The "Rider Basketball Radio Show" featuring Rider University men's basketball coach Tommy Dempsey, continues Tuesday night at Joe's Crab Shack in Lawrenceville.

It wasn’t pretty, with 50 turnovers between the two teams, but the Broncs will take it. “If you are going to have a special season, you need to grab some of these along the way,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “Once you get into the league play, it’s not always going to be pretty, you aren’t always going to feel like you played your best, but it really doesn’t matter anymore. It is about the end result, winning or losing.”

At 6’11”, 250 pounds, NBA-hopeful Jason Thompson casts a large shadow.  On Saturday night, younger brother Ryan Thompson emerged from that shadow to lead Rider to a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference win at Manhattan. 

The Rider University colors are Cranberry, White and Grey. On Monday night, January 21, the Broncs are going Green.

Rider University senior Jason Thompson was named the co-winner of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week award for all games played January 7-13.  It marks the second consecutive week and the fourth time this season Thompson has won the award.

There has been some debate about where Rider University senior Jason Thompson may be playing basketball next year. After a performance like Sunday afternoon, the answer looks a bit more obvious. In a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference victory over Loyola, the 6’11” forward compiled 28 points, 17 rebounds, five blocked shots, four assists and three steals against the team picked to finish second in the conference. “I’m only going to be a senior in college once,” Thompson said, “so I’m just concerned with helping my team win games and win a conference championship. I know there are eyes out there (NBA scouts) but I try not to think about it too much.”

They call it a shooters’ mentality. If you’re hot, keep shooting. If you are cold, shoot until you get hot. Junior Harris Mansell shook off a cold shooting streak to lead Rider to a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference victory at Iona Friday night. “Shooters have to shoot,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.  “If you’re a good shooter you have to keep getting them up.”

Rider University senior Jason Thompson was named the co-winner of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week award for all games played the first week of 2008.  It marks the third time this season Thompson has won the award.

Coming off a disappointing one-point loss on Friday, the Broncs wanted to make a statement on Sunday.  “There are two ways to react to that loss on Friday,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “You could hang your head and have a hangover effect, or you can come out and play the way we played today. I think we handled the tough loss with maturity.”

Rider senior Jason Thompson compiled 26 points and 11 rebounds, and his younger brother, sophomore Ryan Thompson added a career-high 24 points and six rebounds, but it was not enough to defeat Marist in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game at Rider Friday night. “They made more plays than we did in the last couple of minutes,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “It was discouraging the way it ended.”

Amanda Sepulveda of the women’s basketball team and Jason Thompson of the men’s basketball team were named the Rider University Athletes of the Month for all contests in December.

Rider University freshman Mike Ringgold was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week for all games played the final week of 2007.

Despite 21 points and eight rebounds from senior Jason Thompson, the Broncs saw their three-game winning streak end at Drexel’s Daskalakis Athletic Center Thursday night. “I thought Drexel wanted it more than we did tonight,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “It was a well played game and Drexel made more plays than we did in the last eight minutes.”

Click here to read Andy Glockner's ESPN.com story on Jason Thompson.

Jason Thompson was laughing with teammates while doing what he often does after Rider basketball practice: He was working on his half-court shot.

During Revolutionary times, there was the Battle of Trenton, the Battle of Princeton and the Battle of Monmouth. At the Louis Brown Athletic Center Friday night, the Division I men’s basketball Battle of New Jersey took place, with Rider upsetting host Rutgers.

The only two 2,000-point scorers in Rider basketball history may have to make room for a third player this season.

Jason Thompson says the right things. He explains that his priority is finishing his senior season at Rider and helping his team earn a postseason berth. But he does not hide the fact that the N.B.A. is never far from his mind, which is not hard to understand. He is close to making it happen, taking the improbable leap to the N.B.A. after being an undersized and overlooked high school player who wound up at a midmajor college.

Senior Jason Thompson compiled 19 points, nine rebounds and four blocks to lead Rider to victory at Monmouth Saturday night. “Monmouth is a rival of ours,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “Two New Jersey schools with similar missions, this is one we always look forward to. This is a solid road win.”

Senior Jason Thompson (Mt. Laurel/Lenape) of the Rider University basketball team was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week for all games played December 3-9.

Rebound. Senior Jason Thompson (Mt. Laurel/Lenape) helped his team rebound from a 12-point loss on Thursday to defeat Canisius in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference game Saturday, and in the process became Rider’s all-time rebound leader. “Anytime you can break a record that stood for 30 years, anytime you can do something that nobody in the history of the school has done, that’s really special,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “We’re very proud of him. It’s a great record and he has a lot of rebounds left in him.”

Niagara University, the defending conference champion, made 15 three-point field goals to defeat Rider in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference opener Thursday night.  “I’m disappointed in the way we played tonight,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey, “but Niagara had a lot to do with that. They play great in this building.”

Amanda Burke of the swimming & diving team and Jason Thompson of the basketball team have been named the Rider University Athletes of the Month for November.

Junior Harris Mansell scored 23 points, including eight foul shots in the final minute, to lead Rider to victory over Binghamton Saturday afternoon. “I knew we had to hold the lead and to hold them off,” Mansell said. “They were making a run but it is a killer when you are trying to make a run and the team with the lead makes its foul shots. I just concentrated and knocked them down.”

At an imposing 6-foot-11 and 250 pounds and possessing the agility of a much smaller player, Jason Thompson is giving Rider University something it has never truly had: A legitimate NBA prospect.

Sophomore Ryan Thompson compiled 20 points and six rebounds to lead Rider to victory over the New Jersey Institute of Technology Wednesday evening. “Every aspect of Ryan’s game has improved this year,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.

To view televised Old Spice Classic games while in Internet Explorer, click the link inside this story.

Rider University senior Jason Thompson was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Week for all games played November 19-25.

The Rider Broncs went 1-2 over the weekend at the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, but one of the top stories coming from that tourney was the performance of a certain 6-11 center, number 1 in maroon and a likely NBA pick. Fresh off a nationally televised showcase that lasted all weekend long, Jason Thompson is our third Mid-Majority Baller of the Week for the 2007-08 season.

In the battle for fourth place in the eight-team Old Spice Classic, the Broncs lost to 20^th ranked Kansas State Sunday at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. “We were playing against three BCS schools and we were in every game right to the last minute,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.  “We learned a lot about our team. This could be a special group.”

Brotherly Love. The Rider University basketball team, led by the Thompson and Mansell brothers, upset Penn State Saturday in the second round of the Old Spice Classic, held at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. “It was a little bit of David vs. Goliath,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.  “We had to gang rebound. They are bigger, more physical, but our kids I thought played with a little more heart today. I am very proud of my team.”

Despite holding the lead for 25 of the 40 minutes, Rider lost to North Carolina State in the first round of the Old Spice Classic, held at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex. “It was a hard-fought game,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “We were able to play Rider basketball against them.”

Senior Jason Thompson compiled 20 points, nine rebounds and seven blocked shots, and freshman Mike Ringgold scored a career-high 17 points to lead Rider to victory over Fairleigh Dickinson Monday evening. “We looked like we had a lot of talent tonight,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.

A standing room only crowd squeezed into the Broncs’ Zoo Saturday afternoon to see if all the hype about the Rider basketball team and its star, senior Jason Thompson, was warranted. It was. Thompson compiled 23 points and a Rider-record 21 rebounds to lead Rider to victory over Delaware in the season home opener Saturday afternoon. “You can’t play bad in front of a crowd like that,” said Thompson, who also tied his career high with seven blocked shots. “With the ‘Zoo rockin like that, you can’t play bad.”

In preparation for the graduation of one of the top college players in the nation, Rider University basketball coach Tommy Dempsey has signed one of the top high school players in the nation.

The Broncs lost on a last second foul shot to Murray State in the 2007-08 season opener Friday night in the Regional Special Events Center on the Murray State campus.  “Murray State is very good and they didn’t make anything easy for us,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey. “We hung and we hung and gave ourselves a chance to win it. We didn’t play poorly.”

Rider University senior Jason Thompson is one of 50 Division I basketball players to be listed on the 2007-08 pre-season Wooden Award watch list.

Rider University senior Jason Thompson is ranked 24th in the nation among post players, according to FOXSports.com.

Some of the greatest basketball players and coaches in the history of the Rider University program will return to Alumni Gymnasium on Saturday, November 17. “This is going to be an exciting day for the entire Rider basketball family,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.

No longer sitting at the kiddy table, Rider University’s Jason Thompson is now playing with the big boys. Last season Thompson was named to the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major All-America team. This year the ‘Mid-Major’ is missing from the team name.  “It is always great to see one of our players get recognized,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.

The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference held its annual Basketball Media Day Tuesday and Rider University senior Jason Thompson (Mt. Laurel/Lenape) was named the Preseason Player of the Year.

The Collegehoops.net Preseason Mid-Major All-America Team was announced Monday, and Rider University senior Jason Thompson was named to the First Team. “It is always great to see one of our players get recognized,” said Rider head coach Tommy Dempsey.

Six nationally televised games highlight the 2007-08 Rider University men’s basketball schedule, which begins November 10 in Kentucky at Murray State.  “We are extremely excited about this year’s schedule,” said Tommy Dempsey, the former interim coach who begins his second season as the Bronc head coach with a 16-15 record. “The national television exposure is tremendous for our basketball program, Rider University, and the MAAC.”

Marist's Jared Jordan was picked at No. 45 in the 2007 draft, but there's another MAAC player who might go higher than that when the 2008 NBA draft rolls around.

The first female All-American, the last football coach, the first NCAA track qualifier, an All-American wrestler and an All-American basketball player make up the Rider University Athletics Hall of Fame induction class of 2008.

Averaging better than 20 points and 10 rebounds a game is quite impressive.  In fact, only three NCAA Division I men's basketball players accomplished that feat last season. Two were taken in June's NBA draft -- Texas freshman Kevin Durant and Nevada senior Nick Fazekas.  The third?  How about Jason Thompson.

The question is no longer whether Jason Thompson will be the first Rider University basketball player drafted into the NBA.

Rider University’s Jason Thompson recently spent part of the summer between his junior and senior years at the LeBron James Skills Academy in Akron, Ohio, where some of the best high school prospects in the nation attend and a group of elite college players are selected to help mentor through the weekend.

I arrived at the University of Akron's Rhodes Arena on Monday morning just in time to hear the best basketball player on the planet deliver a brief lecture to a handful of collegians. "The key is, can you take what you've learned here, go home and make your teammates better," LeBron James said. "It's easy to do that when you've got good players around you. But when you've got a guy who can't break someone down, or can't make a three-pointer, it's still up to you to make that person better. That's what it's all about. That's all I've got to say."

LeBron James took the court against some of the country’s top college players in his hometown and – surprise, surprise – he stayed on the court for a while.

Jason Thompson has set high goals for himself this winter at Rider University.

The Rider University men’s basketball team will take on North Carolina State University Thanksgiving Day in the first round of the 2007 Old Spice Classic.  The game is scheduled to be played Thursday, November 22, at 2:00 pm and televised live on ESPN2.