NCS Junior of the Year
JADEN ALEXANDER, ST. PATRICK-ST. VINCENT
The term “playing the game the right way” is often misapplied, with fans using the term to describe a player whose style they personally
enjoy. In reality, playing the game the right way means maximizing one’s abilities to help their team win.
There’s no doubt that St. Patrick-St. Vincent forward Jaden Alexander played the game the right way. In fact, he was so prolific throughout
the season that he earned the honor of Prep2Prep NCS Boys Basketball Junior of the Year.
Over the course of a 26-win season that culminated in the Bruins reaching the Northern California Division II Championship Game, the
6-foot-4 Alexander averaged 19.6 points, shot 50 percent from the field and gathered 7.9 rebounds per night,
relentlessly slashing to the hoop, eating up every board in sight and looking like a seasoned veteran,
rather than a player who had dealt with injuries.
“He broke his leg in the state tournament against Serra last year and effectively had no summer as a result,” head coach Derek Walker said.
That return from injury seemed to have no bearing on Alexander’s success on the court. He opened the season with outings of 26 and 22
points in wins over Moreau Catholic and Sacred Heart Prep at the NorCal Tip-Off Classic and Riordan
Crusader Classic, respectively. With point guard Jalen Scott and center DJ Jackson both dealing with
injuries throughout the season, Alexander was present at every turn, even with the rest of the lineup
acting as a resolving door of sorts.
“His availability was huge,” Walker said. “He was healthy every game.”
A double-digit scorer in 34 of SPSV’s 37 contests, Alexander’s biggest game of all came January 11 at the prestigious Father Kelly
Tribute, in which he scored 37 on 15-of-18 free throw shooting in a 70-61 win over Jesuit, the hosts of
the elite showcase. Of the three games in which he didn’t get into double figures, two were in rematches
with league opponents who were dead set on not letting him burn them a second time. Countering those
adjustments were no issue for the forward, who scored 21 in a third meeting with Salesian, standing out
as the top individual player on the floor even as the Pride won the TCAL Rock Tournament.
Oh, and that third game in which he was under 10 points? He scored nine in a 43-40
overtime win over Branson, a program with a reputation as the top defensive stalwart in the entire Bay Area, as the Bruins became
North Coast Section Division 3 Champions.
With a section crown under his belt, Alexander heads into his senior year where the only question about his game is a matter of just how
high his ceiling is.
“He’s definitely a four-year college guy,” Walker said of his top returner. “His game reminds me a lot of Tavian Henderson, who’s at Cal
Poly Pomona.”
Rather than try to shoot from the volleyball lines, Alexander has molded his skills to help the Bruins win, rather than try to reach for
skills that will serve him when he arrives at the college level.
“I see a lot of guys who try to use high school to work on their college game, and I think you should do it in reverse. Focus on doing
what your team needs to do to win now and then work on those other assets during the offseason,” Walker
explained. “He’s working on his outside game, but I like him for who he is. If you can get 20 points on
two-footers, do it.”
The skillset that a 6-foot-4 player uses in high school won’t match with the one needed to succeed in the college game, but he’s already
got what it takes to be a productive starter for a Division II or Division III program, even before his
senior year, where there’s still room for him to hit another growth spurt. For now, Alexander’s abilities
are more than what’s needed to make the Bruins a winning team. What’s more, he’s got the academic skills
to excel at just about any school, always keeping his GPA over 3.5, and he became much more vocal as a leader
during his junior season.
“As a sophomore, he nodded his head when you asked questions, but he wouldn’t really talk,” Walker said. “This year, he became a leader.
He checks all the boxes.”
With the uncertainty surrounding the coming school year, no one can truly pinpoint when it is Alexander will take the court again, but
when he does, he’ll be in prime position to turn college coaches’ heads as the top returning player in
a program that constantly churns out college ballers.
“The shutdown came at a bad time for his recruiting, but when he gets back out there, he’ll be ready to be the first guy on every
opponent’s scouting report,” Walker commented.
Other players considered for this award include: De La Salle's Miles Daniels, Acalanes' Scott Ruegg, Dougherty Valley's Aidan Sevilla,
Moreau Catholic's DJ Johnson, Mt. Diablo's Mezziah Oakman and Salesian's Demarshay Johnson, Jr.
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