Djuric and Barnes to be Inducted to SIC Hall of Fame and Sophomore Athletes to be Recognized – Feb. 9
Saturday, Feb. 9 will be a big night for Southeastern Illinois College athletics. Not only will this year’s sophomore athletes take center stage, but also on tap is the 11th annual Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony for two former Falcon athletes.
At halftime of the women’s and men’s basketball games against John A. Logan, sophomores in all four sports will be recognized. Game time for the women is 5:30 p.m. and for the men 7:30 p.m.
Between games, at roughly 7 p.m., former Falcon basketball standouts Neda Djuric and Tim Barnes will be honored and inducted to the SIC Athletic Hall of Fame.
Plaques representing their individual accomplishments will then be placed in the college’s Hall of Fame room, where they will join 38 former athletes who have been recognized for outstanding contributions to SIC athletics.
Neda Djuric, a native of NoviSad, Yugoslavia, played basketball for the Lady Falcons from 1998-2000. Under coach Mark Motsinger, the 5’8” point guard was named to the NJCAA All-Great Rivers Conference team and All-Region 24 team.
Her freshman year at Southeastern, Djuric averaged 12 points and 7.1 assists per game, helping the Falcons finish the season with a 25-6 record. During her sophomore year, she averaged 15 points and a conference-best 6.8 assists per game. While at SIC, Djuric also earned academic honors.
After leaving Southeastern, Djuric played for the Division I University of Rhode Island (URI) women’s basketball team (2000-02). At Rhode Island, she averaged 5.3 points and 4.8 assists per game, leading the team each year in total assists. During her final season at URI, Djuric, described by the coaching staff as being “very good defensively” and a “team leader,” was named to the All-Defensive Atlantic 10 Conference team.
Since joining the ranks of professional basketball in Europe in 2003, Djuric has produced an impressive resume, including Cyprus Cup Winner in 2009 and 2010, Serbian National Team in 2010, Bulgarian League Championship in 2011, and Adriatic League Championship in 2012.
Djuric currently plays for Vojvodina (Serbia), a member of the Adriatic League.
Tim Barnes, from Henderson, Ky., played for SIC basketball coach Todd Franklin during the 2000-2002 seasons. Barnes was later recruited by the Iowa State University Cyclones.
His freshman year at Southeastern, Barnes led the Falcons to a 26-4 season by averaging 15.3 points, 8.4 assists, 2.4 steals, and 3.3 rebounds per game. During his sophomore year, he averaged 19.4 points, 7.2 assists, and 2.1 steals per game, leading the team to the NJCAA Region 24 championship game and a 26-7 record. That same year, Barnes was named Region 24 Player of the Year.
Barnes completed his two years at Southeastern by setting the single season and career school records for assists, 260 and 498 respectively.
According to Iowa State’s Cyclone Sports Report.Com, “At Southeastern Illinois Community College, Barnes was regarded as one of the nation’s best junior college products, blossoming into a top-notch point guard. His improvement and emergence on the national scene went full circle his sophomore year at Southeastern…garnering second-team All-American accolades, first-team Region XXIV honors and rated as the nation’s No. 1 junior college point guard prospect.”
While at Iowa, Barnes averaged 11.3 points, 5 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game. He was named Big 12 Rookie of the Week for his stellar performance against Kansas State during the 2003 season. During that game, he scored 23 points to lead the Cyclones to a 64-61 win.
Barnes transferred to Cal State at Bakersfield in 2005. The following year, he joined the world famous Harlem Globetrotters for a brief time. Afterwards, he played for a number of US Basketball League and NBA Development League teams, including the Oklahoma Storm, Bakersfield Jam, Idaho Stampede, and Iowa Energy, ending his professional basketball career in 2009.
Games and the evening’s ceremonies on Feb. 9 will be held in Joseph Deaton Gymnasium on the campus of Southeastern Illinois College.
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