Bruins sign imposing post defender Motley
Justin Motley (Cleveland, Ohio/Riverside CC/South Plains College) has signed a letter of intent to continue his academic and athletic careers at Bellevue beginning in the fall.
BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Bellevue University men's basketball coach Lucas Gabriel announced today the signing of Justin Motley (Cleveland, Ohio/Riverside CC/South Plains College) to a letter of intent to continue his academic and athletic careers at Bellevue beginning in the fall.
Motley, a 6-10 post player, comes to Bellevue from Riverside City College in Riverside, Calif. He spent his sophomore campaign at Riverside CC after playing his freshman season at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas.
Following a rookie season at South Plains where he appeared in just 14 games, Motley experience a breakout season at Riverside where he averaged 6.3 points and 5.7 rebounds this past year. He scored in double figures on seven occasions, including pouring in a season-high 17 points in a win over Saddleback on Jan. 13, and shot 50 percent from the floor for the season.
Motley helped guide the Tigers to a 20-win season. Riverside finished the year at 21-9 (14-2 OEC), won their conference championship, and reached the quarterfinals of the California Community College Athletic Association playoffs.
A superb athlete and difference maker on the defensive end of the court, Motley led the Orange Empire Conference with 44 blocked shots on his way to first team all-league honors.
He netted three double-doubles and blocked a season-best six shots in a Feb. 29 win over Citrus in the regional playoffs. In Riverside's two post-season games this year, Motley averaged 12 points and eight rebounds per game. He shot 87.5 percent from the floor, 71.4 percent from the free throw line, and blocked a team-high seven shots.
Bellevue posted a 24-8 overall mark in 2019-20, including a 13-1 record in NSAA play as they claimed their 11th-straight regular-season title. In its storied history, the Bruin basketball program has won 32 conference championships, qualified for 19 NAIA National Tournament Appearances, and made four trips to the NAIA Fab Four, with all of those coming since the 1997-98 season.
Junior College Stats:
| Season | GP | Pts (Gm) | Reb (Gm) | Asst | Stl | Blk | FG (Pct) | 3FG (Pct) | FT (Pct) |
| 2018-19 (SPC) | 14 | 17 (1.2) | 13 (0.9) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8-13 (61.5) | 0-0 (N/A) | 1-4 (25.0) |
| 2019-20 (RCC) | 26 | 163 (6.3) | 148 (5.7) | 7 | 10 | 44 | 56-112 (50.0) | 0-0 (N/A) | 51-81 (63.0) |
| Totals | 40 | 180 (4.5) | 161 (4.0) | 7 | 10 | 46 | 64-125 (51.2) | 0-0 (N/A) | 52-85 (61.2) |