Hargrave Military Academy graduate Jake Ness has his eyes on the 2015 NCAA March Madness bracket, and he expects Boise State University (BSU) to get a bid for the tournament this year. As a BSU senior, Ness returned to his prep school alma mater last week and put in at least four workouts a day: “He’s relentless,” said Postgraduate Basketball Head Coach A. W. Hamilton, Ness’s former coach.
Ness was at Hargrave from 2009-11. During his first season, he was a manager for former Hargrave Head Postgraduate Coach Kevin Keatts. In his second year, he was on the roster along with some of the nation’s upcoming elite players such as Lorenzo Brown (NC State, and a 2013 NBA draft pick) and J. J. Mann (Belmont University, and recent Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year). Hargrave finished the season at 28-2 and was ranked third in the nation. The BSU coaching staff had their eyes on Ness and recruited him out of Hargrave. By his sophomore year at BSU, Ness’s Broncos were in the NCAA tournament.
“This year,” Ness says, “I’m looking forward to going out with a bang and make another run at the tournament. We have a great schedule that’s going to give us a lot of opportunities to crack the top 25.”
Ness, at 6’8″, towers over most people. He is tall not only in stature, but in work ethic, character and academic prowess. He’s majoring in psychology (behavioral) and has received several academic awards while studying at BSU.
While back at Hargrave he tells how the time he put in years ago has made his collegiate-level success possible: “The first few weeks here were tough. It was constant. But finally I realized everyone here is just trying to help you,” Ness said. “It turned out to be the best decision I ever made, coming here.”
Ness is still in touch with a lot of his coaches and the teammates he played with at Hargrave.
“I enjoyed coming back and seeing all the changes that have happened since I was a Cadet here. The changes in the basketball complex and the locker room have taken this basketball powerhouse to an even higher level. I’m looking forward to making some more trips to Hargrave after this visit,” Ness said. “It’s almost like a second home to me.”
Hargrave is pleased to announce that Ness is a first-ballot nominee for the 2016 Hargrave PGBB Hall of Fame.
Hamilton says, “Jake’s best attributes as a player are his great footwork and his elite-level hand-eye coordination. He has put in a lot of time to become as skilled as he is, but I believe his years spent playing tennis as a child helped his development greatly,” Hamilton said. “Having Jake back on campus for a week was not only great for Jake but inspiring for myself and my coaches. He trained harder than anyone I’ve ever seen, and it will pay off this season.
“Jake will always be an advantage to basketball because of his work ethic and knowledge of the game. If I ever had a spot open, I’d love to see Jake back here at Hargrave coaching with me in some capacity.”
Ness is the son of Jon and Pam Ness of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
Hargrave’s postgraduate basketball program has produced over 100 division one players since the 2003-2004 season. Since that season, Hargrave has won two national championships and claimed two national runner up titles. In the summer of 2012, Hargrave Postgraduate basketball was named program of the decade by RealGM Basketball.
