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Hume sixth-grader draws inspiration from former Drexel hoops star Bolton
Jacy Bolton wants to be more than just a basketball player.
A star on the hardwood for Class 1 Drexel (Mo.) High School from 2012-16, Bolton has since ascended to NCAA Division I George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, where the 6-foot-1 sophomore shooting guard has started since day one of her freshman campaign.
Bolton, who averaged 9.5 points and 4.4 rebounds as a sophomore, started in 32 of 34 games this season for 24-win George Mason. She said one of her top objectives is to inspire young girls.
“It’s important to me that people look at me as a person, and not just a basketball player,” Bolton recently told the Daily Mail. “The way I handle myself, I try to be a role model.”
An Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team selection in 2017, Bolton has made a major impression on Hume R-8 sixth-grader Brecklen Morrison. Morrison, an up-and-coming point guard for the Hume Junior High Lady Hornets, first saw Bolton play five years ago.
Morrison was in the Hume H.S. bleachers to witness Bolton’s legendary 31 point, 18 rebound, 8 block district championship game performance against Hume in late-February, 2016. The two met a short time later, and have since stayed in contact.
In January 2017 Morrison and her father Scott, the Hume R-8 superintendent, traveled to St. Louis to see Bolton and company square off with the St. Louis Billikens in an A-10 clash.
“Jacy is very inspiring. She always asks me how my tournaments with the boys go,” said Morrison, who is the lone girl on the Hornets traveling basketball team.
Morrison said she keeps up with Bolton by watching most of her games online.
“Jacy has some really cool moves,” said Morrison, adding, “I practice them at home against my brother when we play 1-on-1.”
Bolton said she is thrilled to have an adoring fan in Morrison, and hopes that Morrison can follow in her footsteps.
“She’s given me a lot of George Mason gear,” said Morrison. “I have shorts, practice jerseys, a warm-up shirt, a game-day shirt, a basketball, and a lanyard — all kinds of things.”
Morrison said she wears the George Mason gear quite often, and that she’s also received several hand-written letters from Bolton.
“She’s always been very nice to me, and is a really good role model,” said Morrison. “And I just love watching her play.”
From Class 1 to Division I
Bolton, a certified star in the Missouri prep ranks, said going straight from Class 1 to NCAA Division 1 basketball was an eye-opening experience.
“I think the biggest difference for me personally was going down to the bottom of the totem pole,” said Bolton. “When I arrived here, nobody knew what my game was like, what skill set I had. And I basically had to prove myself. Plus, the physicality and quickness of the game changed from high school.”
Bolton said a breakout freshman campaign helped her to gain immense knowledge of the game.
“At the collegiate-level, I think the game has changed the most for me with my IQ,” she explained, noting that her skill set in high school allowed her to drive to the basket and score virtually at-will.
The college game, however, is more of a chess match.
“At this level, every possession matters,” she said. “College has really made me break down the game, possession-to-possession.”
Bolton had started every game, dating back to her freshman season, but missed the final two games this season due to mono. The 24 wins represent the winningest season in the history of the program, as George Mason qualified for the Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT).
“We got our first postseason win ever for the program,” she said. “We lost in the second round, and I wasn’t able to play in either of the postseason games due to mono. Not being able to play was definitely a heartbreaker.”
Added Bolton: “We were so successful this season because of everybody contributing their part and understanding their role. There was no selfishness, the team chemistry was great, and we had all the parts this year to be a successful team. I think we made the most of it.”
Bolton’s offensive game has been drastically altered from her days of dominating area schools such as Hume and Bronaugh. Playing for Drexel Bolton did major damage slashing and scoring from the wing, getting the majority of her buckets from the low post.
“In high school I would just pump fake, go to the rim, get fouled, and get an and-1,” recounted Bolton. “But last year the coaching staff kept telling me to ‘shoot the ball, you’re a good shooter.’ So then I kind of developed into a role as a shooter. And this year, I really focused on trying to be more versatile with my game — utilize my drives too, because I knew I had it in me. I just hadn’t done it in a while.”
Bolton has played against some top competition, including No. 24 ranked Michigan in the opening round of a preseason tournament.
“Being down one at halftime to them, we realized we are in this game, we are a good team, we have the pieces. That was awesome,” recalled Bolton. Michigan, however, pulled away in the second half for the 75-61 victory.
Another memorable experience for Bolton this past season was traveling to Boulder, Colorado for a match-up with the University of Colorado Buffaloes.
“We were in it the whole game, then in the fourth quarter we kind of lost it,” said Bolton, adding that mountain elevation was the likely culprit, causing extreme fatigue.
Recruiting process
Bolton, who committed to George Mason during her junior year, was also being heavily pursued by 2005 D-2 national champions Washburn University, William Jewell, and Baker University — where her brother C.J. played basketball.
“I committed so early in the recruiting process that once they found out I was going to George Mason there was no longer any reason to recruit me,” noted Bolton.
Despite George Mason being the only D-1 offer on the table, Bolton said she was a little hesitant at first. “It was never my goal to get to Division I,” she said.
Bolton recalled a discussion with her father Dennis about her goals going into the recruiting process at the beginning of her junior year.
Said Bolton: “I was like, ‘what if I don’t go Division I?’ And he said, ‘It’s better to try and fail than to never know and always wonder.’ So I didn’t want to wonder whether I could make it to Division I — I just kind of put everything into it, and the result was making it.”
George Mason head coach Nyla Milleson made multiple recruiting trips to Drexel, including on Bolton’s senior night in 2016, where she eclipsed the 2,000 point plateau.
“(Coach Milleson) cares about me more as a person first than as an athlete. Her heart, and just the person she is, made me want to play for her. And I’m so glad that I did that, because she is a great coach,” said Bolton.
“Once I got that offer from George Mason, I think my heart was really set on making this journey something else — something bigger than me,” she said.
“Showing other young girls that making it (to this level) is possible no matter where you’re from. And I really just fell in love with the school, and everything about it.”
Bolton said one of the high points of her collegiate career occurred when her parents (Dennis and Pam) were in attendance to see her score her first career points. Bolton also mentioned dropping 21 points in front of her parents and brother at the Rocky Mountain Hoops Classic while sick.
“I was super-sick,” she said. “They say you always play your best game when you’re sick, because you’re so relaxed.”
UConn Huskies
The perennial powerhouse University of Connecticut women’s basketball team has drawn negative press, due to the number of blowout victories on head coach Geno Auriemma’s watch.
Bolton said she believes this to be unfair criticism.
“(The media) doesn’t understand the amount of pressure, in general, student-athletes have on them to perform in the classroom, and then on the court,” she said. And then everybody doubting them, not wanting them to succeed. When I look at UConn, I think about how much hard work and dedication those girls have put into the sport — and that sport is now rewarding them.”
Bolton, who recently received a provost scholar award for having a cumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher for three consecutive semesters, plans on majoring in elementary education and applying for the Bachelors/Accelerated Master’s (BAM) program.