Riders’ new man Jaren Holmes is entering his first professional season following a four-year college career.
The 6’4” guard made a name for himself as an elite scorer and facilitator during his time in the NCAA D1.
Get to know him with some of his best showings.
Career high 38 points
Holmes exploded for a career-high 38 points in just 37 minutes in his second year for St. Bonaventure Bonnies. It was a sharpshooting clinic, as a red-hot Holmes drained eight threes in his team’s 83-57 win against Saint Joseph’s Hawks.
He hit a triple to get the action underway, but it was a 28-point second half that blew the game open. He scored 11 straight points in the half to build the lead and lead the Bonnies to a blowout win.
Holmes dominated the boards as well as the scoring, grabbing 10 rebounds on his way to an emphatic double-double.
The game is tied for eighth all-time for single-game scoring performances in college history.
Back-to-back
You could have forgiven Holmes for a down game after his career-high night against St Joe’s. Instead, he went off for 26 points to lead the Bonnies to a 68-54 win against the Fordham Rams.
Holmes hit the dagger with a 1:30 remaining to seal the win, his hot hand staying hot with another five threes in the game. He went 10-16 from the field in a game where neither team found a rhythm on offence.
The win moved the team to 5-1 to start the season, in the midst of a seven-game winning streak.
Holmes went on to average 13.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game on the season, earning a place on the Atlantic 10 second-team All-Conference honours and was named to the A-10 All-Academic Team for the second year in a row.
Upset on primetime
In a top-25 matchup live on ESPN, Holmes led Iowa State to an upset win against the #5 Kansas State in front of a raucous home crowd.
He had 23 points for the Cyclones in the fight for the Big 12 one-seed, going 8-11 from the field and dishing seven assists.
It was a hard-fought game wire-to-wire, but Holmes cooly knocked down the game-winning free throws, after being sent to the line up two.
A 16-point second half from Holmes saw Iowa State take the win. Holmes led the team to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year.
Double-double against Coppin State
Playing 37 minutes against the Coppin State Eagles, Holmes went off for 24 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in the Bonnies’ 93-81, going 10-14 from the field and and 3-5 from three.
He made his presence known on both ends, adding two steals and a block to his box score.
The Bonnies won 93-81, kicking off a three-game winning streak as they started Homes’ senior year 4-1.
Playing big minutes was something Holmes became accustomed to that season, as he became one of the national minutes leaders at 38.1 per contest and started all 33 games.
Crashing the glass
Holmes showed he could lead the team in multiple ways by dominating the paint for his career-high in rebounds.
Holmes led the Bonnies in points and rebounds in a 70-54 win against the Marquette Golden Eagles, going off for a 19 and 13 double-double in the Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic tournament.
Holmes made just six field goals in the game, but his persistence on the glass and ability to get to the free throw line saw him fill up the scoring column, leading his team to the win.
The win put the Bonnies to a 5-0 start to the season, building early momentum in Homes’ junior year.
Want to see Jaren in action?
Get tickets to our preseason opener against Loughborough University here!
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Image credit: Iowa State Cyclones
