By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Holmes senior point guard James “Beetle” Bolden needs less than 50 points to surpass the 2,000 mark in career scoring, but that’s the last thing on his mind with the post-season playoffs beginning next week.
Bolden’s main focus is helping the Bulldogs win the 9th Region championship and having all the seniors on the team finish their high school career playing in the state tournament at Rupp Arena in Lexington.
“That would mean the world to me because it’s the team I grew up with and that’s what we’ve all been shooting for throughout our career at Holmes,” he said.
Bolden’s high school career has been something special. Two years ago, he scored 29 points and snagged 13 rebounds in a quarterfinal game at the state tournament and was tabbed one of the top players in Kentucky. He enhanced his reputation by averaging 20.8 points, 3.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds during his junior season, but Holmes lost in the 9th Region final to eventual state champion Covington Catholic.
After he accepted a scholarship offer from University of West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins, Bolden continued to put up good numbers during his final high school season. He’s averaging 20 points, four rebounds and four assists going into the Bulldogs’ last regular season game tonight against Ludlow.
That game was a late addition to the Holmes schedule. The team’s final home game was cancelled earlier this week due to heavy snow, but coach Mike Listerman lined up tonight’s game so the school could recognize the seniors on the roster. There’s a good chance Bolden will get a standing ovation when he’s introduced before the game.
“He’s just a great young man,” coach Listerman said. “People on the outside don’t get to see him day after day like we do. We see the work ethic and determination and competitiveness that is James ‘Beetle’ Bolden. When you see all that you understand why a successful coach like Bob Huggins wants him at West Virginia.”
Bolden said he got his nickname from a family member when he was a small boy and it will probably stay with him in college. After he signed a letter of intent with West Virginia, coach Huggins used the nickname in a comment that was published on the team’s website.
“We think that Beetle will come in and get valuable minutes his freshman season,” Huggins said. “He has been a winner at Holmes his entire career as well as on the AAU circuit. He brings a win-first attitude to the program.”
Bolden is the latest in a long line of outstanding players to come through the Holmes basketball program. He’s often been compared to Dickie Beal, the lightning quick point guard who went on to play at the University of Kentucky.
When he was asked about that, Bolden’s reply was a reflection of his character.
“I’ve just been playing my game,” he said. “I’ve been blessed by God to play this game. He gave me the abilities that I have today and I’ve just been working for me and my family and my teammates to get better.”
This season, Bolden has been taking less shots and trying to distribute the ball to his teammates on offense. That hasn’t been easy to do because opponents do everything they can to keep him from making plays.
Listerman said Bolden has been double-teamed in every game this season. That made it important for him to get his teammates involved in the offense and three of them – Markel McClendon, Rod Avery and Marcus Mullins – have double-figure scoring averages.
Two weeks ago, Bolden scored 30 points in a win over Dixie Heights with coach Huggins watching from the stands. Even though it was one of his highest scoring performances of the season, he was more proud of the fact that he didn’t make any turnovers.
“Coach Huggins called me and said he loved everything about my game that night,” Bolden said. “I didn’t make any turnovers and that’s probably what stood out to him.”
If Bolden does not get the 47 points he needs to reach 2,000 tonight, he’ll be back on his home court Wednesday for a 35th District semifinal game against Holy Cross. A win in that game will assure a berth in next week’s 9th Region Tournament, and that’s all what concerns him the most.
“We’ve just got to come out and play our game, listen to what coach L (Listerman) has planned for us and execute it by playing hard every minute,” Bolden said. “It doesn’t take much to lose in this region so you’ve got to play hard for 32 minutes, not just 16.”
The Bulldogs will need points from Bolden to be successful in the playoffs. That’s something Holmes assistant coach John Wimzie reminds the senior point guard every chance he gets.
“We sit down and talk sometimes and I tell him, ‘You’ve got to shoot more,’” Wimzie said. “He looks at me and says, ‘I know, but I’m trying to get everybody else involved.’ And I say, ‘That’s a good thing but you’re got to shoot more. Everybody can’t do what you can do. If everybody could do what you do, we wouldn’t have to worry about anything.’”
Terry Boehmker, NKyTribune sports writer, is former sportswriter and editor for The Kentucky Post. He is an award-winning writer with extensive background in both print and digital. Reach him at terryboe@yahoo.com.