and rebounds well and has a solid overall game. We are excited to have him become part of our program and look forward to him making a contribution and being an impact player."

Last year, Walters State posted a 32-3 mark reaching the Division I NJCAA National Tournament. The Senators won their first 28 games of the season before losing their regular-season finale. After posting three wins at the TJCCAA Region VII Tournament, Walters advanced to the National Tournament.

In the three Regional Tournament games, Martin grabbed 36 rebounds, including an 11-point, 14-rebound effort against Motlow State in the Regional Final. For his efforts, he was named to the all-tournament team.

In the National Tournament, Walters posted a 1-2 mark with its lone win coming over Eastern Wyoming.

Martin said he enjoyed his visit to Youngstown and wanted to make sure it was the right fit since he will be far from home.

"I felt comfortable with the environment there and the coaching staff was cool and took time to make me feel comfortable," he said. "This is the first time I will be far away from home and I really enjoyed the coaches and the player's personalities."

As a sophomore, Martin played in 34 games scoring over 400 points while grabbing just under 300 rebounds. He had 11 double-doubles, scoring in double figures 22 times and grabbed double digits in rebounds on 14 occasions.
As a freshman, he played in 31 games, starting 12. He scored 366 points (11.8 per game) while grabbing 202 rebounds (6.5 per contest).

Martin said he planned to work on his mid-range game before coming to campus this fall.

"I played a lot of positions in high school and junior college so I have played both inside and outside," he said. "Coming out of high school I wasn't as basketball smart as I am know and it really helped me learn the game more."

Martin joins Ashen Ward, Dallas Blocker, Kelvin Bright and DeAndre Mays who have already signed national letters of intent to become part of the program next season.

Talented Junior College Trio Sign With Penguins
Saturday, April 26 2008
Youngstown State men's basketball coach Jerry Slocum announced on Friday the National Letter of Intent signing of junior college players Dallas Blocker, Kelvin Bright and DeAndre Mays.

All three players will enter the program as juniors this fall after previously competing at the junior college level.
Blocker is a 6-9, 225-pound forward from Cloud County Community College, Bright is a 6-3, 180-pound guard from Hagerstown Community College and Mays is a 6-1, 185-pound guard from Hill College.

Slocum said all three players bring strong credentials with them to the YSU program.

"Dallas brings great size that is needed to our interior play. Kelvin is a great scorer and will add to our offensive game. DeAndre has great leadership, is a great defender and has a strong all-around offensive game at the point guard position," Slocum said.

Blocker averaged seven points and five rebounds a game last season at Cloud County. He helped the Thunderbirds to a 21-12 overall mark and an appearance in the Region VI semifinals. As a sophomore he averaged 5.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game as the T-Birds finished 21-12. In those 33 games he also had 46 steals, 45 assists and 28 blocks.

A native of Topeka, Kan., he was a third-team Class 5A selection at Seaman High School as a senior. He was a first-team All-Centennial League pick while earning second-team all-city honors. As a junior, he helped lead Seaman High School to its first state tournament appearance in 23 years.

"I loved the atmosphere during my visit to Youngstown State," Blocker said. "The coaches were really good and they are people who will be able to tell me what I need to do to improve my game. They told me my best basketball is ahead of me and I agreed with that."

Bright, earned Honorable-Mention NJCAA All-America honors last year at Hagerstown. He ranked sixth in the nation averaging 24.2 points per contest. Bright scored more than 20 points on 21 occasions and had six 30-point performances for the Hawks. He was named the NJCAA Division I National Player of the Week on Jan. 16 following a 38-point performance in a loss to Prince George's CC.

A native of Silver Spring, Md., he helped lead Blake High School to the Maryland Class 4A State Championship Game his senior year. As a senior, he averaged 16.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game. For his efforts he was named the All-Metro Honorable-Mention Team by the Washington Post.
"Coming to Hagerstown this past year I wanted to make sure that I was going to transfer to a place that I would be comfortable with and make a big contribution," Bright said. "I thought YSU was a perfect fit in both of those regards."

Mays was a second-team All-North Texas Conference pick last year at Hill College. He averaged 13.1 points and 4.5 assists per game for the Rebels. Included in his total was a triple-double performance against SWCC. He joined the program after spending a season at Navarro Community College.

A native of Dallas, Texas, he was a two-time first-team all-district selection at Samuell High School.

"The coaching staff was unbelievable," Mays said. "They have a great environment there and the campus was real nice. I know I have a chance to come in and play right away which was a big factor as well."

The trio of signees joins Villa-Angela St. Joseph High School guard Ashen Ward, who inked his National Letter of Intent in November.

"With these four recruits I'm very excited about where the program is headed," Slocum said. "These are not only solid basketball players, but solid student-athletes as well."

Hawks' Bright signs with Youngstown State
Thursday, April 17 2008
Hagerstown Community College sophomore Kelvin Bright signed a letter-of-intent to play for Division I program Youngstown State.

Bright was the Hawks' leading scorer at 24.2 points per game - sixth nationally - and was an honorable mention on the NJCAA All-American team.

----More to Follow When Officially Announced. ----

Byron Davis Named MVP, Five Players Earn Season Awards
Monday, April 14 2008
Youngstown -- Senior guard Byron Davis was named the Youngstown State Men's Basketball team's 2007-08 Dom Rosselli Most Valuable Player and four other Penguins earned honors for their performances during the season at the program's annual awards banquet on Sunday at the Chestnut Room in the Kilcawley Center.

Senior forward John Barber was named the 2007-08 Four Square Club Scholar-Athlete and earned the Leo Mogus Leading Rebounder Award. Senior forward Dwight Holmes was the recipient of the Tony Vivo Hustle Award. Freshman guard Vytas Sulskis was selected as the Penguin Club Most Improved Player and freshman Vance Cooksey earned the Assist Leader Award (2.9 per game) and the Free-Throw Percentage Award (79.7 percent).

Davis was the team leader in points scored (465), points per game average (15.5), free throws made (71), field goals made (175), field-goal attempts (388), 3-point attempts (136) minutes played (1,063), double-figure scoring games (23) and 20-point games (seven). He was second on the team steals (33), free-throw attempts (103), 3-pointers made (44) and assists (71).

Barber led the team in rebounding grabbing with 210 boards for the season. He averaged 7.0 per contest, which ranked him fourth in the Horizon League. It was the third straight season the Leo Mogus winner grabbed more than 200 total rebounds. Barber was second on the team in scoring 407 points.

Holmes was the recipient of the Tony Vivo Hustle Award after recording the best season of his career. Holmes scored 140 points, grabbed 74 rebounds, had 18 assists, 17 blocks and 11 steals on the year. He was 49-of-95 (51.6 percent) from the field and made 41-of-63 free-throw attempts (65.1 percent).

Sulskis burst on the scene to have a solid all-around year scoring 270 points while grabbing 131 rebounds to earn Most Improved Player accolades. He finished fourth on the team in scoring and tied for second in rebounding. He led the team with a freshman record 46 3-pointers. He scored the most points by a freshman since Doug Underwood in 2001-02 and had the most rebounds by a frosh since Desmond Harrison and Dave Brown in 1997-98.

Cooksey had a solid freshman year to take home the assists and free-throw percentage trophies. He dished out a team-high 88 assists for an average of 2.9 per contest. From the free-throw line he converted 55-of-69 opportunities for a 79.7 percentage.

Vytas Sulskis Named CollegeInsider.com Freshmen All-American
Tuesday, April 1 2008
Youngstown State freshman guard Vytas Sulskis was named to the CollegeInsider.com's Freshmen Mid-Major All-America team, the website announced on Tuesday.

Sulskis, who was named to the Horizon League's All-Newcomer team, scored 270 points and grabbed 131 rebounds during his first season with the program.
He set a freshmen school record by making 46 3-pointers and attempting 121 shots from beyond the arc. His 270 points, were the most by a freshman since Doug Underwood had 290 in 2001-02. His 131 rebounds were the most by a freshman since Desmond Harrison (131) and Dave Brown (214) in 1997-98. He also added 60 assists and 32 steals.

A native of Vilnius, Lithuania, he was just the third Penguin to be named the the League's All-Newcomer squad, and the first freshman since YSU joined the conference in 2001-02.

In 18 league games he scored 192 points, averaging 10.7 per contest, while grabbing 89 rebounds, an average of 4.9 per game. He was second on the team in rebounds during conference play.

Joining Sulskis from the Horizon League on the CollegeInsider.com Freshmen Mid-Major All-America team were Butler's Matt Howard and Green Bay's Rahmon Fletcher.



2008 CollegeInsider.com Freshmen Mid-Major All-America Team

Darion Anderson G 6-2 Northern Illinois
Nate Blank F 6-5 Gardner Webb
Rahmon Fletcher G 6-2 Wisconsin-Green Bay
Jay Gavin G 6-3 Marist
Devin Gibson G 6-0 Texas-San Antonio
Ken Horton F 6-6 Central Connecticut State
Matt Howard F 6-8 Butler
Charles Jenkins G 6-3 Hofstra
Greg Logins F 6-7 Canisius
Mark Payne G 6-7 UC Davis
Mike Ringgold F 6-7 Rider
Larry Sanders F 6-9 VCU
Vytas Sulskis G 6-7 Youngstown State
Malcolm Thomas F 6-8 Pepperdine
Josh White G 5-10 North Texas
Marquis Weddle G 6-1 Tennessee-Martin

Davis' 22 Points, Second-Half Spurt Not Enough in Loss at UIC
Wednesday, March 5 2008
Chicago, Ill. – Once again the Youngstown State men’s basketball team put forth a strong second-half effort, however, it was a rough first half that proved to be too much to overcome in a 70-59 loss to UIC in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament on Tuesday night at the Pavilion.

The Penguins (9-21) scored 38 second-half points, 17 more than they did in the first half. In the final two games of the year, YSU scored 35 points in the first 20 minutes and had 78 in the second.

Senior Byron Davis scored a game-high 22 points to pace the Penguins on 9-of-22 shooting. Davis scored more than 1,000 points in his combined career at Youngstown State and New Mexico State.

The Guins were behind 37-21 at halftime. YSU trailed by as many as 19 points with just over 16 minutes remaining and was down 54-36 at the 12:38 mark.

But the Penguins turned up the defensive intensity and allowed UIC to score just three points until 3:26 was left in the game. YSU found some offense scoring 14 of 17 points to pull within 57-48 on a steal and breakaway dunk by Dwight Holmes with 3:56 left.

From that point, UIC made 9-of-10 free throws in the final three-and-a-half minutes to keep a pesky Penguin team at bay. At one point in the final 74 seconds, John Barber converted two 3-pointers while Vance Cooksey added another getting YSU within eight points with 38 seconds to go.

In their final games, Barber finished with 12 points and eight rebounds while Holmes had six points and three boards.

For the contest, the Penguins shot 36.1 percent making 22-of-61 shots, including 8-of-26 from behind the 3-point arc. In the first half, YSU shot just 28.1 percent making nine field goals.

UIC was 14-of-24 in the first half for a 58.3 percent effort before shooting just 34.6 percent (9-of-26) in the second stanza and 46 percent (23-of-50) for the game. The Flames made 19-of-24 free-throw attempts going 14-of-16 in the second half.

Leading the way for UIC offensively was Robert Bush who scored 14 points to lead three players in double figures.

The Flames advance to the Horizon League Tournament quarterfinals on Friday night against Loyola. That contest will be played a Butler’s Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Men's Basketball Begins Horizon League Tournament Play At UIC
Tuesday, March 4 2008
The Youngstown State men’s basketball team begins play in the Horizon League Tournament on Tuesday against UIC. Tipoff for the first round contest at the UIC Pavilion is set for 8 p.m. Eastern time, 7 p.m. in Chicago. This is the second postseason meeting between the Penguins and Flames, but first in Chicago. UIC ousted the Guins from the 2003 event with a 79-59 victory in the quarterfinals at Milwaukee. The teams split this year’s regular-season series with the home team winning each game. YSU has never won at UIC in nine previous visits.

Vytas Sulskis Named to Horizon League's All-Newcomer Team
Monday, March 3 2008
Indianapolis, Ind. -- Youngstown State freshman guard Vytas Sulskis was named to the Horizon League's All-Newcomer squad the conference announced on Monday morning.

Sulskis, a native of Vilnius, Lithuania, becomes the third Penguin to be named the the League's All-Newcomer squad. However he becomes the first freshman to be named all-newcomer since YSU joined the conference in 2001-02.

For the season, Sulskis has scored 263 points, grabbed 126 rebounds, dished out 57 assists and has 30 steals. His points are the most by a freshman since Doug Underwood had 290 in 2001-02. Sulskis' 126 rebounds are the most by a YSU frosh since Jimmy Moore had 127 in 2001-02.

His 45 3-pointers made, along with his 115 attempts have set a freshmen standard at YSU as well. In the Horizon League, he leads the conference among freshman in 3-point makes and attempts.
In 18 league games he scored 192 points, averaging 10.7 per contest, while grabbing 89 rebounds, an average of 4.9 per game. He was second on the team in rebounds during conference play.

Joining Sulskis on the All-Newcomer squad was Butler's Matt Howard, Cleveland State's Cedric Jackson, Milwaukee's Deonte Roberts and Green Bay's Rahmon Fletcher.

Sulskis is the first Penguin freshman since Dave Brown in 1997-98 to be named to the all-newcomer team as a freshman. Brown was named the the all-newcomer squad in the Mid-Continent Conference.

The Penguins return to action on Tuesday night when they travel to Chicago to face UIC in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament. Tipoff at the UIC Pavilion is set for 8 p.m. Eastern time.