Nearly 30 high-school players from Georgia and beyond spent their Saturday at LaGrange College for a basketball camp.
The camp was led by LaGrange College women's basketball coach Jasen Jonus, who welcomed 28 players to campus.
The players participated in drills and five-on-five competitions in Mariotti Gym, and they were also given a tour of the campus by Jonus.
"The morning was more drill work, and after that we broke up and played five on five," said Jonus, who is heading into his third season as the Panthers' head coach. "The teams that were sitting out, I took them downstairs and showed them the locker room and gave them a recruiting talk. It was probably the biggest tour I've ever given. It was 50-something with the parents. We went to admissions, and walked around. It was very thorough."
From a basketball standout, Jonus wanted to make sure it was a productive day for the players.
"Last year I felt like we had too much downtime," Jonus said. "This year I said, I want to see what their basketball IQ is like. We put them through some situations that put them at disadvantages to see how they responded."
After the drills, the players got a chance to compete in games, and there was some top-flight competition.
"When we went five-on-five, there were four games that came down to a buzzer beater," Jonus said.
From a recruiting standpoint, Jonus is hopeful some of the players will choose LaGrange College.
A handful of players from the 2022 camp are preparing for their freshmen seasons at LaGrange College.
"Last year I think we had 25 campers, and we got three of them," Jonus said. "So, it works."
The new players will join a program coming off a successful 2021-2022 season.
LaGrange College finished with a 15-10 record, and the season ended with a loss to Piedmont in the USA South tournament.
"I feel good about this year," Jonus said. "I love this team. Some of our girls, they're already gelling well together. I think six or seven of them went on a beach trip last week."
