Hometown Heroes: Palmetto's Jarrid Rhodes continues his success at collegiate level

Former Palmetto High standout Jarrid Rhodes continues to shine on the hardwood.

The sharpshooting guard leads Northern Oklahoma State College at Tonkawa in scoring with a 14.4-points-per-game average and is third on the team with 4.9 rebounds per game,

Known for his long-range shooting at Palmetto, though he was one of the Tigers' tallest players, Rhodes is connecting on 36.3 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc and 43.9 percent overall for the National Junior College Division I program, which finished last week with a 9-2 record.

The 6-foot-7 sophomore has scored in double figures in nine of 11 games and has gone over 18 points four times with a high of 26 points in a victory over Butler Community College. Projected over a 40-minute game, Rhodes would average 20.9 ppg.

In his senior year, Rhodes was a key player in Palmetto's 23-6 team that reached the region finals. He was also named MVP at the Florida Athletic Coaches Association All-Star game.

DESANTA' FRANKLIN-JORDAN -- Known for her versatility at Southeast, Franklin-Jordan scored 11 points and pulled in eight rebounds to spark St. Thomas University to its first win of season the recently, a 54-49 victory over Puerto Rico-Mayaguez.

The 5-7 junior guard is tied for second on the team averaging 9 points per game, is third with 4.2 rebounds per game and tied for second with 12 assists. She averaged 9.3 ppg last season for the Bobcats.

The NAIA Division II program got a boost this year when Lacey Houston, another standout for John Harder's Southeast program, joined St. Thomas. The 5-5 junior guard put together two of her best games back to back when she scored eight points on 4-for-4 shooting against Montana Tech and scored eight against Montana Western.

QUENTON BUNDRAGE -- The Manatee High product finished his career at Iowa State on a good note after sitting out 2014 with an injury. The 6-2 receiver leaves with 1,456 reception yards on 109 catches. Statistically, he had his best season as sophomore in 2013, when he caught 48 passes for 676 yards and nine touchdowns.

Bundrage has said he wants to play at the next level and several scouting reports have him projected as a late round draft pick and someone who should receive an invitation to a camp.

RYAN MCMAHON -- Louisville head basketball coach Rick Pitino has decided to give McMahon, a true freshman a redshirt season. The renowned coach said the six-foot, 167 pound McMahon needs to add strength.

The prolific scorer, who sparked Cardinal Mooney to the state final four last season, has drawn raves from his teammates who describe him as a crafty, skilled offensive player.

For his part, McMahon told the Courier-Journal last week that he is going to spend as much time as he can watching videos of Stephan Curry, the NBA's leading scorer who is already considered best 3-point shooter of all time by many.

"I've learned a lot of tricks and how to be savvy and clever," McMahon told the Courier Journal. "I've learned to be crafty and use my size and weight to my advantage. I can be deceivingly athletic with my size."

In earning Bradenton Herald Player of the Year honors last year, McMahon averaged 26.4 points per game and shot a blistering 51 percent from 3-point land.

ANTONIO BLAKENEY -- Another Bradenton Herald Player of the Year from Cardinal Mooney, Blakeney is off to a fast start with LSU. The 6-4 true freshman guard is the Tigers' second-leading scorer (14 PPG) and is third in rebounding. His career high so far is 22 points, which he scored against South Alabama and McNeese State.

DOMINIQUE RODGERS-CROMARTIE -- Things may be going tough for the slumping New York Giants, but standout defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie has not allowed it to sway him from his promise to never forget kids, whether it's in Manatee County or elsewhere.

DRC played his senior season at Lakewood Ranch, while his father, Stan Cromartie, was a standout basketball player at Southeast.

His DRC foundation hosted a huge private chef-prepared Thanksgiving Dinner for a group of Harlem (N.Y.) teens in Manhattan the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

"I enjoy giving back and supporting youth that are facing challenges in their lives," Cromartie said. "The DRC Foundation is my platform to empower youth to believe they can achieve whatever they put their minds to."

This story was originally published December 1, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Hometown Heroes: Palmetto's Jarrid Rhodes continues his success at collegiate level ."