Middle Georgia College signed its second basketball player from the local area this past week. Recently, Justin Brown with Central Fellowship signed with the college in Cochran. Friday it was Houston County High School’s Buddy Bivins’ turn.

“First off he’s a great student,” said MGC Assistant Coach and Recruiter Jamie Brooks on why the school sought him out. “(Second) we’ve got a couple of good scorers he can get the ball to (via the point guard position, which is where Bivins played and excelled with the Bears) … He’s right up there to compete for a starting position.”

And oh by the way, Assistant Coach and Recruiter Jamie Brooks said he – and Head Coach Scott Moe echoed those comments at Brown’s signing - these two are just the first in a long line of many to come.

“There’s really good basketball being played in this area,” he said. “We hope to be able to tap into that pipeline.”

Bivins, departing Houston County Head Coach Jody Dean (headed to Veterans High) said, was the only “pure point guard we had. That means he had to be on the floor 99 percent of the time to be able to handle the ball,” Dean said. “And really I thought he was the best point guard in our region, a ‘true’ point guard, because not only was he able to handle the ball, he’s good at scoring.

“For being as small as he is, he’s also willing to get in there and get a rebound, willing to do the tough man stuff, too. He was absolutely invaluable to us.”

Bivins has actually been playing basketball since he was about 3 – at the gym since about 1 - his father David said, who along with wife, Tracy, are retired Air Force. “I played some intramural (base teams),” the elder said. “I’d take him to the gym and he’d hang out and (eventually began) playing. He was shooting three’s when he was about 7.”

Bivins said he chose to continue his playing career – and education – with the Warriors because he liked how they played … “Fast-paced like Houston County,” he said, having also looked at a school in Florida before making his decision. His plan, he said, is to major in occupational therapy.

MGC is coming off a year in which it finished 29-5 and won the Georgia Junior College Athletic Association conference championship.