Injuries and youth hampered the Northern Arizona basketball program last season but as they begin their 2016-17 campaign under head coach Jack Murphy, their is a heightened scenes of optimism to bring back the magic of the post season from two seasons ago.
One of the key pieces the ‘Jacks return this year will be starting point guard Jaleni Neely who played in just nine games last year in which he started in eight and averaged 10.6 points shooting 35.7 percent from 3-point range.
Neely will playing his last season of college basketball as a redshirt senior and is eager to put it all out on the line and go out with a bang. His college career has seen him play all over the country since graduating from basketball power Simeon High School in Chicago, IL. Neely sat down with Sports360AZ to discuss his Simeon High roots, his relationship with former high school teammate Jabari Parker who is now with the Milwaukee Bucks and why point guards have been able to thrive playing under Coach Murphy.