A trio of NCAA Division I transfers, a pair of junior college additions and an incoming freshman are the six newest members of the 2021-22 UTM men’s basketball roster, head coach Ryan Ridder announced today.
KJ Simon (Bethune-Cookman), KK Curry (South Alabama) and Koby Jeffries (UAB) are joining the Skyhawks after spending last season at Division I institutions while Mikel Henderson (Cowley) and Chris Nix (Columbia State) will come to UTM from junior college programs. David Kamwanga is the second freshman so far to join Ridder’s initial signing class as he will join the Skyhawks out of Fork Union Military Academy.
These six join Bernie Andre (Gr., F, North Miami Beach, Florida), Darius Simmons (Gr., G, Raleigh, North Carolina), David Didenko (Jr., F, Yakutsk, Russia) and Grant Hurst (Fr., G, Cleveland, Tennessee) on the roster during Ridder’s first campaign on the Skyhawk bench.
KJ Simon, G, 6-3, 205, Jr., Orlando, Florida (Bethune-Cookman)
Was part of the Bethune-Cookman program last season under Ridder but did not play as the school opted out of all sports…Spent his first two collegiate seasons at Troy, where he played in 60 career games while making 13 starts from 2018-20 at Troy under head coaches Scott Cross and Phil Cunningham…Accumulated 245 points, 146 rebounds, 77 assists, 46 steals and 19 blocks during his Trojan tenure, averaging 15.4 minutes per contest…Played in all 31 games and cracked the starting lineup a dozen times during this sophomore campaign, averaging 4.7 points and 3.5 rebounds per outing…Scored in double figures on six different occasions, including a career-best 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting against UAB on Nov. 7, 2019…Was responsible for a pair of double-doubles, accomplishing that feat against Carver on Nov. 18 (11 points, career-high 11 rebounds) and at Georgia State (14 points, 10 rebounds) on Feb. 1…Additionally grabbed 10 rebounds while divvying out a career-best five assists against Texas A&M on Nov. 20…Swiped multiple steals in 10 different games as a sophomore…Averaged 3.4 points per game while shooting 52.7 percent (39-of-74) from the floor as a freshman…Scored a season-best 12 points twice (season-high five field goals made at Georgia Southern on Feb. 15, career-best three trifectas at Coastal Carolina on March 9)…Hauled in a season-high seven rebounds (to go along with seven points) against No. 11 Florida State on Dec. 3 and stuffed the statsheet all around against Georgia Southern on Jan. 17 (nine points on 4-of-4 shooting, four rebounds, three assists, career-best three steals, one block)…Handed out at least three assists in six different games, had five multi-steal efforts and swatted away at least two blocked shots on three separate occasions…Prepped at West Orange High School, where he averaged 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists per game as a senior for head coach Eric Jones…Helped lead the Warriors to the 2018 state Final Four, scoring a team-best 20 points against nationally ranked Oak Ridge…Additionally shattered the school’s single-game record with 13 assists and also went off for 34 points in the Metro vs. Florida All-Star Game.
“KJ is someone we have great familiarity with, being with us at Bethune-Cookman last year,” Ridder said. “He is a great person on and off the court that we know can come in and have a major impact at the guard position for us.”
KK Curry, F, 6-6, 205, So., Cleveland, Tennessee (South Alabama)
Spent the last two seasons playing at South Alabama under head coach Richie Riley, helping the Jaguars to 37 wins and a 23-14 mark in Sun Belt Conference play…Tallied 214 points, 122 rebounds, 17 assists, 22 blocks and 16 steals over 50 career games (eight starts) during his time in Mobile, Ala., shooting 51.4 percent (74-of-144) from the floor and sinking 75.9 percent (66-for-87) of this free throw attempts…As a sophomore in 2020-21, he averaged 5.5 points and 3.0 rebounds over 15.8 minutes per game, logging six starts during the midseason…Cracked double figures in the scoring column seven times (all in the first 14 games of the season), including a career-best 20 points to go along with a career-high nine rebounds at Alabama A&M on Dec. 19, making a career-best 10 free throws in that contest…Also nearly snared double-doubles against Coastal Carolina (19 points, nine rebounds on Jan. 8), Appalachian State (16 points, nine rebounds on Jan. 15) and Georgia Southern (12 points, nine rebounds on Jan. 1)…Ranked second on the team in blocks with five multi-block performances (including a career-high three swats against Appalachian State on Jan. 16)…Also added a pair of multi-steal performances…Saw playing time in 23 games as a true freshman, averaging 2.9 points and 1.8 rebounds while connecting on 62.2 percent (28-for-45) of his field goal tries in 9.3 minutes per contest…Best game of the season came at Alabama A&M on Dec. 17 as he notched season-highs in points (15), rebounds (six) and minutes played (32), going 5-for-6 from the field…Also added 10 points in his collegiate debut against Pikeville (Nov. 6) and at Georgia Southern (Feb. 1)…Scored the game-winning bucket with a floater off an offensive rebound with 0.5 seconds remaining to help the team to a 50-49 win against Louisiana-Monroe on Feb. 15…Played his final season of high school for head coach Jere Quinn at St. Thomas More School in Oakdale, Conn., where he was named a three-star prospect and the No. 6 ranked player in Connecticut by 247Sports.com…Also played at Cleveland High School, where he was a Class AAA Tennessee State Sports Writers Association all-state honoree for the 2016-17 season…Was the No. 11 ranked high school prospect in Tennessee in his class…Guided the Blue Raiders to the District 5-3A regular season and tournament championships as a junior, helping CHS finish with a 25-4 overall record…Earned the Region Tournament MVP award…Poured in 29 points in the 2017 District 5-AAA championship game against East Hamilton.
“KK has a relentless motor,” Ridder said. “He can guard multiple positions on the floor and put bigtime pressure on the rim. We’re excited to coach KK over these next few years.”
Koby Jeffries, G, 6-3, 190, R-Fr., Olive Branch, Mississippi (UAB)
Played last season for head coach Andy Kennedy at UAB as the Blazers went 22-7 overall with a 13-5 mark in Conference USA play in 2020-21…Played in 10 games, tallying five points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals in 40 minutes of action…Scored four points with a rebound, an assist and a steal in only 11 minutes in his collegiate debut against Alcorn State on Nov. 25…Attended The Skill Factory prep school located in Woodstock, Ga., where he was selected to participate in the Nike Global Jam in Gran Canaria, Spain as well as the prestigious All-American Jamboree and National Prep Showcase events…Captured first team all-tournament accolades and earned the “Best Point Guard” award after averaging 17.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.9 steals per contest at the Nike Global Jam…Graduated from First Assembly Christian School in Cordova, Tenn….Guided the Crusaders to a 41-11 record and a pair of District 2 championships in his two seasons, collecting back-to-back TSSAA District 2 Player of the Year honors under head coach Dee Wilkes…Was also a first team all-region selection after averaging 19 points, eight rebounds and eight assists per game for the Crusaders…One of his best performances came in a district contest against Sacred Heart of Jesus when he pumped in 40 points…His successful run at FACS came after he spent his first two high school seasons at Lausanne Collegiate High School.
“Koby has bigtime pedigree playing in a really good program at UAB last year as well as a successful high school program,” Ridder said. “We look forward to him being an integral piece of our initial recruiting class.”
Mikel Henderson, G, 6-1, 165, So., Lee’s Summit, Missouri (Cowley College)
Was an integral part of Cowley College’s record-setting season in 2020-21 as the Tigers finished as NJCAA national runner-up, matching the school’s best finish since the 1952-53 season…Playing for head coach Tommy DeSalme, Henderson helped Cowley to a 50-11 mark over the last two seasons with a pair of Jayhawk Conference championships and its first Region VI title in 64 years…Finished his Tiger career as the school’s 14th all-time leading scorer with 962 career points as Cowley led the country in scoring during his freshman season and ranked second nationally in that same category during his sophomore campaign…Swished 181 three-pointers while shooting 39.6 percent from three-point land in his two-year Tiger career…Averaged 16.4 points, a team-best 4.4 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game last season, earning All-Region accolades for the second consecutive season…Shot 39.3 percent (86-of-219) from three-point range and sank a team-high 86.6 percent (123-for-142) of his attempts from the charity stripe…Collected All-NJCAA Tournament honors after averaging 23.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.3 rebounds in the four games…Tossed in a team-high 21 points in the 2021 national championship game against Coffeyville and scored 22 points with a game-high seven assists to help Cowley erase a 25-point deficit in the Elite 8 round against top-seeded Mineral Area, who was previously unbeaten…Went off for a season-high 33 points (including a 7-of-12 performance from three-point land) in the NJCAA Tournament first round game against Trinity Valley…Had 12 games with at least 20 points last season and hit at least 3 three-pointers on 18 separate occasions (including an 8-of-11 effort from downtown at Butler Community College on March 29)…Knocked down double-digit free throws in back-to-back games (season-high 11 against both Hutchinson on Feb. 17 and Pratt on Feb. 20)…Grabbed a season-high seven rebounds against Cloud County on March 21…Handed out at least five assists in a dozen different games, including a career-best nine dimes at Cloud County on March 13…Swiped multiple steals in nine contests with his career-high of five coming on March 10 against Butler Community College…Averaged 14.3 points, 4.1 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.5 steals per contest as a freshman, sinking 40.1 percent (95-for-237) of his three-point field goal attempts…Came away with six 20-plus point performances, including a season-best 31 points (on 11-of-18 shooting against Butler Community College on Jan. 29…Nailed at least three trifectas in 19 different games, including a trio of games with six treys in a five-game span from Jan. 13-29…Hauled in a career-high eight rebounds against Hutchinson on March 1…Distributed at least five assists in 13 outings with a season-high eight assists coming against Kirkwood on Nov. 9…Accounted for 15 multi-steal games, equaling his career-high with five swipes against Seward County on Dec. 11…Prepped at Lee’s Summit North High School under head coach Mike Hilbert, where he helped guide the Broncos to a 27-4 record and an appearance in the Missouri state tournament Final Four as a senior…Secured All-Greater Kansas City Suburban Conference first team honors…Averaged 15.6 points during the 2018-19 regular season but elevated his play in the postseason, averaging 21.0 points per contest…Tallied 22 points (including a 13-of-14 performance from the free throw line) in the state third-place game against Francis Howell on March 16…Scored 27 points – including 13 in the fourth quarter alone – in a 67-65 section win over Blue Springs South and poured in 21 points in the 63-58 overtime state quarterfinal triumph over William Chrisman…Helped his team win in the annual DiRenna Kansas vs. Missouri Boys All-Star Game in 2019.
“Mikel was a huge piece on a championship-level program in junior college,” Ridder said. “He has the ability to score the ball from all areas of the floor and that is a skill that we feel will transition well at the Division I level.”
Chris Nix, F, 6-9, 215, R-So., Nashville, Tennessee (Columbia State CC)
Put together back-to-back all-conference seasons at Columbia State Community College under head coach Winston Neal, helping the nationally ranked Chargers win the NJCAA Region 7 championship as a freshman and a 14-3 mark as a sophomore…Emerged as one of the top players in the Tennessee Community College Athletic Association, averaging team-highs of 11.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks over 16 games…Shot a sizzling 61.7 percent (82-of-133) from the field – including 3-of-4 from three-point range…Averaged nearly four offensive rebounds per game (63 in 16 outings)…Scored in double figures nine times last year, including a pair of 20-point outings…Best game came against Southwest Tennessee on Jan. 30 when he accounted for career-bests of 27 points (on 12-of-14 shooting) and 18 rebounds…Also had 22 points on 10-of-12 shooting and 10 rebounds against Dyersburg State on Feb. 25 – one of his six double-doubles on the season…Shot 80 percent or better on five separate occasions in 2020-21…Swatted away at least two shots in 12 different games, including five 3-block performances in an eight-game span during the first half of the season…Had a career-high two steals against Tennessee Valley on Feb. 9…Averaged 8.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per outing as a freshman in 2019-20, making a conference-best 66.5 percent (123-for-185) of his shot attempts…Piled up 13 double figure scoring games and six double-doubles, including season-bests of 18 points (9-of-11 shooting) and 12 rebounds at Cumberland on Dec. 1…Also tied a season-high with 18 points (9-for-12 shooting) against Cumberland on Dec. 18 and against Motlow State on Jan. 18 (including a career-best 8-of-8 effort from the free throw line)…Additionally tied a season-high with 12 rebounds as part of back-to-back double-doubles against Motlow State (Jan. 18) and Jackson State (Jan. 22)…Shot at least 80 percent in 10 different contests…Distributed a career-high seven assists and added a career-best five blocked shots at Trevecca on Jan. 14…Had 20 multi-block games, tying a career-best with five swats against Martin Methodist on Nov. 25…Also tacked on three multi-steal games…Enrolled at UTM in the 2019 spring semester but was never an official member of the team roster…Enjoyed a remarkable prep career at Hillwood High School, where he was named the District 12-AAA Player of the Year and second team All-Midstate in 2017-18…Averaged 19.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, three assists and three blocks per game for the Toppers as a senior….Had 29 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks against Cane Ridge…Named to the Beech Christmas All-Tournament team after averaging 22.0 points over three games in the event.
“Chris is an all-conference junior college player who will provide an interior presence,” Ridder said. “He can also step out and shoot the ball from the perimeter and protects the rim very well on the defensive end.”
David Kamwanga, F, 6-8, 215, Fr., Lancaster, Pennsylvania (Fork Union Military Academy)
Attended Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, Va., where he played for head coach Seth Wilson…Helped the Blue Devils go 12-8 during the 2020-21 campaign against a challenging schedule that included matchups against several top prep schools…Secured double-doubles against TPLS Christian Academy (13 points, 14 rebounds, three blocks on Nov. 10) and against Mt. Zion Prep (10 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks on Jan. 30)…Before Fork Union, he played under head coach Joe Klazas at Lancaster Catholic High School in Pennsylvania, where he helped guide the Crusaders to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association District 3 championship with a 25-3 record in 2019-20…Averaged a team-best 11.7 points per contest as a senior, helping lead LCHS to its 20th state tournament appearance in school history…Scored 19 points in the Crusaders’ second round PIAA state tournament victory over Belle Vernon…Sank the game-winning jumper – a 12-foot pull-up leaner – just before time expired in overtime of the District 3 Class 4A championship game against No. 2 seeded Bishop McDevitt, capping off a team-high 15-point, nine-rebound performance…Also helped power the Crusaders to the PIAA state tournament during his junior campaign, collecting Lancaster-Lebanon League All-Star accolades…Knocked down a pair of go-ahead, game-winning free throws with 0.1 seconds remaining in the Lancaster-Lebanon League semifinals as a sophomore…First learned to play basketball in March of 2016 at the Serge Ibaka Dreams Academy Camp in the Republic of Congo.
“David has huge upside and will be a major piece in us building a program with the right foundation,” Ridder said. “He has a good body for a freshman and his best basketball is definitely ahead of him.”
