Kentucky Wesleyan College head men’s basketball coach Drew Cooper has added four players to his 2018-19 season roster in Deng Mayot, Zach Hopewell, Amandas Urkis and Tyler Bezold.
Deng Mayot joins Wesleyan from Pensacola State College, a member of the NJCAA Division I Panhandle conference, arguably one of the most competitive junior college conference in the country. Prior to Pensacola Sate, the 6’7” forward attended St. James College in Brisbane, Australia. He was named the St. James College Athlete of the Year in 2016 and also won the SEQ State Championship in 2015. While at Pensacola State College, he earned a spot on the Panhandle Academic team in 2016.
Zach Hopewell returns home to Owensboro after spending one season at Murray State University. The Apollo High School graduate was named 3rd Region Player of the Year and was a finalist for Mr. Basketball that same season. The 6’2” combo guard accumulated 1,400 points for the Eagles while being named to a pair of 9th District Tournament teams.
Amandas Urkis comes to Wesleyan from Kaunas, Lithuania. The 6’7” forward played at Lee Academy. Urkis received an invitation to play for the Lithuanian National Basketball team in 2017 where they finished second at a tournament in France. He led the Lithuanian Regional Basketball League in three point shooting and in the Top 10 in league scoring.
Tyler Bezold hails from Taylor Mill, Kentucky where he attended Holy Cross High School in 2016 and has spent the past two seasons at Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, Ohio. In high school, the 1,000 point scorer played in the Kentucky East West All-Star Game in 2016 after being named First-Team All-Region. A 6’3” forward, Bezold was a three-time NKAC selection and led Holy Cross to their first regional appearance in 15 years during his senior season.