JERSEY SHORE BASKETBALL LEAGUE
A big plus for Alley Oop

Jason Thompson has NBA dreams

Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/6/07

BY STEVEN FALK
STAFF WRITER

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

"I want to be Player of the Year (in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and first team All-MAAC," Thompson said. "I'm actually trying to be an All-American this year, not just a mid-major (the term used for small Division I schools) All-American."

The 6-foot-10, 245-pound Thompson showed on Thursday night in the Verizon Fios Jersey Shore Basketball League at the McCann Activities & Athletic Center at St. Rose High School why he has set his goals so high as he scored 44 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished out four assists to lead Alley Oop to a 127-116 victory over T&T Coast in the first game of a doubleheader.

Thompson, who as a senior in high school led Lenape (Burlington County) to a 28-1 record and the NJSIAA Group IV championship, has gotten better each year through his collegiate career.

Last year, he averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds a game and was a first team All-MAAC selection and the conference's Defensive Player of the Year.

To get to the level that he wants to get to, Thompson said he recently has been to camps, sponsored by LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Amare Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns.

"I just wanted to play with the best big men in the country and see how I fared," said Thompson, who began Thursday night second in the JSBL in scoring at 37 points a game and the league leader in rebounding at 15.3 a game.

Thursday night, Thompson showed a feathery touch on his jump hook and an ability to hit a mid-range jumper. He ran the floor with abandon, threw down three monster slam dunks and also showed he can pass the ball to the open man when he is double-teamed.

"I've definitely over the years worked on my post game," Thompson said. "Now, I'm trying to work on my jump shot and my full-court dribbling. I'm trying to get it all together so I can do well for my team and make it to the next level — the NBA."

One thing Thompson would like to accomplish this season is to lead Rider to its first NCAA Tournament berth, since the 1994 team, led by point guard Deon Hames and forward Charles Smith, defeated Monmouth University in the Northeast Conference Tournament championship game and earned the school's second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Last year, the Broncs, despite Thompson's impressive season, were only 16-15 overall and finished seventh in the MAAC with a 9-9 league record. Rider was defeated, 77-52, by eventual champion Niagara in the MAAC Tournament quarterfinals.

It would appear that the Broncs, who lose only guard Terrance Mouton (the team's second-leading scorer last year) to gradation, should be in the hunt for the MAAC championship this season.

Thompson said that Rider has recruited two promising guards this year. Also, his brother, Ryan, a 6-5 sophomore guard, should play an increased role this year. Harris Mansell, who scored 29 points and connected on six 3-pointers last night, is among Rider's returnees.

"We're not trying to just be mediocre. We're trying to be the best," Thompson said.