The Bowling Green Hornets have officially announced the signings of two former members of the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Men’s Basketball program, Brandon Harris and O’Karo Akamune. The pair of seniors will look bolster the Hornets’ lineup by providing Head Coach Nathan Thompson immediate scoring help, experience, and leadership on and off the court.
Harris, the 6-1 combo guard originally from Oklahoma, is expected to significantly contribute in the backcourt with Maurice ‘Squeaky’ Hampton (Austin Peay State) and Kalen Kimberland (Lindsey Wilson), while Florida-native and 6-7 forward Akamune will help solidify the front court alongside John Paul Nyadaro (Trevecca Nazarene), DeAntra Scott (Lindsey Wilson), and Michael Gardner (University of Kentucky).
With both individuals striving to obtain opportunities to advance their professional careers overseas, the Hornets and the Central Basketball Association (CBA) are providing the perfect means to achieve their aspirations. Last season, the Hornets gave the platform for former Hilltoppers Jamal Crook and Teeng Akol to sign international contracts in Canada and Luxembourg, respectively.
With a track record of helping former NCAA Division-I, NCAA Division-II, and NAIA players advance to the next level, the Hornets and the CBA are quickly becoming popular across the United States as the fastest-growing professional basketball league in the nation behind the NBA and the NBA D-League, as evidenced through their national recognition from the Associated Press last month. In the last year, the Hornets have had three of their own players sign their first overseas contracts, while also having nine former players with international-playing experience participating on their own roster during that span.
The two new additions, Harris and Akamune, will become the sixth and seventh former Western Kentucky players to don a Bowling Green Hornets uniform in only the organization’s second year in existence, joining Crook, Akol, Kahlil McDonald, Boris Siakam, and Marcus Vasquez. Furthermore, the organization may not be done adding local talent to their roster, as they currently are in preliminary negotiations with two other former Hilltoppers, as the team looks to improve their talent on the court with key mid-season acquisitions.
Harris and Akamune are expected to make their debut for Bowling Green this Saturday, April 5 in Nashville versus the Middle Tennessee Storm (2-1). The duo will make their home debut for the Hornets next Saturday, April 12, against the Memphis Soul Kings at Russellville High School. The Hornets (1-3) currently sit 1.5 games out of the fourth and final post-season spot in the CBA, and will look to put together a winning streak in the final six games of the regular season in order to earn a spot in the playoffs in mid-May.
To listen to each of the Hornets games live, visit www.bghornets.com, courtesy of the Sporting Times Magazine and the Sporting Times Broadcasting Network. To stay up to date on the Hornets, as well as the CBA, visit www.playcba.com, follow them on Twitter (@BGHornetsCBA) and like their fan page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/BGHornetsCBA). For more information regarding the Bowling Green Hornets, email hornets@playcba.com.