For seven years, the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi men's
basketball program has had to live with the stigma as being labeled
as an independent. As of July 1 of this year, the Islander athletic
department will enter the Southland Conference, something it has
been waiting for since starting athletics in the fall of 1998.
Over those seven seasons, head coach Ronnie Arrow has seen
numerous teams and players come and go, paving the way for next
year's squad in what will be the first in a league for men's
basketball. Some players immediately come to mind when talking
about past teams, such as Michael Hicks, who in just two seasons,
managed to set the scoring margin bar to a level that has yet to be
touched. During the 1999 through 2001 seasons, Hicks scored 1,324
points and had 40 20-or-more point games. In his final season with
the Islanders, he averaged 26.7 points a game, which would have
ranked second among all NCAA Division I players if TAMUCC was not
in its probationary period. For his career, Hicks averaged 24.5
points a game and ranks first on five career categories including
rebounding average with 8.2 pull downs a game. "Mike Hicks was by
far the best player to play for me here at A&M-Corpus Christi.
I was hoping he would get drafted and when he wasn't, I was
disappointed. He did make it to the final cut in the Knicks camp
and is now doing quite well for himself in Italy."
Brian Evans is another player that comes to Arrow's mind when
thinking of his past teams. "Brian had a great career for us. He
was a point guard for four seasons and really left his mark on the
program," Arrow said. "He is now playing in Romania and is having a
nice career for himself overseas."
While at TAMUCC, Evans put up 1,274 points over four seasons
ranking second on the all-time scoring list. He also played more
than any other player as he racked up 3,402 minutes played over his
career, more than 500 minutes than Corey Lamkin, who is second on
the list with 2,706.
Travis and Thomas Bailey as well as Lamkin are three other names
synonomous with the Islander basketball program. All three played
four seasons and while both the Bailey brothers received their
degree, Lamkin was one semester short of finishing before the New
York Jets drafted him as a free agent after he was finished with
basketball. Lamkin is one of the few athletes to get drafted in a
sport he did not play in college. As a matter of fact, Lamkin has
not played football since junior high.
When looking back, Arrow has many memories he has collected over
the past seven years, some sticking out more than others. "Beating
teams like Texas Tech, Texas A&M and Florida State, all on the
road, were huge for this program," Arrow said. "Anytime you can go
into a major division I school such as those, with that type of
environment, and go in and steal a win, that really says a lot
about your program."
The Islanders have compiled a 108-84 record since the 1998-99
season, by far the best record among other independent schools
during that time. They finished the 2005-06 season with a 20-8
record for the second-consecutive season, becoming the first
independent to win back-to-back 20-seasons in nearly 20 years.
Not only have Arrow's player succeeded on the court, but in the
classroom as well. Of the players that stayed with the program
through their senior season, 13-out-of 20 athletes have gone on to
graduate.
A&M-Corpus Christi ended its final season as an independent in
fine fashion as the Islanders finished the year ranked No. 1 in the
country in three offensive categories including scoring margin,
field goal percentage and assists. The Islanders out-scored their
opponents by 15 points a game while shooting 50.1 percent from the
field. They also dished out 19.6 assists per game and tallied 550
for the year.
While the Islanders were tops in three of the 15 national
statistical categories, there was not another team to lead the
country in more than one category.
Individually, junior forward Cedric Smith ranked second in the
country in field goal percentage by hitting 66.2 percent from the
floor, while center Chris Daniels was 13th in the same category
with a 60.2 average.
Next season, the Islanders should be a contender for the
conference title as they lost just one senior in Aaron White and
will be returning 76.1 points a game and 33.9 rebounds a game and
will have arguably the best center in the league in Chris Daniels.
In his second season with the program, the San Antonio native
averaged a team-best 15 points and 7.3 rebounds a game and blocked
a team-high 42 shots. He was named the NCAA Division I Independent
Player of the Year as well as the collegeinsider.com Independent
Player of the Year.
"Getting into the Southland is a win-win situation for us," Arrow
said. "Never in my wildest dreams when I first took this job I
thought it would take seven years to get in a league. I am just
glad we are finally part of one that will help not only our
department, but it will get the community involved as well."
