By Nicole Alvarez
STAR
By Nicole Alvarez
Top Tiger basketball player, Shamont Brown, will become a Toro in the 2005-2006 season Brown earned a two-year scholarship to CSU Dominguez Hills.This 6-foot-4 athlete leads the RCC’s men’s basketball team with an average of 14.2 points and 7.7rebounds per game but has a game high of 24 points. He also shot 51.5percent from the floor.Starting at the age of 8 on the East Coast, Brown was influence to play basketball by his older friend Rafer Alstin, who now plays for the Toranto Raptors.Brown has three sisters and two brothers, none of whom played basketball.”My siblings were there for me and were very supportive growing up,” Brown said.”My mother pushed me to stay with basketball, the streets were calling me, but she said to stick with basketball because I would have a brighter future,” Brown said.Growing up Brown played in a league called AAU, which is a travel team. And during high school Brown had a female coach at Flushing High School in Jamaica, NY, which was unusual for a men’s varsity team. “She taught me a lot, motivated me, and helped me prepare for the college level,” Brown said.Soon after high school, Brown moved to Riverside to get away from all the distractions on the East Coast. He felt there were “better opportunities exposed.”Last year at RCC Brown played a four, which is a power forward. This year he moved to the three, which is a small forward.”I think I am a more offensive player. I can do both, but on offense I can help get the team motivated, I can make plays around me, and I can create my own shot,”Brown said.Assistant coach Bobby Tossetti says that he can do everything as a basketball player. Brown played in a showcase at Fullerton College and played well. That’s when CSU Dominguez Hills started looking at him and has stuck with him ever since. “Shamont is a person you can meet and stay in contact with all your life. He is easy to get along with, he is the best team player, and he is extremely hard working, “Tossetti said.Last year Brown earned honorable mention in the Orange Empire Conference but this year received first All-Orange Empire Conference.Brown’s improvement this season is having more knowledge of the game. He is looking forward to getting better as a player and learning more in the future.”The coaching staff this year helped me really enjoy my experience, they have taught me about life just as much as they have taught me about basketball, “Brown said.Every player has a most memorable moment. Brown’s is hearing how excited his mother was when she found out that he signed his national letter-of-intent with CSU Dominguez Hills on April 26.”My coach (John Smith) was telling her over the phone and when I got on the phone she was crying,” Brown said.Teammate Danny Renneisen thinks that usually the best player is big headed, but Brown is the complete opposite.”As good as a player he is, he’s an even better person.” Renneisensaid.”Usually there is a transition period for people just going on to a higher level, but moving up to a division two Shamont’s game is already at that level that it would have to be,” Renneisen said.There is nothing but more basketball in the future for Brown. He just wants to play basketball and get a degree. Basically be successful.”I am undecided on my major right now because I am focusing on becoming a professional basketball player, but sports medicine is in my eyes because if the pros doesn’t work out, I still want to be around sports,” Brown said.
