FSU Inks Prep Standout Guard DeMarco Sanders

Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's basketball team has landed one of the state's top prep players with the signing of all-state guard DeMarco Sanders (Flint/Powers) to a national letter-of-intent.  The announcement was made today (April 16) by FSU head coach Bill Sall.

The 6-2 Sanders, a natural southpaw shooting guard, averaged 19.1 points per game as a senior in 2009-10 and led Flint Powers to the state quarterfinals where they lost to eventual state champion Detroit Country Day. He was an Associated Press Class B All-State First Team performer this past season along with being tabbed as a Flint Journal All-Area choice.

"DeMarco is a proven winner with good athleticism and a college-ready body," Sall said.  "He comes in with the ability to help us immediately and has been well-coached at the high school level, especially on the principles of defense."

Sanders played his prep career under a Bulldog men's basketball alum in head coach Tim Herman, who was inducted into the Ferris State Athletics Hall of Fame last fall.

After being the fourth-leading scorer as a junior on Flint Powers' 2009 Class B State Championship team, Sanders stepped into a leadership role and became the leading scorer on a squad featuring three of the state's top 12 Associated Press Class B All-State honorees in his senior campaign.

"He was a good player as a junior, but really made great progress his senior season," added Sall.  "He came on and became a tremendous player this past year."

Sanders, who played AAU basketball for the Mid-Michigan Lakers and Team Detroit, shot over 42% from three-point range this campaign.  He was chosen recently to compete in Michigan's Slam Dunk Championship and Three-Point Shootout held last weekend (April 10) at the Palace of Auburn Hills.  As a senior, he was also chosen to the all-tournament team in the annual Meijer Holiday Hoops Invitational played at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich.

Hotbed Hoops' chose Sanders as its 2009-10 All-Area Player of the Year after he finished third in the Flint area among Class A and B scoring leaders.  He was also a All-Big Nine conference honoree, a third team Bankhoops.com All-State pick along with claiming Detroit Free Press Class B All-State laurels in 2009-10.

As a high school player, Sanders played a key role on three consecutive regional championship teams that finished as the state runner-up (2007-08), state champion (2008-09) and a state quarterfinalist (2009-10).

Perhaps, one of Sanders' most impressive notes is the fact that he was still shooting 57% from the field as a guard in late February of this year, according to the Great Lakes Hoops.com website.  He finished shooting 53% overall from the floor as a senior.

"That's an incredible shooting figure for a guard and something that really stands out when you look at him," said Sall.  "Overall, his resume speaks for itself when you think about what his teams have been able to accomplish during his career."

Sanders' addition helps fill a FSU void created by the graduation loss of three senior guards this past season in Austin Randel, Josh Young and Jon Yeazel.

Ferris State concluded the 2009-10 men's basketball campaign with a 16-13 overall record and the Bulldogs placed tied for second (13-9) in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division play. In addition, FSU made its 11th GLIAC Tournament appearance this campaign, which was the program's fifth berth in the last six years.

The Bulldogs have claimed two GLIAC North Division Championships and made two NCAA Division II Tournament appearances under Sall's direction, including a trip to the NCAA-II Sweet Sixteen in 2004-05.