Bearkat freshman returns to Louisiana after spending senior season of high school in Central Texas
12/6/2006 1:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
THIBODAUX, La. ? It's been almost a year and a half since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast region late in the summer of 2005.
Thousands of people were forced to leave behind everything they had known and begin new lives in unfamiliar cities and communities. Homes were damaged, families scattered and futures left up in the air in one of the worst natural disasters in United States history.
Sam Houston State freshman Ashton Mitchell was just starting his senior year at St. Augustine High School in New Orleans in August of 2005. A week after classes started, the warning came that a major hurricane was bearing down on the city.
As they have done in the past, Mitchell along with his mother Roslyn, twin sister Ashle, brother Damien and other family members, grabbed a few personal belongings and headed to Austin to stay with his uncle. And like the other storms that came before it, Ashton didn't think Katrina was going to be anything major.
“We usually had three warnings (every time a hurricane was coming) so we just packed up a few things and headed to my uncles in Austin,” Mitchell said Friday. “This time I just brought a few basketball shorts because I knew it was going to be like the last time, but I ended up having to stay longer than I expected.”
Hurricane Katrina finally hit land on Aug. 29 and no one imagined the effects the deadly storm would have on “The Big Easy.” The major problem came when the storm's surge penetrated the levees surrounding the city, dumping millions of gallons of water into New Orleans.
Like many neighborhoods, the Mitchells' home and school were flooded, forcing the point guard and his family to take up residence in Austin. It was a huge setback for Ashton; after all, he was really looking forward to his final season at St. Augustine under current Dallas Mavericks' development coach Bernard Griffin, who coached Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson in high school.
“Once I found out everybody was just going to be scattered around, I didn't know what to do,” Mitchell said. “I mean my expectations for last year's basketball team was so high. I was upset about that and just knew that wherever I went, I had to do good because I hadn't gotten any offers yet for a basketball scholarship.”
Mitchell ended up enrolling at Round Rock Westwood High School once it was determined there was no chance of moving back to New Orleans. But what once looked liked an obstacle quickly became the opportunity he was hoping for.
In his senior season at Westwood, Mitchell flashed his potential by averaging 21.3 points and 4.7 assists per game. He began to catch the eye of several Southland Conference programs and soon offers started to pour in.
Sam Houston State assistant coach Jason Hooten soon heard about Mitchell, and after watching him play, Hooten convinced Bearkats head coach Bob Marlin to make the trip to Round Rock.
“Coach Hooten had seen him play after hearing about him from a friend, who told him there was a guard who had gotten displaced in Round Rock,” Marlin said. “Jason finally went down to see Ashton play and said he really liked him, had a good conversation with him and that he was a good person. He took me over to see him and I was impressed with him.”
What once was a disaster suddenly turned into a golden opportunity for Mitchell. The Bearkat coaches started to recruit him, made a home visit and invited him to visit the SHSU campus.
Mitchell liked what he saw and canceled the rest of his visits and signed with the Bearkats over Nicholls State, Stephen F. Austin and Texas State.
“I wasn't sure what was going to happen because I wasn't getting any scholarship offers,” Ashton said. “I knew that if I went out and played the best I could then something would happen. My coach at Round Rock really helped me get noticed, and I decided to go to Sam Houston because they were the winningest team in the conference and I like the coaches.”
The Bearkat coaches hope to groom Mitchell to be the floor leader of the future and were looking to bring in a freshman to learn behind senior Jejuan Plair. One of the most efficient point guards in the SLC, Plair was the league's newcomer of the year in 2006 and also the top assist man by averaging 5.6 a night.
Mitchell couldn't have asked for a better teacher. A leader on and off the court, Plair has been a key figure in the Bearkats' run at another conference title this season. He has taken Mitchell under his wing and has shown him the ropes so that when he is gone, the youngster can step in and start.
“It's all about learning the system and slowing down,” said Plair about his advice to Mitchell. “I was never as fast as him, but we were a lot alike in high school. We could use are athletic ability to blow past people, but it's not like that anymore.
“Basically it is about learning little tricks, and I try to teach him that. We talk about everything. He listens and that is the good thing about him. He asks questions and is always open ears.”
The future is bright for Mitchell after cloudy skies once threatened to end any dreams he had of playing college basketball. He was able to return to New Orleans last spring and attend graduation at St. Augustine. His family also got to return to their home in New Orleans this past August.
And for the first time since he has been a member of the Bearkats, his family and friends are getting the chance to see him play. In SHSU's 69-45 victory over Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday, 15 people made the trip to Hammond, La., and saw their hometown hero make his Southland Conference debut. He got off to a rocky start, but received a big cheer from a certain section when he drove to the basket and laid in a reverse layup.
When SHSU faces Nicholls State today, Mitchell expects even more family members to be in attendance. And he couldn't help but smile when he talked about what it means to have this opportunity.
“I'm just happy to be playing in front of them because I know that they haven't seen me in a long time,” Ashton said. “When I found out we were starting conference over here, I started calling everyone to let them know I was playing. While I'm down here, I'm just trying to play my best.”
Thousands of people were forced to leave behind everything they had known and begin new lives in unfamiliar cities and communities. Homes were damaged, families scattered and futures left up in the air in one of the worst natural disasters in United States history.
Sam Houston State freshman Ashton Mitchell was just starting his senior year at St. Augustine High School in New Orleans in August of 2005. A week after classes started, the warning came that a major hurricane was bearing down on the city.
As they have done in the past, Mitchell along with his mother Roslyn, twin sister Ashle, brother Damien and other family members, grabbed a few personal belongings and headed to Austin to stay with his uncle. And like the other storms that came before it, Ashton didn't think Katrina was going to be anything major.
“We usually had three warnings (every time a hurricane was coming) so we just packed up a few things and headed to my uncles in Austin,” Mitchell said Friday. “This time I just brought a few basketball shorts because I knew it was going to be like the last time, but I ended up having to stay longer than I expected.”
Hurricane Katrina finally hit land on Aug. 29 and no one imagined the effects the deadly storm would have on “The Big Easy.” The major problem came when the storm's surge penetrated the levees surrounding the city, dumping millions of gallons of water into New Orleans.
Like many neighborhoods, the Mitchells' home and school were flooded, forcing the point guard and his family to take up residence in Austin. It was a huge setback for Ashton; after all, he was really looking forward to his final season at St. Augustine under current Dallas Mavericks' development coach Bernard Griffin, who coached Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson in high school.
“Once I found out everybody was just going to be scattered around, I didn't know what to do,” Mitchell said. “I mean my expectations for last year's basketball team was so high. I was upset about that and just knew that wherever I went, I had to do good because I hadn't gotten any offers yet for a basketball scholarship.”
Mitchell ended up enrolling at Round Rock Westwood High School once it was determined there was no chance of moving back to New Orleans. But what once looked liked an obstacle quickly became the opportunity he was hoping for.
In his senior season at Westwood, Mitchell flashed his potential by averaging 21.3 points and 4.7 assists per game. He began to catch the eye of several Southland Conference programs and soon offers started to pour in.
Sam Houston State assistant coach Jason Hooten soon heard about Mitchell, and after watching him play, Hooten convinced Bearkats head coach Bob Marlin to make the trip to Round Rock.
“Coach Hooten had seen him play after hearing about him from a friend, who told him there was a guard who had gotten displaced in Round Rock,” Marlin said. “Jason finally went down to see Ashton play and said he really liked him, had a good conversation with him and that he was a good person. He took me over to see him and I was impressed with him.”
What once was a disaster suddenly turned into a golden opportunity for Mitchell. The Bearkat coaches started to recruit him, made a home visit and invited him to visit the SHSU campus.
Mitchell liked what he saw and canceled the rest of his visits and signed with the Bearkats over Nicholls State, Stephen F. Austin and Texas State.
“I wasn't sure what was going to happen because I wasn't getting any scholarship offers,” Ashton said. “I knew that if I went out and played the best I could then something would happen. My coach at Round Rock really helped me get noticed, and I decided to go to Sam Houston because they were the winningest team in the conference and I like the coaches.”
The Bearkat coaches hope to groom Mitchell to be the floor leader of the future and were looking to bring in a freshman to learn behind senior Jejuan Plair. One of the most efficient point guards in the SLC, Plair was the league's newcomer of the year in 2006 and also the top assist man by averaging 5.6 a night.
Mitchell couldn't have asked for a better teacher. A leader on and off the court, Plair has been a key figure in the Bearkats' run at another conference title this season. He has taken Mitchell under his wing and has shown him the ropes so that when he is gone, the youngster can step in and start.
“It's all about learning the system and slowing down,” said Plair about his advice to Mitchell. “I was never as fast as him, but we were a lot alike in high school. We could use are athletic ability to blow past people, but it's not like that anymore.
“Basically it is about learning little tricks, and I try to teach him that. We talk about everything. He listens and that is the good thing about him. He asks questions and is always open ears.”
The future is bright for Mitchell after cloudy skies once threatened to end any dreams he had of playing college basketball. He was able to return to New Orleans last spring and attend graduation at St. Augustine. His family also got to return to their home in New Orleans this past August.
And for the first time since he has been a member of the Bearkats, his family and friends are getting the chance to see him play. In SHSU's 69-45 victory over Southeastern Louisiana on Thursday, 15 people made the trip to Hammond, La., and saw their hometown hero make his Southland Conference debut. He got off to a rocky start, but received a big cheer from a certain section when he drove to the basket and laid in a reverse layup.
When SHSU faces Nicholls State today, Mitchell expects even more family members to be in attendance. And he couldn't help but smile when he talked about what it means to have this opportunity.
“I'm just happy to be playing in front of them because I know that they haven't seen me in a long time,” Ashton said. “When I found out we were starting conference over here, I started calling everyone to let them know I was playing. While I'm down here, I'm just trying to play my best.”
Wednesday, March 11
Wednesday, March 11
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Saturday, February 28
