Bob Jones senior hits 1,000 score benchmark

HUNTSVILLE – Heading into the second-round matchup versus Enterprise in the 42nd annual Huntsville City Classic, Bob Jones senior center/forward Kaden Rickard needed 9-points to reach among the elite high school players to score 1,000 points in a playing career.

Anticipating the benchmark to be reached easily as Rickard is averaging 14 points per game, the necessary points came with five minutes remaining in the game as the 6-foot-6 Rickard stopped near the free throw line and hit a smooth 15-footer for his ninth point of 11 for the game where the large attending crowd rejoiced with applause as the announcement was made for his 1,000th point was made.

“It means a lot to me, as it’s a prestigious mark and it’s all in thanks to my teammates and coaches who put me in position to get it and it’s awesome,” said Rickard, who’s in his second season at Bob Jones transferring to the program last season after two years at nearby Westminster Christian.

“While I did play at Discovery Middle School prior to moving to Westminster, I really didn’t know what would go on the high school stage to be able to get to 1,000 points.”

“He can play. The best part of his game is he becomes a facilitator and becomes a guard on the floor and that’s one thing that guys at the next level as they started recruiting him and that’s what they saw,” said Bob Jones head coach Bryant Starkey. “He’s an excellent passer but can go get a bucket when he wants to and he’s a special player and to get those 1,000 points here at the City Classic is awesome. I know he’s happy about the one thousand points, but he just wants to win. He enjoys playing.” Rickard recently signed a scholarship with Murray State where he’ll study business. He’s known to have a high basketball IQ as much of his on-thecourt intelligence came from when he was a small boy growing up in Madison his mother would spend time coaching him as she, too, was a former high school and college player.

“I had a basketball goal at my house and all my friends would come over and play. That was fun, but one time the goal broke and I was upset,” said Rickard.

Watching Rickard on the court he seems to flow with ease, a smooth operator connecting the dots for the rest of the team. As Starkey once stated about his star player, “He makes the game look easy.”

“He is a super smooth player. At times, I encourage him to turn it up a little bit, but you have to realize he’s just playing at a different speed,” said Starkey.

“He’s become a little more of a vocal leader. In his first year here, he was a little hesitant as he had not been with those guys in the locker room, so he wasn’t very vocal, but he did everything right, set the standard and now he’s become a more vocal leader,” added Starkey. “I feel like we got the best player on the floor every night. That’s a good feeling as a coach.”

In the semi-finals of the Classic versus undefeated Huntsville, the left-handed Eric Marrow hit his only three-pointer on the night with three seconds remaining in overtime for Bob Jones at its defeat of the No. 2 ranked Panthers 59-58 and advance to the Classic finals versus Buckhorn. In the championship game, junior Jacob Parks had a game-high 28 points and Rickard added 15 to help the Patriots to a convincing championship outcome defeating the Class 6A No. 7 Bucks (135) 68-52 giving the Patriots (14-7) their first Classic title since 2011.

For Rickard, in the final two contests of the 16team, three-day tournament, he scored 16-points in the semi-final and 15 in the championship game to go along with 9 points in the tourney opening game against Mae Jemison giving him 51 points for the tournament and he was presented the Tournament MVP Award for his outstanding performances.

Rickard now has 1,033 points in his play on the hardwoods in high school.

For the smooth-sailing Rickard, the sky is the limit with his destiny set as a small boy playing hoops with his mother who helped set his course of success.