JACKSON GRADUATES CONTINUE TO HELP COLUMBIA COLLEGE

The Jackson High School pipeline is alive and well at Columbia College.

Located in Columbia, Mo., the Cougars have built a basketball powerhouse on the NAIA level thanks in large part to a steady stream of former Jackson players.

This year's edition of the Cougars, who are ranked fifth nationally and seeded fifth for the NAIA national tournament that begins Wednesday in Tulsa, Okla., features a pair of ex-Indians in Justin Keen and Jeff Walter.

Keen, a 6-foot-5 sophomore forward who actually began his collegiate athletic career at Southeast Missouri State University where he was the Indians' regular punter three years ago as a freshman, has started 22 games for the 28-3 Cougars and he is their sixth-leading scorer at 5.3 points per game.

Walter, a 6-6 junior forward, has not made any starts this season but he has been a valuable contributor off the bench and is averaging 2.4 points per game.

"Justin and Jeff are both doing great for us. They're a major part of our team," said Columbia College coach Bob Burchard. "They've helped us to get where we are right now. We play a lot of people, 12 per game, and depth is one of our strengths."

Keen is in his second season with the Cougars after transferring from Southeast while Walter went to Columbia College right out of high school and is in his third season with the Cougars.

"Justin plays small forward for us and he really understands the game," Burchard said. "Jeff is such a strong inside player and he's kind of a leader for us. This is his third straight trip to the national tournament."

According to Burchard, at least seven Jackson graduates have suited up for him during his 13 years as the Cougars' coach. It all started through a friendship Burchard developed with former longtime Jackson coach Steve Burk.

"We were both involved with the Missouri basketball coaches association and we got to be friends," said Burchard. "It worked out with the first (Jackson player at Columbia College) and the pipeline kind of grew from that."

The first Jackson product to play for Burchard was Kyle Thoma, who starred on the Cougars' first national tournament team in 1990. Thomas earned NAIA All-American honors, as did current Jackson coach Mike Kiehne, who is the Cougars' all-time leading scorer.

Burchard said he has had a Jackson product on his roster in all but two of his 13 seasons at Columbia College. One time was his first year. The other time, he said, just happened to coincide with the Cougars' worst season.

"After that, I figured I better have a Jackson player on my team every year," said Burchard with a laugh.

Burchard, who has led the Cougars to seven appearances in the NAIA national tournament -- including five of the past six years -- said he likes having former Jackson players on his teams for a variety of reasons.

"One thing about Jackson basketball players, you know their work ethic and their background about basketball knowledge," he said. "All have been highly intelligent kids for us, on the court and in the classroom."

Weinkein sets record

Bruce Weinkein, a graduate of Perryville High School, became the all-time leader in blocked shots at Akron this season.

The 6-11 Weinkein started 86 games during his four-year career with the Division I Zips, who compete in the Mid-American Conference.

Weinkein finished his career with 109 blocks after rejecting 29 this season for the 12-16 Zips. He averaged 6.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as a senior.

Beck comes off bench

The other former prep standout from the immediate area playing Division I men's basketball is Scott City High School product Jon Beck, who is a sophomore guard at Arkansas State.

Beck did not start any games for the Indians this season, but he appeared in 23 contests, averaging 11.5 minutes and 3.9 points per game. He hit 38 percent of his 3-point attempts.

Arkansas State went 16-12 this season, including a 10-6 mark in the Sun Belt Conference that tied the Indians for second place in the East Division. The Tribe lost in the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament.

Millham plays for MU

Jackson High School product Christa Millham is the lone former girls basketball player from the immediate area who is competing at the Division I level.

A junior guard at Missouri, Millham has played very sparingly for the Tigers, appearing in 20 games and averaging 4.8 minutes and 1.0 points.

Millham, who began her collegiate career at New Mexico State before transferring, is part of a Missouri team that finished the season with a 20-9 record and is hopeful of gaining a berth in the NCAA Tournament.