Former Oswego East hoops star goes D-I

Oswego East's Lionell Holmes, the Wolves' all-time leading scorer, will head to Stephen F. Austin University this fall to continue his collegiate career.
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Lionell Holmes figures it was worth the wait.

The career scoring leader (890 points) in the short history of the Oswego East basketball program scored another first this spring when he signed a national letter of intent to play basketball this upcoming season at Stephen F. Austin University in Nacogdoches, Texas.

A 6-foot-3-inch, 185-pound wing player, Holmes is the first player from his school to sign with a NCAA Division I program.

"Coming out of high school I wasn't sure where he'd fit in but I thought he was a player who could play at the mid-major (D-I) level," said Oswego East coach Jason Buckley, noting Holmes ended up taking a roundabout way to that goal.

"He originally signed with a Division II school (East Central University) in Oklahoma but never went there."

Holmes explained why he backed away from that decision and went to play this past season at Antelope Valley College, a community college in Lancaster, Calif.

"The (assistant) coach at East Central, who did most of the work recruiting me, left for a head coaching position. It was a last-minute thing, two weeks before school started. In fact, he took the head coaching job at another school in the same conference," Holmes said.

Meanwhile, the former Southwest Prairie Conference MVP who averaged 15 points per game his senior season had done well in some summer pickup games in open gyms in Chicago and drawn some notice.

That led him to ask for his release from the Division II program, which was granted.

"I told them I felt I had a chance to go to a Division I school," he said.

A friend from those summer games got Holmes in touch with Antelope Valley College coach Dieter Horton and the former Wolves' standout headed west for a year.

"It was tough in the beginning, but I lived in a house with four or five other players and the team got so close it was like I had a family out there," Holmes said.

The team lost several key players to injury but still finished 21-15 against what Holmes termed "a very tough schedule." He started 20 games for the Marauders, averaging 7.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.0 assist.

Stephen F. Austin coach Danny Kaspar liked what he saw and included him in the Lumberjacks' large recruiting class that includes five players.

"Lionell is a versatile swing player who can help us fill the hole left by the graduation of Josh Alexander," Kaspar said. "He is very athletic and is a pretty good shooter. His defensive reputation is excellent and I am very impressed with him as an individual. I think we will be able to count on him for some immediate help."

Holmes hopes his path may inspire other players who follow him.

"Hopefully, it opens up a lot of doors for other players who don't get D-I offers and settle for D-III (programs)," he said, noting that playing junior college ball can give a player a chance to impress a D-I program."

He thinks he'll fit in well at Stephen F. Austin.

"They have a real up-tempo game," he said. "They have a (point) guard who is 5-6, the shortest in D-I, but he's very fast. They've also got a strong big man and will work the ball inside when they get the chance."

The school, in eastern Texas about two hours north of Houston, is in a college town and draws crowds in the 7,000 to 8,000 range, Holmes said.

The Lumberjacks went 24-8 last season, won the Southland Conference Tournament and advanced to the NCAA tournament, where Miami (Fla.) snapped their eight-game winning streak with a 59-44 decision in the first round. This year's schedule includes a trip to play at the University of Minnesota.