Jaylen Ingram Chooses the Roadrunners
Jaylen Ingram of Hillcrest High School in Country Club Hills, Illinois, has signed his NJCAA Letter of Intent to continue his academic and basketball career in 1st Source Bank Fieldhouse with Coach Rodell Davis and the Roadrunners.
Coach Houston of Hillcrest said of Ingram, "It was a pleasure seeing Jaylen grow as a player and a young man. He plays with high energy. He crashes the glass hard and does a great job finishing around the basket. In time, he will grow to be a big-time college basketball player."
Coach Davis added, "SMC Men's Basketball is excited to welcome Jaylen to the family. He fills an immediate need in our front court. Jaylen is a defensive force and can change the game every night.
He's a great athlete with a good offensive skill set and is a great fit for the program."
Hillcrest has a strong basketball connection for the Roadrunners. It is also the alma mater of SMC Women's Basketball alum Cameron Thomas, who holds over a dozen SMC basketball records and recently was named Newcomer of the Year and First Team, All Conference in the NCAA Division 1 Atlantic Sun. Thomas was the leading scorer for the Stetson Hatters this season as a junior.
Ingram is the third member of the 2025 SMC Men's Basketball recruiting class, joining Josh Dennis of Wayne and Bryce Hayes of Chicago.
The Men's Basketball Roadrunners have had three consecutive winning seasons since reviving the program in 2022 after a 26-year hiatus. In the 2024-25 campaign, SMC knocked off #2-ranked South Suburban on the road, breaking the Bulldogs' 65-game home win streak. They finished with an overall record of 16-13 and set 35 team and individual school records during the year.