By Dylan Butler
Despite the NYC Hoops team dropping three games in Greece last week, St. John’s head coach Mike Jarvis had plenty of reason to smile as junior college transfer Marcus Hatten played better than expected in the all-star team’s games.
One of the most sought after and highly ranked junior college players in the nation last year, Hatten scored in double figures in each of the team’s three games as he shared the backcourt with Arizona’s Jason Gardner. Hatten is likely to split time between starting point guard and shooting guard next season for the Red Storm.
In a 95-81 loss to Greece, Hatten, who went to the same junior college — Tallahassee Community College — as former St. John’s standout Marvis “Bootsy” Thornton, had 18 points as he primarily played shooting guard.
Also on the NYC team are two other first-year Red Storm teammates, former Lincoln High School star Eric King, who had two points, and Amityville’s Tristan Smith, who scored one.
While playing point, Hatten had 11 points in a 90-87 loss to Poland. King added five points in limited duty. Hatten also reportedly had 25 points in the New York team’s other game against Poland, an 80-78 loss.
The three players all expect to see considerable time on the court this season, joining seniors Anthony Glover, Donald Emanuel and Sharif Fordham, juniors Alpha Bangura and Abe Keita as well as sophomores Willie Shaw, Kyle Cuffe, Mohammed Diakite and Curtis Johnson on a Red Storm team that went 14-15 last season.
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 143.
