Texas Tech commit Jordan Brangers signed his National Letter of Intent to play basketball for the Red Raiders this past Wednesday, capping off an up-and-down path that saw him graduate high school in Kentucky and make his way through two other colleges before landing at South Plains.
His long road ended with him signing to play at a Big 12 school this past week.
“Really, at the time, I didn’t think I’d be signing that high,” Brangers said,” but I had a feeling that I would find a great fit and that was Texas Tech. It’s an amazing feeling now that I’ve signed with Texas Tech. It’s a huge relief now that I don’t have to worry about what school I’m going to next year and can focus on winning a championship for South Plains.
“It’s a crazy feeling. I’ve been to a lot of schools throughout my basketball career, and I wasn’t sure where I was going to end up. God blessed me with the opportunity to be at South Plains College, which is one of the best basketball colleges in the country. I had the opportunity to go to Texas Tech, and I took advantage of it.”
Brangers ability to handle the ball and shoot as well as he can stood out to Beard. Brangers skills on the court were honed in through hours and hours of practice.
“When it comes to work ethic, that’s the biggest aspect in an athlete’s life. He needs a good work ethic to get to where he needs to be. If it’s not early in the morning, it is late at night, I try to get at least 700-800 shots up, so that I can be on top of my game. I work on my ball handling, I work on all the extra stuff as well. If any player is working harder than all the other players, he is going to have a step up.
“I try to get 700-800 shots up a day, and I do usually get those in every day. Sometimes I’ll stay in there a little bit longer and get 1,000 up.”
Brangers is excited to bring that same drive and work ethic to Texas Tech.
“Recently talking with coach Beard, he said that signing with Texas Tech was a great fit, and he is happy and honored to get to coach me next season. Like any other Big 12 coach, he has high expectations of a national championship and hopes to get it done. I’m excited to be a part of that.”
Brangers has played in four games games so far this season, averaging 16 points, 2.3 rebounds, and shooting 50 percent from beyond the arc (16-32). In his limited action, Brangers has shown flashes of what he can bring to Texas Tech, and he is ready to continue to show off his game.
“If Tech fans haven’t seen me play, I want them to know that I can flat out score the basketball. Not only can I shoot threes, I love getting to the basket. I have a great IQ. What most people really don’t know about me is that I love passing the ball. I love seeing my teammates score. Since I’m a scorer, I can open up things for my teammates.”
South Plains is one of the top JUCO basketball programs in the country, with several of Brangers’ teammates also signing to play Division I basketball. Spending a year at a high-level program like SPC should really help cultivate Brangers’ winning mindset. Brangers said once he wins a championship at SPC, he is ready to do the same at Texas Tech.
“As a team at Texas Tech, I honestly just want to win games. I want to have big seasons of 20-plus wins and making the NCAA tournament and possibly even win the whole thing. As far as it goes to myself, I just want to play well enough so that I can be on an NBA draft board. That’s been my goal since I was little. I want to make it to the NBA, and I still believe that.”
