| Years at Northeast: | 1998-2000 |
| Sports: | Men's Basketball |
| Occupation: | Student-Athlete |
Eric Batchelor led the Northeast Mississippi Community College men's basketball program to multiple championships at the turn of the century on the strength of his red-hot shooting touch.
Batchelor played a key role for the Tigers, who were coached by hall of famer Mike Lewis, as they ran the tables through the north half, state and regional competitions to clinch a berth to the prestigious national tournament in Kansas.
He contributed in every major game on the "Road to Hutch." He was one of three Northeast standouts to score more than 20 points in a 98-81 win against Northwest Mississippi Community College in the division title tilt.
The two teams met once more on February 22, 2000 inside legendary Bonner Arnold Coliseum with the then-Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) championship on the line. Batchelor topped all players with 33 points in the Tigers' 109-92 decision over the Rangers.
Northeast proceeded to claim its first National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region 23 crown in five years with an 88-68 victory versus Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College at Mississippi College's A.E. Wood Coliseum.
Batchelor went toe-to-toe with Jaeson Maravich, who is the son of basketball legend "Pistol" Pete Maravich, in that particular contest. Maravich may have ended up with a game-best 34 points, but Batchelor posted 21 of his 31 points in the second half and drained seven big treys.
He reached double figures in three of the Tigers' four matchups at "The Tournament." Batchelor opened the event with a 12-point effort in Northeast's loss to eventual national champion Southeastern (Iowa) Community College.
Batchelor and the Tigers bounced back to eliminate Cochise (Ariz.) College and Brevard (Fla.) Community College, which is now Eastern Florida State College. He had 32 points and 10 made three-pointers against Brevard.
Those wins moved Northeast into the consolation bracket finals versus Northeastern (Colo.) Junior College. Batchelor accounted for a team-high 17 points, but the Tigers fell in heartbreaking fashion to finish eighth in the country with a 30-6 overall record.
Batchelor became the 14th NJCAA All-American in program history following his sensational sophomore campaign. He signed a scholarship to continue his career at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).
The Memphis, Tenn., product was equally as good as a freshman at Northeast. He received first-team All-MACJC, NJCAA All-Region 23 and NJCAA All-Region 23 Tournament honors after racking up 22.1 points per game.
Batchelor nailed 84 percent of his free throws and shot 62 percent inside the arc and 42 percent from long distance during the 1998-99 season. He also averaged 4.5 rebounds that year.
Among his top performances as a newcomer with the Tigers were back-to-back 30-plus point nights in double-digit triumphs over East Mississippi Community College and rival Itawamba Community College.
The Westview (Tenn.) High School graduate started in 47 of his 61 appearances at UAB from 2000-02. He had career averages with the Blazers of 10 points and 3.6 rebounds per outing.
Batchelor was UAB's third leading scorer as a senior at 11.5 points. He placed third in Conference USA (C-USA) in three-point makes with 71 and second in attempts with 216 one year earlier.
He helped the Blazers advance to the second round of the 2001 C-USA Tournament with 10 points versus the University of Louisville (Ky.). Batchelor had 20 points and eight boards during UAB's win at Texas Tech University on November 28, 2000.