Ben Bell "signs ?" with NT

OldTimer · November 9, 2005

San Jacinto's starting backcourt will be signing this fall. After thinking about waiting until the spring to decide, that will no longer be the case with Ben Bell. The solid 6-foot-3, 170-pound point guard from the Pasadena school has chosen to sign on the first day of the early signing period. After considering several options, the Irving native will come back home to play his college basketball at North Texas.

The decision to sign now as opposed to later was made just about at the last minute by Bell. "He came in to our office the other day and said that (signing early) is what he wanted to do," said San Jacinto assistant coach Scott Horstman. "He is signing with North Texas."

UNT had been number one on Bell's list ever since making an official visit to campus this fall. He also made a trip to Louisiana Tech and entertained other schools' calls and letters, but in the end the chance to play in his backyard seemingly made the difference. An earlier interview broke down what Bell will bring to the table for the Mean Green.

"Ben is a true point guard who gets the ball to the open man," Horstman said. "He has a nice mid-range jumper, and can shoot the three well-enough to keep you honest, although I wouldn't necessarily call him a three-point shooter. Last year for Weatherford, he shot 40 percent from the three-point line but he didn't take that many shots. He's got good size and quickness, and he's a very good defender too."

Texas Hoops Analysis: Ben is a very athletic guard who can really create with the dribble. He is very quick to the hole, can elevate and finish in the paint, handles it well in the open court and plays with a lot of energy

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*San Jacinto CC roster bio

6´3˝ Sophomore —Guard

MacArthur High School

Irving, Texas

Coach’s comments: A transfer from Weatherford Junior College where he averaged 15 points and 7 assists per game, Bell was the freshman of the year in the conference. A true point guard, Bell brings intensity on defense and great passing ability.

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Bell was 2nd team all region Class 5 A region 1 as a Sr.in HS, Was no 4 or 5 in the state with assist totallying 192 and averaging 6.9 assists per game

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It was my understanding we only had 3 ships to offer...commits were Jackson and Muse and Mangrumn...question at this time did we lose one of those 3 or did we lose someone else on the roster...or have we oversigned or is NT going to sign Bell?

Edited November 9, 2005 by OldTimer

Zeke · November 9, 2005

Do we have confirmation on Muse and Jackson signing yet?

UNTSportsGuy · November 9, 2005

I hope we got this kid, because the last thing I wanted to see is Sturns running this team.

Zeke · November 9, 2005

Sturns may not be right for running the team, but I think he could be a great shooting guard. You are right though, he seems more of a creator than a distributor to me.