DEVILS LAKE, ND. — Austin grad AJ Nywesh is quite familiar with climbing the ladder on a basketball team. Now he’s climbed to the highest level of college basketball.

Nywesh, who has played his last two seasons at Division I NJCAA Lake Region State College in Devil’s Lake, N.D., made his verbal commitment to transfer and play basketball at Division I Tennessee Martin University under a full athletic scholarship on Wednesday.

“It’s still mixed emotions at the moment. It’s a great feeling and a great accomplishment,” Nywesh said. “I play the game because I love it and I’ve been blessed with the chance to continue playing. I’m trying to show younger people if you really want something you can do anything you really put your mind to.”

The Skyhawks were within one win of the NCAA tournament this season as they lost the Ohio Valley Conference title game to Austin Peay 83-73. Nywesh, who has two years left of college basketball eligibility, also had interest from South Dakota State University and Nebraska-Omaha, but he sees Tennessee-Martin as a program on the rise with a championship mentality.

“They showed me the most love,” Nywesh said. “When I look for a coach, I look for someone similar to [Austin head coach Kris] Fadness and their assistant who recruited me reminded me of him.”

When Nywesh arrived at Lake Region two years ago he was already one of the top shooters on the team, but he wanted to be more than that. After a solid freshman season, Nywesh spent the entire summer at Devil’s Lake to work on his game and he transformed himself into a combo guard who could handle the ball and penetrate into the paint. Nywesh joined the 1,000 point club at Lake Region this year and he averaged 21.3 points, four assists and 4.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 43 percent from the field, 38 percent from the three-point line and 84 percent on free throws.

Lake Region head coach Jared Marshall said he could tell Nywesh had a special hunger as soon as he arrived on campus.

“His growth over the last two years has been exponential,” Marshall said. “He kind of came in as a gangly six foot, one-inch shooter from Austin. He put on some weight, he grew a little and he added to his talent. He really started to guard, he can handle the ball and he never lost that three point shot.”

Nywesh wasn’t satisfied with simply playing big minutes for the Royals, just like he wasn’t satisfied with just being a starter for the Austin Packers. Fadness said that Nywesh really hit his stride halfway through his junior year when the Packers were in the middle of one of their best basketball runs in school history. Nywesh ended up playing on three Big Nine championship teams and he played in three Class AAA state tournaments with the Packers.

“I’m really happy for Ajuda and I’m proud of him,” Fadness said. “He hasn’t come by it easy and he’s been a worker his whole life. It’s been fun to see his maturity and growth since we got a hold of him in ninth grade. He ended his high school career on a really high note and he was able to carry that into college. He got stronger, more explosive at college and he’s gotten better.”

Nywesh has always been self motivated to become a better basketball player. He wasn’t a knockdown shooter by fluke, he earned it by spending hours and hours in the gym. While some players can relax at night when they’ve had a good game or a good practice, Nywesh is always worried about whether or not he’s working hard enough.

“Never ever settle or get complacent. Always be paranoid of the next person coming up,” Nywesh said of his mentality. “Maybe your teammate has a purpose and a drive and maybe he goes even harder. That’s where that paranoia’s got to kick in where you have to work hard to keep your spot. When you play against other top players you’ve got to think it’s time to expose or get exposed.”

Marshall said that Lake Region has had a few Division I commits in the past, but usually the school sends its players to Division II or NAIA programs. He sees Nywesh as a good fit at Tennessee-Martin.

“His desire and drive to be a great player will give him a chance to make an impact there,” Marshall said. “It takes a lot to stay focused with all of the distractions he’s had. It’s not easy being that far from from home and I’m proud of all of the work he’s put in. I’m really happy for him.”

Nywesh made a big sacrifice in isolating himself so far from home for the past two years, but he always had Austin in his heart. When things got tough, he knew where to find his motivation.

“Basketball was the biggest thing that kept me grounded mentally,” Nywesh said. “When nothing was going right, I would think of the Austin community and the support they had for me and I would think of my family and friends.”

Nywesh has also kept tabs on the Packer boys basketball team and he’s hoping he can be a good example for players who want to take their game to the next level. Nywesh certainly took notice of the breakout seasons by Austin sophomores Duoth Gach and Both Gach and he hopes their future is as bright as his.

“I’m working from a distance right now. But they see it,” Nywesh said. “They’ve got to grow themselves as men. As they’re growing they’re learning and if they have questions they can come see me. They’re going to figure it out a little earlier and they’re going to get the opportunity to hopefully go DI out of high school.”

Nywesh will officially sign with Tennessee Martin on national junior college signing day April 8.

ABOUT TENNESSEE-MARTIN

Nickname: Skyhawk

Location: Martin, Tenn.

Distance from Austin: 635 miles

Record this season: 20-15 overall

Conference: Ohio Valley Conference

Enrollment: 7,042