Barton Strongman Batista a Key Spring Target
Joao "J.P." Batista nearly carried Barton County C.C. to next week's NJCAA Tournament, but the Cougars' dream ended on Tuesday night with a tough loss to Coffeyville C.C. in the Region VI title game.
Batista's rugged play in the paint was a driving factor all season long for Barton County, and Cougar Head Coach Dave "Soupy" Campbell feels the Brazilian big man is worthy of lofty status.
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"If he's not a first-team All-American, I don't know who is," Campbell said in a recent interview with JUCO Junction. "He's like the rock of Gilbraltar."
The 6-8, 260 pound power forward/center from Pernambuco, Brazil, averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game for the Cougars. He shot 62 percent from the floor and 74 percent from the foul line.
That last stat was critical, because constant double and triple teaming sent Batista to the foul line (164 times) quite a bit this season.
"He has great savvy, he can score and he's very fundamentally sound and so damn strong," Campbell explained.
Batista took an unofficial visit to Kansas on Feb. 29 for the Jayhawks' home game against Nebraska.
"Kansas, Hawaii and Illinois State are three schools he could potentially visit," Campbell said. "He is going to go somewhere where he's going to play -- he's not going to a program where they have five big guys."
Illinois State is in there very strong, thanks in large part to the efforts of former Barton County Head Coach Steve Forbes, now a Redbird assistant coach. He and ISU Head Coach Porter Moser were in attendance for some of Batista's games in Salina this past weekend.
As for Hawaii, Batista would be a perfect complement to 6-8 North Idaho College forward Matt Gipson, who's more of a finesse player.
In addition to KU, Hawaii and Illinois State, Campbell said that Oregon, Nebraska, Creighton and Indiana have also expressed interest in Batista.
The only thing that could cloud Batista's collegiate future are questions surrounding his background in Brazil. In recent years, the NCAA has taken a hard look at foreign players and questions relating to their amateur status.
"We've discussed it and he said he's never signed a pro contract," Campbell said. "He is going to have to fill out some paper work with the NCAA."
JUCO Junction will keep you posted on Batista's situation as the spring signing period approaches.... Stay tuned!