Wasilla grad hunted down perfect spot to cap his career

WASILLA — When Jesse Bean was playing basketball at Peninsula College in Washington, his former coach used to say if Bean spent as much time playing basketball as he did hunting and fishing, Bean could play anywhere he wanted.

Bean has been a top guard wherever he’s played. But there’s the sportsman and the sports star.

While the 2007 Wasilla High School graduate loves to move the ball down the floor and knock down jump shots, Bean has to be somewhere he can also reel in a lunker or bag some birds.

And that’s what has made Bean’s recent home — Dakota State University in Madison, S.D. — such a perfect fit.

“It’s my ideal place,” Bean said recently of DSU. “There’s no mountains, but as far as the hunting and fishing goes, it’s definitely a good fit for me.”

Bean, a Dakota State senior headed into the final stretch of his college basketball career, came to the South Dakota school via Peninsula College in Washington and Wasilla High. As a senior, the first-team all-state guard and 2007 Gatorade Alaska Player of the Year had committed to Division II Alaska Fairbanks.

UAF was a successful program and a postseason contender. But after a coaching staff shakeup (former bench boss Frank Ostanik was let go and the little-known Clem Johnson was hired) Bean looked at other options. He decided against joining the Nanooks, and instead opted for a junior college in Washington.

Bean said it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

“I really wanted to stay in Alaska, but at the same time I got to experience a lot. Now I’m in the Midwest. I wouldn’t have had the chance to experience this stuff. I’m happy about that,” Bean said.

Like Dakota State, Peninsula College, a school in Port Angeles, Wash., turned out to be a good fit for Bean.

“I had a great time at Peninsula College as well,” Bean said.

Bean played a pair of seasons at the junior college, which sits northwest of Seattle and across the water from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. As a sophomore, Bean was named first-team All-NWAACC North Division. He led the Pirates with 16.2 points per game. He also led his team with 95 assists and 46 steals, and was second on the squad with 34 three-pointers. Bean also played in the NWAACC Sophomore All-Star Game.

As a freshman, Bean helped Peninsula College win the NWAACC North Division and advance to the postseason tourney. The Pirates finished fourth in the tournament, and 25-8 overall.

After his two-year stay with the JUCO program, the Pirates coaching staff asked Bean to list 10 four-year schools he’d be interested in attending. One was Dakota State, the alma mater of both his father, Doug, and mother, Margaret.

“They were real interested. It worked out pretty well,” Bean said.

Off the court, Bean has plenty of family in the area and ample opportunity to go hunting and fishing.

He’s also become a staple on the court for the Trojans program. He helped the Trojans advanced to the postseason and will compete in the 2012 State Farm Association of Independent Institutions Men’s Basketball Tournament.

Dakota State is the host school and third-seeded team. The Trojans play rival Valley City State Saturday at 5 p.m. in Madison. With a win Saturday, the Trojans would receive an automatic berth to the NAIA Division II Men’s Basketball Tournament, which is slated for March 7-13 in Point Lookout, Mo.

He also helped Dakota State win 16 games in a season for the first time since 1992.

Bean averaged a team-high 13.6 points per game as a senior. He hit double digits in scoring in 21 of 27 games this year, and scored a season-high 28 against Dordt (Iowa) in January. Bean also averaged nearly three assists and a steal per game.

Bean also led is team in free throw shooting (76 percent) and tied for second on the team with 32 three-pointers.

Bean said Dakota State and its coaching staff combined to create a great fit for Bean.

“The year I got here was the second year of (head coach Gary Garner),” Bean said. “He’s a very good coach. I’m pretty fortunate to have him.”

Bean has at least one more game in his college basketball career. The 23-year-old may have the skill to pursue some type of opportunity in the future. But Bean said this might be the final stretch of competition at this high of a level.

“I’m telling my family my body is getting too old. I’m getting beat up,” Bean said.

Bean will graduate this spring and hopes to pursue a career in firefighting and emergency services. He’d love to coach basketball, he said.

Where?

“Wherever the wind takes me. I miss Alaska, but I like South Dakota,” Bean said. “I’m free and easy.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com and follow him at twitter.com/matsu_sports.