Wallace State basketball enters the second year under John Meeks, in 2011-12, with a brand new roster and seeking a climb back to the premier spot in the conference.
Meeks finished with a 16-14 record during his inaugural campaign with the Lions, falling just one win short of advancing to the Alabama Community College Conference (ACCC)/Region 22 tournament. The 28-year-old has compiled a solid 67-29 career record in three seasons as a head coach. He previously spent two seasons as the head man at Louisburg College in North Carolina, where he went 51-15 and guided the Hurricanes to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II Basketball Championship. Louisburg notched its first ever tournament victory under Meeks, and he was selected as the 2010 NJCAA District 15 Coach of the Year.
Wallace State has 15 new players on its roster in 2011-12, including Radford University transfer Jamal Curry, a 6-foot-9 sophomore who participated in the invite-only Mullen/Adidas Top 100 JUCO Showcase at Missouri over the summer.
The Lions' roster consists of six transfers and eight freshmen.
Last season, guard Marese Phelps was named to the All-ACCC Northern Division first team after leading the team in scoring (16 ppg), while forward Wade Collie was named to the second team.
Wallace State also enjoyed the services of guard Martell Buie, who is the younger brother of former Auburn star and Sacramento Kings forward Marquis Daniels.
Coach Meeks is determined to continue Wallace State's ascension in men's basketball, both locally and nationally.
Within the last seven years, the program has set a school record for wins (32, accomplished in 2009-10 and 2007-08), been ranked seventh in the preseason by The Sporting News (2009-10), been ranked No. 1 nationally in the NJCAA poll (2007-08) and produced two first-team All-Americans in Cory Cooperwood (2006-07, 2007-08) and L.A. Farmer (2009-10).
Meeks has encountered similar success during his entire coaching career, which spans nine years and includes assistant stops at Bluefield College in Virginia and three years at NAIA Lee University (Tenn.). He has coached six NAIA All-Americans, 10 All-Conference players, four conference MVPs, one defensive player of the year and two All-Region performers.
Meeks succeeded coach Allen Sharpe, who compiled a 136-30 record in five seasons and was a three-time ACCC Northern Division Coach of the Year (2007, 2008, 2010). Sharpe left Wallace State in May 2010 to take over the head gig at the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
For more information about the Wallace State basketball program, contact Coach John Meeks at 256-352-8365 or at John.Meeks@wallacestate.edu.
Follow Coach John Meeks:
wallacestatebasketball.blogspot.com
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*Coach Meeks would like to thank this year's sponsors of Wallace State basketball. They include: Dairy Queen in Hanceville; Sonic in Cullman; Ryan's in Cullman; Hardee's in Hanceville; Captain D's in Cullman; Domino's Pizza in Hanceville; Huddle House in Hanceville; McDonalds in Hanceville; Zaxby's in Cullman; Ruby Tuesday in Cullman; Arby's in Cullman (Cherokee Ave.); Taco Bell in Cullman (Hwy. 157 location); Bojangles in Cullman; K-May Donuts in Cullman; Pasquale's Pizza in Cullman and Chick-Fil-A in Cullman.
