College

In College

Following former Eastern Shore Ball Players who are currently playing college basketball

If there is anyone that you know of that we have missed, please email us with their information and we will add them.

* First name (required):

* Last name (required):
* E-mail address (required):

Phone number:
* Message (required):

I want to receive newsletters, updates, and special offers

Head Coaches

Oliver Purnell

Visit CoachPurnell.com

A native of Berlin, MD, Oliver Purnell starred at Stephen Decatur High School (he recently had his high school jersey retired). Purnell lead the 1970 Stephen Decatur team to a state championship and went on to play his collegiate career at Old Dominion University. He was the senior co-captain and MVP of the 1975 Old Dominion team that won the Division II National Championship. He averaged 14.4 points per game. He finished his career with 1090 points and 476 assists. He still holds the school record for steals in a game with eight against Washington & Lee in 1975. He was named a Converse honorable mention All-American as a senior. A sixth-round selection of the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1975 NBA Draft, he was inducted into the Old Dominion Athletic Hall of Fame in 1988. In 2006, he was named to Old Dominion's all-time team. Purnell began his head coaching career in 1988 with Radford, before coaching Old Dominion, Dayton, and his current team, Clemson. He currently has 373 career wins and a career win percentage of 58.2%. In addition to his experience as a Division I college coach, Purnell also has considerable experience as a coach with USA Basketball. He is one of five USA Basketball coaches in the history of that competition to win five Gold Medals.

Recent Headlines

04/07 - Purnell leaves Clemson for DePaul

02/24 - Clemson coach, Shore native readies to take on Terps at home

Clemson basketball coach and Berlin native Oliver Purnell has plenty of reasons to say his 7-4 record against Maryland in his time with the Tigers isn't coincidental. Purnell grew up in the state, led Stephen Decatur High School to the state semifinals at Cole Field House -- the Terps' venerable former arena -- and even served as an assistant coach under former Terp coach Lefty Driesell in the mid-1980s. Purnell's recruits the Washington area, still visits home in the off-season and will have a contingent of about 20 friends and family members on hand when his team faces the Terps at Comcast Center tonight. But to Purnell, who has brought the Tigers' program to a level of consistency it was rarely at before his arrival in 2003, his success against the Terps isn't about him, or any feeling of familiarity. "It has more to do with our players playing well," Purnell said. "We had some pretty good teams, some pretty good players, too." Tonight, Purnell will attempt to win his third career game at the place where the Terps (19-7, 9-3 ACC) haven't lost a conference game all season. "Transition defense is important for us," said Purnell, whose team (19-7, 7-5) stands a good chance of making its third consecutive NCAA tournament in March. "Maryland is gonna push it. And to beat Maryland we've always gotta do a decent job on (Greivis) Vasquez." The Eastern Shore native was modest about his achievements, especially his solid record against the flagship school of his home state. Few coaches have beat Terps' coach Gary Williams three times in one year, as Purnell did in 2005. For the seventh-year Clemson coach, the key ingredient is an aggressive full court press. In Clemson's 62-53 win against Maryland at Littlejohn Coliseum on Jan. 31, that pressure caused 26 Terp turnovers. While the Terps focused on containing Tigers' star Trevor Booker, holding him to 10 points on 2-of-16 shooting, center Jerai Grant, another Maryland native, had a career night with 18 points and 12 rebounds. Purnell is hoping for more of the same tonight, and said his Tigers are playing their best basketball of the season. They've won four of five games and dominated Virginia 72-49 on Saturday. But regardless of tonight's outcome, Purnell is happy with the direction of his team and plans to stay at Clemson for the foreseeable future. "We're pleased with the progress of the program," Purnell said. "We like living down here, and of course we love the ACC. I grew up in the ACC, it was certainly something I aspired to as a coach." -- delmarvanow.com

Tia Jackson

A native of Salisbury, Md., Jackson was an honorable mention high school All-America selection for Mardela Springs High School. She scored 3,108 points during her prep career while playing for coach Barbara McCool. After her prep career, Jackson went on to continue her collegiate career at the University of Iowa. During her career there, she averaged 10.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game and was honored as an all-Big Ten Conference selection and a Street & Smith's Preseason All-American twice. After her college career, she was drafted No. 9 overall by the Phoenix Mercury and played in the WNBA's inaugural season in 1997, where she helped lead the Mercury to a Western Conference title. Jackson is currently in her second year as head coach at the University of Washington after leading the Huskies to a 13-18 record in her inaugural season.

Men's Basketball

Brandon Braxton

Height: 6'9"

Weight: 205

High School: Northampton High School

College: Randolph-Macon College

01/16 - Braxton starts for top ranked Randolph Macon

The Randolph Macon College men's basketball team is undefeated so far this season and ranked first in the NCAA Division III basketball poll. Brandon Braxton, a junior center, has started every game for the Yellow Jackets. The Most Valuable Player in the Eastern Shore District during his senior season at Northampton High School, Braxton has continued to play well during his three seasons on the Randolph Macon team. So far this season Braxton is averaging 11 points and 6.5 rebounds a game. At 6-foot-9, Braxton has also blocked 16 shots for an average of over one per game. The Yellow Jackets have had just one close call during their run of 13 straight victories to start the season. That came on Jan. 6 in a one-point, 69-68 victory at Hampden-Sydney. Braxton had 10 points, four rebounds and three blocked shots in the game. He went 4-for-5 from the floor and was 2-for-2 from the free throw line. Two big games left on Randolph Macon's schedule are games with Virginia Wesleyan College. VWC is ranked eighth in the nation with a 13-1 record. The Yellow Jackets will host VWC on Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. and will play at VWC in Norfolk on Feb. 13 at 2 p.m. -- delmarvanow.com

Josh Bright

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 180

High School: Wicomico High School

College: University of Maryland Eastern Shore

James Cotton

Height: 6'7"

Weight: 205

High School: Pocomoke High School

College: University of Maryland Eastern Shore

Adam Hall

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 185

High School: Kent Island High School

College: High Point University

Josh Bennett

Height: 6'7"

Weight: 215

High School: Snow Hill High School

College: Tusculum College

Latrell Alford

Height: 6'3"

High School: Crisfield Senior High School

College: Valley Forge Christian College

Greg Palmer

Height: 6’5”

Weight: 195

High School: Salisbury Christian School

College: Salisbury University

Sebastian Sturgis

Height: 6’3”

High School: Pocomoke High School

College: Cecil College

John Bossle

Height: 5'9"

High School: Rising Sun High School

College: Cecil College

Trevon Johnson

Height: 6’1”

Weight: 162

High School: Snow Hill High School

College: Bloomsburg University

Larry Webster

Height: 6’7”

Weight: 212

High School: Elkton High School

College: Bloomsburg University

12/03 - Webster starts strong

Elkton product Larry Webster recorded 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two blocks and one steal to lead Bloomsburg in a 69-64 loss to Slippery Rock on Nov. 21. -- cecilwhig.com

Tony Ward