Men's Basketball Tips Off New Season
Coming off the 2023-2024 season that saw the Panthers men's basketball team win 19 games, expectations are just as high for the 2024-2025 season. Head Coach Tae Norwood, who was named head coach in August 2023, brings in a mix of college transfers and high school seniors to continue the momentum of the men's basketball program.
Two returners come back to try to improve on the 2nd place Sun-Lakes finish from 2023-2024. Erick Perez, who was a member of the FCSAA/Region 8 team, is the top returner. Erick averaged 11.4 points and shot 45.7% from 3 in conference play. Kleeff Nicolas returns to provide depth in the frontcourt. Marvin Golf, back from a season-ending injury he suffered before the 2023-2024 season, brings a spark and experience in Coach Norwood's system.
Coach Norwood hit the transfer portal with a purpose in the 2024 recruiting class. Parker Baumann, a transfer from North Platte Community College, brings a successful year of college experience and 14.2 points per game to the Panther program. Two 4-year transfer point guards look to lead this team. Syris Williams (Western Colorado) and De'Meiko Anderson Jr (Eastern Illinois) provide sophomore experience and leadership at a position where those qualities are essential to success. Xavier Gordon-Somers, who like Erick Perez was a member of the FCSAA/Region 8 team, brings knowledge of Region 8 and experience to the post position.
Coach Norwood brings in 8 freshmen to mix with the 7 sophomores. Among the incoming freshmen are 7-footer DeAndre Newland from Mainlain HS (FL), Jovan Palavra (Booker HS), Ransom Soles (Kings Academy), Rickjerlin Feliz (Bartow) and Juan Bell-Rodriguez (Jupiter HS) from Florida. The out-of-state freshmen represent all parts of the country. Robert Chandler (New York), Ashton Romney (Arizona), and Carter Mungin (Massachusetts) all bring different skill sets to a Panthers team with high aspirations.
The Panthers tip off the season Sunday November 3rd at 2pm vs Mid-Florida Academy. You can follow the Panthers on Instagram and watch all home games for free on Youtube.