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Much has been said about Mount Vernon Nazarene College's two marquee men's basketball recruits for the 1998-99 season -- Andy Gast of Elgin High School and Kenny Chaffin from Marysville High School.
Now, MVNC head coach Scott Flemming has landed three more standout recruits to strengthen his bench for next year.
Topping the list is 6-foot-1 guard Coy Lindsey from Logan High School. Lindsey, who has played one year of college hoops for Elmhurst (IL) College, will transfer to MVNC this fall and provide the Cougars with instant leadership in the backcourt.
While playing for Logan, Lindsey was known as one of the best shooting guards among Ohio's Division I schools. In each of his four years with the Chieftains, Lindsey was a First Team Division I All-District selection.
Lindsey left his mark at Logan by setting records for career points, career three-pointers made, and career assists. Following his senior season, he received special mention All-Ohio accolades.
According to Flemming, Lindsey's shooting, versatility, and experience will be huge assets for MVNC during the 1998-99 season. "Coy is a great perimeter shooter," said Flemming. "He can play either the point guard or shooting guard position. He will come in with one year of college basketball under his belt, which will help him with the transition into our program."
Along with the backcourt help, Flemming has signed two post threats to join Chaffin and MVNC standout Todd Sands under the basket.
The first of these players is 6-foot-6 Jon Ware from Indianapolis, Indiana. Ware averaged 13 points per game and hauled down 11 rebounds per contest for Indianapolis Heritage Christian last season. He also shot 58 percent from the floor and was a McDonald's All-American nominee.
On top of his statistics, what impressed Flemming the most about Ware was his ability in transition. "He fits the mold of our post players," said Flemming. "He runs the floor very well for his size. Jon is a very gifted young man. He will definitely solidify our inside game. He is a natural shot blocker and rebounds the ball very well."
Ware will be joined by Piqua High School's Lenny Foyer. The 6-foot-4 post averaged 14.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game for the Indians in 1997-98. Following his senior season, Foyer was named Special Mention All-Southwest District in Division I, Second Team All-Greater Miami Conference, and was selected to the Piqua Daily Call Dream Team.
Flemming thinks Foyer has the skills to contribute in several different ways for the Cougars. "Lenny is a very versatile player," said Flemming. "He will be able to play several positions. Although he is an unselfish player, he is capable of scoring inside or outside. He is also quite a ball-handler for his position, and he gets a lot done by his hard work alone."
The amount of playing time all five recruits will get remains to be seen. The Cougars return all five starters from last year's team that went 27-7, won the Mid-Ohio Conference title, and advanced to the NAIA Division II national tournament quarterfinals.
