SMS Baseketball Bears lineup for 1998-99 season

Ryan Bettenhausen No. 10

A 6-foot-1 guard hailing from Indianapolis, Ryan Bettenhausen is one of the veteran members of the Bears squad and one of five senior co-captains. In the last three seasons, Bettenhausen has racked up 582 points, placing him 64th on the SMS all-time list, and he ranks eighth on the career list for his three-point field goal percentage (.364). He needs five three-point shots to move into the top 10 on that chart. With 298 assists, he is six assists away from a spot in the career top 10 in that category. He is ninth in the career list for free-throw accuracy.

Danny Moore No. 32

A 6-foot-11 forward-center from Shelbyville, Ind., senior Danny Moore is moving into his third and final season for the Bears. With 387 free throws made in his SMS career, Moore is 27 free throws from tying the school's career record. He became the 22nd SMS player to reach the 1,000-point plateau in career scoring last winter, coming out of the year with 1,148 points, good for 14th place on the all-time list. He led SMS scoring in 12 of 32 games last season, and racked up five double-figure rebound efforts, leading in rebounding in 10 games.

Ken Stringer No. 5

A 6-foot-4 senior forward from Lithonia, Ga., Ken Stringer is in his second season with the Bears and is one of eight returning lettermen, four returning starters and five senior members of the men's squad. Last season, Stringer led SMS rebounding in seven games and had 12 double-figure point efforts, hitting his season-high 14 points in four games. Stringer played at a forward spot in six different SMS starting combinations last year. He finished fifth in scoring, fourth in rebounding and third is assists in his debut season with the Bears.

Kevin Ault No. 24

Entering his third season with the Bears, 6-foot-3 junior guard Kevin Ault nearly doubled his scoring output and became a top three-point shooters in the Missouri Valley Conference last year. The Warsaw, Ind., native also more than doubled his three-point field goal production, led the squad in steals and raised his rebounding by one per game. His career free-throw percentage, .881, is first on the chart, and he has two seasons left to play. Ault is third in career threes and attempts, and third in career three-point percentage.

William Fontleroy No. 12

A 6-foot-3 junior guard from Gary, Ind., William Fontleroy started all but three of the Bears' 32 games last season, doubled his steals from his freshman season to finish second in steals with 45, and led the ballclub in assists with 135. He also led the Missouri Valley Conference in single game free-throw production, making 15 of 18 against Illinois State Jan. 15, also scoring a career-best eight rebounds in that match. Fontleroy had double-figure points nine times last season, and his season high score was 18 against Indiana State. Fontleroy had five or more assists 10 times last year.

Paul Murans No. 3

A native of Terre Haute, Ind., 6-foot-6 senior forward Paul Murans has lettered in each of the last two SMS campaigns as a reserve forward. His top outing last season was a six-point game in the Bears' home victory against Northern Iowa. He also scored five in each of two SMS wins over Drake University. Murans reached double figures in minutes played twice last season, with a top outing of 17 minutes against Northern Iowa. Murans joined the Bears after a freshman year with the University of Vincennes Trailblazers, helping that team to a 22-10 season.

Butch Tshomba No. 25

A 6-foot-6 senior forward from Ganshoren, Belgium, Butch Tshomba played in all but two of the Bears' 32 matches last season. His top outing was at home against the Creighton Bluejays, with a perfect night from the field and foul line, including two treys, for 16 points in 24 minutes of play. His other double-digit scoring game was against Texas-San Antonio in the semifinals of December's Pizza Hut Classic when he scored 11 points. Tshomba's top rebounding effort was five against the University of Texas-San Antonio, and he registered four rebounds in three other games.

Matt Rueter No. 50

The only freshman on last year's Bear squad, 6-foot-8 sophomore forward Matt Rueter played in 25 of 32 Bears games, drawing starting assignments in four straight matches between Jan. 6 and Jan. 15. The native of Fulton reached double figures in minutes played in three of his starts and in four games altogether, with a top outing of 22 minutes at Bradley. He scored four points per game in two contests and had a rebound high of four in three different matches. Rueter was 3-for-7 in free throws and contributed five assists and five steals in his debut season.

Ron Bruton No. 23

Measuring 6-foot-6, junior forward Ron Bruton, of Greer, S.C., transferred to SMS from Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College at the start of the fall 1998 semester. He is expected to bring speed and quickness to the Bears' inside game, along with rebounding and defensive strength. Bruton helped Hutchinson achieve the Kansas Region 6 championship as a freshman during the 1996-97 season, averaging six points and four rebounds per game for the Blue Dragons. In his sophomore campaign, he averaged 10 points and 10 rebounds per game. Bruton had a prep career at Creer High School.

Allen Phillips No. 33

A junior guard-forward from Little Rock, 6-foot-5 Allen Phillips last year became the first of two SMSU-West Plains basketball players to move east to Springfield and the Bears program after playing for the two-year campus in West Plains. Cited as a key factor in the continuing development of the West Plains program, Phillips helped the Grizzlies to season records of 20-11 as a freshman and 25-8 as a sophomore. Phillips averaged 18.4 points and totaled 608 points, both figures single-season records for the West Plains Grizzlies, and shot 60 percent from the field.

Eric Judd No. 21

The second member of the high-scoring backcourt tandem from the SMSU-West Plains campus to move to the Bears squad, 6-foot-1 junior guard Eric Judd joins former Grizzlies teammate Allen Phillips as one of the Bears' backcourt prospects for 1998-99. A native of West Plains, Judd averaged 17.8 points per game for the Grizzlies last season, leading in three-point shots with 105 and hitting 83 percent of his free throws. He set school records for season and career three-pointers and free-throw percentage. Judd was second on the all-time scoring list and third in career assists for the Grizzlies.

Scott Brakebill No. 20

A freshman forward from Bolivar, 6-foot-8 Scott Brakebill will be battling for a forward spot on the Bears' playing rotation during this year's campaign. Brakebill racked up a multitude of records and honors in his three seasons as a varsity starter for the Bolivar Liberators, averaging 19.9 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. Brakebill led the Liberators to a fourth-place finish in the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions at Hammons Student Center in January, chalking up 42 points and 17 rebounds in the tourney's third-place contest.

Brandon Miller No. 4

A 6-foot freshman guard from New Castle, Ind., Brandon Miller is competing for a spot in the Bears backcourt this season. At New Castle's Chrysler High, Miller won numerous honors and was the only Chrysler player to play on three consecutive regional winners and two North Central Conference championship clubs. Miller averaged 16.2 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals a game as a junior, finishing his senior campaign with an average of 18.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.9 steals per game.

Brian George No. 34

Springfield native Brian George, a 6-foot-10 freshman center, comes to the Bears program from Kickapoo High School, where he started in three years of varsity basketball and was a four-year letterman for the Chiefs. Leading the team to a 28-2 season in his senior year, George averaged 9.7 points and six rebounds per game as a junior, and 15 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots per game as a senior. He finished his high school career as the third leading rebounder in Kickapoo history.

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