Scott winds down superb career with ThreshersFree Access



Scott winds down superb career with Threshers

Bethel senior Jaylon Scott is ending his career with the Threshers as the all-time leading rebounder, holding a number of other records. Bethel opens NAIA national play this season at 8 p.m. Friday at the Garvey Center on the Friends University campus against Briar Cliff. Mark Schnabel/Newton Kansan

To even give a position to 6-foot-5 senior Jaylon Scott can be a difficult task. Scott can play inside or outside. He holds the team’s career rebound record. He is the career leader in double-doubles. He also is one of the team’s all-time leaders in assists. He leads in career minutes played and is the team’s second all-time leading scorer.

Scott is a two-time Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference player of the year and a three-time KCAC defensive player of the year. He is a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics All-American, a candidate to repeat this season, and is on the top 50 watch list for the Bevo Francis Award, given to the top player in the nation at all levels below NCAA Division I.

“A lot of that just comes from playing for a long time,” Scott said. “Then you have to stay healthy. I’m blessed in my time to have played in almost every game. When you do something for a long time, a lot of that comes. A lot of that goes to (coach Jayson) Artaz and my teammates. That credit goes to them.”

Scott came to Bethel from Allen, Texas, where he helped lead the Allen High School Eagles to a Class 6A state title in 2018.

“I had a teammate, Jordan Neely no. 12, we went to the same high school together,” Scott said. “He committed first. We came on a visit together. When I came out here, it was just a family atmosphere. Artaz and (athletic director Tony) Hoops were very upfront and very consistent. They were always reaching out to me on a consistent basis. They didn’t promise me anything. They would give me an opportunity. They didn’t pressure me. That was another big thing. There was another school on the table. It felt like home to me. My family was comfortable sending me here. It’s been the best decision I’ve ever made.”

“I was receiving an e-mail from a guy in the Dallas area who just wanted to share his film with me,” Artaz said. “I saw his film, and I thought, ‘Holy cow, this is the guy that we would love to have around.’ We thought he would be an awesome addition to Bethel. He’s been the face of the program. He’s the one everybody looks out for. He’s probably the best player we’ve had at Bethel, if not the best player in the KCAC. He does the right things. He’s always on time. He’s good in the community. He’s good with his teammate. The crowds have gotten behind him and behind this team.”

Scott said the decision came down between Bethel, a junior college in Texas and some other smaller schools.

Allen is a city of just over 100,000 located 20 miles north of downtown Dallas. His high school has an enrollment of about 5,300 students, or roughly 10 times the enrollment of Bethel.

“I’m used to competition every day,” Scott said. “That program helped me get ready for college basketball.”

Scott said he got used to the culture shock of moving from a major metropolitan area to small-town college life.

“I wasn’t by myself, which is good,” Scott said. “That was one of the major reasons I chose to come here. I had someone to lean on. The people here were genuine and nice. The care about us as people as well. For me, I’m a more laid-back person, more relaxed. Being from suburban Dallas, I don’t really go out much to Dallas. I stay in town. It wasn’t as bad as you think it might be.”

When Scott played in high school, he said he wasn’t a prolific scorer, but more of a role player.

“I was a defensive rebounder,” Scott said. “I didn’t score a lot at all. My highest in high school at the varsity level was 20 points. I learned in high school, they taught me how to compete, how to buy into a program and how to win. I just carried that over here. Artaz saw something in me and developed me into a scorer.”

When Scott arrived at Bethel, the team hadn’t had a winning season since 2003-04. In his first season, Bethel finished 17-13, 12-12 in conference play. The following season, the Threshers were 20-12, 14-10 in conference play. It was the team’s first 20-win season in more than a decade.

As a junior, Bethel went 21-7, winning the KCAC regular season title at 16-4 and winning the KCAC post-season tournament for the first time in school history. Bethel reached the NAIA national tournament for the second time in school history, winning its first two games to reach the round of 16. Bethel fell to eventual national champion Shawnee State 69-59.

This season, Bethel set a school record for most wins, finishing 26-7, 19-5 in KCAC play. Bethel finished second in both the KCAC regular season and finished second in the KCAC post-season tournament.

Scott’s class is the first to win 20 game or more in three consecutive seasons.

“When we first got here, I didn’t think we’d be this good,” Scott said. “You always have a vision of what you want to do. Our class coming in was good. The main corps is still here. We just competed. We stuck together. We kept getting better a little bit each year. My sophomore year, we wound up being a seven seed (in the KCAC tournament). We beat Southwestern and I thought we had a pretty good year. Then we played (Oklahoma Wesleyan) and lost. We had a bunch of seniors that year. Going into our junior year, it was like our turn to take over. Then we added Bryant Mocaby and Adam Gouro. That put us over the hump.”

“This senior class will go down as one of the best senior classes ever,” Artaz said. “When they agreed to come on, it really turned things around. Three 20-win seasons in a row. I don’t think we ever had back-toback 20-win seasons before. They have been everything to the program and the campus. I think this class is a special one.” Coming into this

Coming into this season, the Threshers were picked by the coaches and media to repeat at conference champs. The team was ranked as high as eighth in the pre-season, dropping off the poll by midseason and moving back up to 20th in the final regular-season poll. After a 5-1 start, the Threshers lost three of the next four. Bethel hit another rough patch, losing two in a row at the end of January and start of February. Since then, Bethel has won seven straight before falling to OWU in the finals of the KCAC tourney.

Scott winds down superb career with Threshers

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