Three more names to watch for Cypress CC

Earlier this month we profiled Cypress Community College small forward Sam Davis, a prospect from which head coach Paul Bottiaux is expecting big things this season. While Davis is the star of the Chargers, who are off to a 2-2 start this year, there are a couple of other prospects worth keeping an eye on.

Coach Bottiaux labeled Greg Crenshaw, 6-3, 200-pound small forward, “the best athlete on our team, no question. He jumps so well, it’s just a highlight to watch him jump.”

Crenshaw averaged just under six points coming off the bench last year, but those numbers should go up quite a bit this year with him holding down a starting spot. In addition to being one of the team’s best offensive threats, Bottiaux said he’s also solid defensively and in the classroom.

“He’s a tenacious defender. He’s a really strong kid, he’s got a really good head on his shoulders and he’s a good student too,” the coach said. “I don’t think he realizes how good he can be. Sometimes he just sits back but when he gets it going, he’s something to watch.”

On the recruiting front, things are pretty quiet for Crenshaw but that could change if he has the type of season that Bottiaux thinks’ he might.

“There aren’t a lot of schools that are after him, but I think it’s primarily because he’s waiting to bust out. Hopefully he can open some eyes.”

The other player that Bottiaux mentioned as center Greg Mercer, who goes 6-5 and 230 pounds.

“He’s our inside banger. He actually plays the five for us,” the coach said. “Inside, he’s a guy that’s got a lot of strength. He’s on of our hardest working guys in the weight room and he’s another guy that’s kind of untapped, kind of waiting to blossom.

“For us to have any success early in the year, he and Crenshaw are going to have to play well.”

Mercer has a couple of Division II schools looking at him, including Chaminade and Angelo State.

A name to watch in the future could be freshman point guard Brandon Void, a 6-2, 185-pounder out of Philly.

“In my career here, he could be one of our better point guards, especially offensively. He can handle it, he can go with it and he can shoot it,” Bottiaux said. “He’s just not used to playing defense at the college level. He’s got to learn the game there and if he does, I think as a sophomore he could be one of the better point guards in the country.”