Ole Miss basketball is looking for a forward who can stretch the floor next season, and it may have found just that on Monday as it got a commitment from 6-foot-8-inch power forward Bruce Stevens from Jones County Community College. He averaged 16.2 points per game and 11.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore and shot 51.9 percent from the field and 81 percent from the free-throw line. Stevens also made 45 3-point shots.
The commitment is timely, considering the Rebels lost forward Sebastian Saiz to graduation after their loss to Georgia Tech in the NIT last week.
“Bruce can have an immediate impact, especially at the four position,” Jones County assistant Jon Nevol said. “I think he makes the four position there a lot better. He can score with ease and stretch the floor in multiple ways. He can make threes. He has a good mid-range game, as well as under the basket. He is a very good rebounder outside of his area. He can rebound all over the place.”
The Rebels didn’t get a ton of scoring from the four position last season. Justas Furmanavicius and Marcanvis Hymon averaged just 6.3 and 3.5 points per game, respectively, for the Rebels at the position last season, and found their niche rebounding the basketball.
Stevens had offers from Georgetown and Tennessee State and had garnered interest from Memphis, Western Kentucky, Washington State and Southern Miss, among others.
“Bruce loved the facilities at Ole Miss,” Nevol said. “The Pavilion played a big role in it. He came for the Auburn game, so that really opened up his eyes. He loved the atmosphere and everything about it and really felt good about it then. He thinks with Sebas leaving that it will open up the door for him to score and rebound.”
Andy Kennedy and the Rebels will be tasked with replacing 18 points per game and more than 10 rebounds per game with Saiz’s departure. Stevens – who will likely try to shed some weight before next season – can help Ole Miss in replacing that.
“He was probably the biggest big in this league and defended very well,” Nevol said. “He can move well against a smaller, quicker four or five.”
He arrived on campus at JCCC at 290 pounds and played his freshman season at 270 pounds before slimming down to 260 for his sophomore season. Nevol said that, ideally, he would like to get down in the 230-240 range and also added that losing the weight shouldn’t be a problem for the athletic post player.
“If he gets down to 240, I think he has All-SEC potential,” Nevol said. “He continues to get better every day for us, and I know when he gets to Ole Miss he will continue to do the same.”
Nevol was a manager, graduate assistant and video coordinator under Kennedy at Ole Miss for from 2008 to 2016.
“I don’t think it is going to be tough for him with the facilities Ole Miss has and the programs they have to get down to that weight,” Nevol said. “If he gets down to that weight, his potential is through the roof.”
