PEORIA, Ill. -- The start of the 2006 Fall semester at Bradley University led to an addition to the Braves men's basketball roster as former Ohio University star Jeremy Fears (Joliet, Ill./Joliet Township H.S.) officially joined the team Wednesday. As a NCAA Division I transfer, the 6-foot-4 Fears will have to sit out the 2006-07 season and will have two years of eligibility remaining for the Braves when the 2007-08 campaign begins.
“We are excited to have Jeremy as a part of our program,” said fifth-year Bradley head coach Jim Les. “He's a fine young man, as well as an experienced and explosive guard, who are fans will love watching play.”
Fears was named to the Mid-American Conference All-Freshman Team, as well as the MAC All-Tournament Team, in 2005 after averaging 11.0 points and a team-best 3.7 assists per game. He also finished second for the Bobcats with 58 steals in 2004-05, good for the sixth-best total in the MAC. After coming off the bench in the first five games of his freshman season, Fears started each of the final 27 games. In addition to leading Ohio in assists 21 times, he led the Bobcats in scoring five times during the 2004-05 season, including a 33-point outburst March 2, 2005 versus Buffalo for the best single-game total by an Ohio freshman since a 34-point effort by Gary Trent in 2003.
This past season, Fears played the season's first 19 games at Ohio, averaging 9.6 points and 4.2 assists per game, before taking a leave of absence for the remainder of the season. He had 11 points and five assists off the bench in his final game, a 93-90 double overtime win Feb. 4 at Bowling Green, then left the team to spend time at home following the death of a family member.
As a high school star at Joliet Township, Fears averaged 23.5 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals during the 2003-04 season and was nominated for the McDonald's All-America Team. He also averaged 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists as a junior, earning first-team all-area and all-conference honors.
Fears will join the Braves for tonight's “Bradley Night with the Chiefs” at O'Brien Field. As part of the Peoria Chiefs celebration of Bradley's historic run to the 2006 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, men's basketball team members will be available for autographs at O'Brien Field at 6 p.m. and will be introduced during a pregame ceremony. The Peoria Chiefs, the Midwest League affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, will wear special Bradley jerseys, which will be auctioned after the 7 p.m. game versus the Swing of the Quad Cities. Proceeds from tonight's game will benefit the George P. Shadid Endowed Scholarship at Bradley University.
