Four SGTC basketball players earn national recognition

February 5, 2026
SGTC Jets Jalex Ewing (0), Matt Mbole (33), and Lady Jets Ja’Niya Broome (1), and Taja Bennett (4) were all recognized as individual leaders in the NJCAA Division 1 basketball standings.
SGTC Jets Jalex Ewing (0), Matt Mbole (33), and Lady Jets Ja’Niya Broome (1), and Taja Bennett (4) were all recognized as individual leaders in the NJCAA Division 1 basketball standings.

   Four South Georgia Technical College Jets and Lady Jets basketball players have earned national attention for being among the best on the court in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

   Matt Mbole, a 6’ 11” sophomore center for the Jets, is currently leading the NJCAA in rebounds.  He is averaging 11.4 rebounds per game in the 18 games that he has played in.  He recently was also selected as the 11th best player in the nation in the initial JucoRecruiting.com Top 100 Players rankings for the 2026 JUCO Class.

   Mbole, who is from Yaounde, Cameroon, was joined in the NJCAA Individual Player rankings this week by sophomore guard Jalexs Ewing and Lady Jets freshman guard Ja’Niya Broome from Hamilton, GA, and sophomore guard Taja Bennett from Dallas, Texas.

   Ewing is currently listed among the top 25 scorers in the NJCAA Division I men’s division.  The 6’ 2” guard from Augusta, GA is averaging 19.8 points per game this season in 17 games.  He was also recognized by JucoRecruiting.com in the Top 100 Players rankings for the 2026 JJUCO Class.  He was ranked 70th.

   Both Mbole and Ewing have been spotlighted as the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Players of the Week during the 2025 – 2026 season.  In addition to leading the nation in rebounds, Mbole is also the third leading scorer for the Jets this season with 179 points.  He also leads his team in blocked shots with 36.

   Ewing is the top scorer for the Jets this season.  He has scored 336 points in 17 games.  He also has 94 rebounds, 32 assists and 10 steals.

   In the NJCAA women’s Division 1 rankings, freshman guard Ja’Niya Broome is ranked 5th in the nation in points per game this season.  She is averaging 20.9 points over 20 games.  She is less than two points per game between the individual leader in the nation with 22.7.

   Her teammate, sophomore Taja Bennett, 5’ 9” guard from Dallas, is currently ranked 20th in the NJCAA in points per game.  She is averaging 18.6 points over 20 games in the NJCAA Division I women’s basketball rankings.  She has also been recognized as the GCAA Player of the Week in the women’s division 1 rankings three times.

   Despite the individual success of these four players, the Jets and Lady Jets teams are struggling.  The Lady Jets are 9 – 11 overall this season.  A loss by East Georgia State College Lady Bobcats last night allowed the Lady Jets to move up into a tie for first place in the GCAA with a 4 – 1 record.  East Georgia did defeat the Lady Jets in their first conference match-up this season.

   The Jets are 8 – 13 and have a 4 – 3 GCAA record.  They were on a four-game winning streak prior to a one-point loss to Gordon State College Wednesday.  They are still currently ranked 3rd in the GCAA even with that loss.

  The Jets and Lady Jets will be on the road for the next few games.  The Lady Jets travel to Macon to face Central Georgia Tech at 1 p.m. on Saturday, February 7, and then the Jets and Lady Jets both travel to Albany to face Albany Tech in a double-header on Monday, February 9.  The two teams are on the road again on Wednesday, February 11th when they travel to Macon to face Central Georgia Tech in a 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. double-header.  The two teams return home for a double-header with East Georgia State College on Saturday, February 14th at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.