A spring signee, Rodrick Sikes joined the University of South Alabama men's basketball program in April after two seasons at Southwest Mississippi Community College. The native of Ocean Springs, Miss. was an all-American at SMCC after averaging 22.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest as a senior. He spoke with USAJaguars.com about the process of getting him to South Alabama, how he would describe his playing style and why he feels prepared for the upcoming season after two years at junior college.

When did you start playing basketball?
Honestly, I started playing at the age of 1. My mom has a picture of me shooting a basketball when I was 1. Basketball wasn't really a choice in my family. My dad played, my mom played and my brothers played. I'm the youngest in the family so basketball wasn't really an option.

Take me through your journey to get to South Alabama.
Coming out of high school I only had three scholarship offers and they were all from junior colleges in the state of Mississippi. I ended up going to Southwest Mississippi Community College. My first year there was decent, my second year, I guess you could say is when I took the big jump. I ended up averaging 22 points per game and was named a second team all-American, which was probably one of the biggest honors I've ever had in my life. In the middle of the season, Coach Russ (Willemsen) started recruiting me. He was probably one of the coaches that I talked to the most during the recruiting process. When I came on my visit, I pretty much already had my mind made up that I was coming to South Alabama. I just needed to have confirmation. When I came on my visit, I liked everything, so I took a week to make sure I wanted to come here.

Why did you choose South Alabama?
Family. Not just my immediate family, I felt like everyone here was family when I came on my visit. That's really important to me. There are a lot of places that have talent, but if that talent can't work together then it doesn't mean anything. It's also close to home – home is 45 minutes away.

How have your two years at junior college helped prepare you for Division I?
I think it's prepared me well. I think a lot of people try to downplay junior college because it's not on the Division I level, but the junior college level is actually really tough. Everyone in junior college is trying to get to the DI level, so you have to deal with that. If you don't have a team that has bought into the team vision, then it's not going to pan out well. We had a great team at my junior college, so it prepared me well, especially with mental toughness. Coming here, of course it's a different level, so I had to do some adjusting, but it was fine.

What kind of adjustments do you think you'll have to make?
The main adjustment I'll have to make is getting stronger. I have a lot of confidence in myself and I think I can score on anybody and guard anybody. It's just a matter of getting stronger. At the Division I level, a lot of people are stronger than in junior college.

How important was staying close to home?
During the recruiting process, I told my parents that it didn't matter, but deep down I know that it did. Family support is important. Of my top three schools, the other two were 15-plus hours away, so I know that if I went there, I wouldn't have had the support that I needed. That support is big.

How would you describe your playing style?
I would say very fast. I really like to get up and down in transition. I love fast breaks because I love to dunk, but I like to shoot too. I think I can score in all three facets of the game. Honestly I like playing defense too.

What do you consider to be the strongest part of your game?
I would say speed and athleticism.

What part of your game are you working on the most leading up to next season?
Talking to the coaches, we all agree that I need to just gain some weight and get stronger. If I do that, then we feel like I'll be pretty much set for the fall.

What do you enjoy the most of the game of basketball?
Just having fun, because if you don't have fun, why are you doing something? There's no point in doing it. I love the game of basketball and I have fun doing it.

Who has had the biggest influence on your life as a basketball player?
I would probably say my dad. My dad played in high school and college, and ended up going to the military and was on an all-air force team. So I take his advice very strongly. He has been helpful throughout the high school, college and recruiting process. He wouldn't let me settle for being mediocre.

What do you expect of yourself this season?
I expect big things. Of course one person can't do it, but I expect to help the culture and the program to get to the NCAA Tournament. That's my goal.

What was your relationship like with Coach Willemsen during the recruiting process?
I had actually relationship with him already. He recruited me out of high school my senior year, but honestly, I wasn't ready. I already knew about him, so when he came back, it was like friends reuniting.

What professional player do you try to model your game after?
Russell Westbrook. I love his speed and I also like how he plays with a killer instinct.

Quick Hits
Favorite NBA team: Oklahoma City Thunder
Favorite college team growing up: LSU
Favorite sport other than basketball: Track
Favorite musical artists: I really like Christian music – that's what I listen to before games. It gets my mind right. I like to hear positive things. William McDowell, VaShawn Mitchell and Tye Tribbett are pretty good.
Favorite class: Math – I love math
Favorite movie: "Coach Carter"
Favorite video game: NBA 2K
Favorite social media: Twitter
Favorite TV show: Prison Break

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Jaguar Athletic Fund (JAF) Priority Fund, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics.  Contributions to the Priority Fund directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/priorityfund

—USA—