By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

Lathaniel Bastian will continue his athletic and academic collegiate career at the NCAA Division II level with the Angelo State Rams.

Bastian, who spent the last two seasons with the Trinity Valley Community College Cardinals at the JuCo level, is a member of the Rams’ highly touted incoming recruiting class hoping to contend for the Lone Star Conference title.

As a sophomore with the Cardinals last season, Bastian averaged 5.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He also finished with 19 blocks, 11 steals, and 14 assists on 53 percent shooting from the field.

“If I have said it once, I have said it at least 20 times that [Tanny’s] motor on the glass reminds me of Dennis Rodman,” Rams Head Coach Cinco Boone said on the school’s athletic website, “He really pursues the basketball on both ends of the floor from a rebounding standpoint. He also has a good frame to him and has good skill straight-line driving the basketball and finishing around the basket. He is strong and athletic and really has a charismatic personality. He played for an outstanding junior college programme in Trinity Valley Community College and played for great coaches in Coach Furr, Coach Sikes, and Coach Leslie. They had a terrific season during 2020-21 as they reached the national tournament in Hutchinson, Kansas. Tanny played an important role in their success and we look forward to him making his mark on the Ram programme immediately.”

The Rams finished last season 8-10 and were eliminated by Texas A&M-Kingsville in the opening round of the Lone Star Conference Tournament.

In last year’s regular season finale, Bastian finished with a season high 14 points, four rebounds and two steals in the Cardinals’ 87-68 win over Lamar State - Port Arthur College. He also posted seven double digit rebound games and seven games where he scored in double figures.

Some of his top performances of the season included 12 points and 13 rebounds in the Cardinals’ 97-42 win over Bossier Parish Community College and 12 points, 11 rebounds, and two blocks in a 92-68 win over Panola College. He also posted a season high 14 rebounds in a 101-59 win over Victoria College.

The 6’7” 240 pound forward played locally with the Doris Johnson Mystic Marlins programme at the high-school level before continuing collegiately in the United States.

Last August, he participated in the All-American Junior College Basketball Showcase in Stone Mountain, Georgia. The showcase was designed for the players to play in front of a national audience on ESPN, CBS Sports, and Rivals with NBA personnel and numerous other national media and scouting services on hand.