I was able to get a look at Mineral Area College forward Jeremy Felton on Saturday at Kaskaskia College in Centralia, IL. Felton put up 21 points and double digit boards as his Cardinals (4-2) hung a 72-67 loss on the Blue Devils (1-4).
Felton had a huge first half scoring 14 points, and displayed his leaping ability with 2 monster blocks. He showed the ability to knock down 15 foot jumpers and also cashed in on a few big dunks when the Kaskaskia big men forgot about him under the basket.
This was the type of game that showed the potential for success at the D1 level. Unfortunately, Felton has not been able to consistently put together these types of games this season. He was held scoreless in a loss to SWIC last week; something that shouldn't happen to a player of his caliber.
Defensively, Felton went up against the post players for Kaskaskia and was able to hold his own. However, he wasn't particularly active and was slow to jump out and guard on the perimeter a few times. Those are the areas he'll need to improve on to make the jump to the next level of college ball.
As reported on Thursday, it's clear that Felton will not be signing with the Salukis during the early period, and I did not notice anyone from the Saluki staff at this game which is probably an indication that the Dawgs will look in another direction altogether. However, If Felton can improve his effort and defense while putting up double-doubles every night he should draw a good deal of interest from schools in the Spring.
