Dance partners: Beyer hoops star chooses Sacramento State

He still has a year left on his dance card, but Beyer’s braided basketball dynamo has secured his place in school history.

With a verbal commitment on Monday, senior Georgie Dancer is believed to be the first boys basketball player in school history to accept a full-ride scholarship to a Division I program.

A verbal commitment isn’t binding. At any time, a player or school can choose to go in another direction.

However, Dancer has no plans of leaving the hive, though he has received interest from Montana, Montana State and Chico State. His heart belongs to Sacramento State, a program that reached historical highs under coach Brian Katz last season.

The Hornets hovered near the top of the Big Sky standings for most of the season and even gained national recognition as a potential 16th seed in Joe Lunardi’s NCAA Tournament bracket forecast for ESPN.

Sacramento State went 21-12, achieving a slew of firsts. The Hornets reached the postseason for the first time in the Division I era (1991-present) and won their first postseason game in 53 years.

“It’s 100 percent where I’m going,” said Dancer, an All-District second-team selection last season.

Dancer becomes the third Stanislaus District player to commit to Sacramento State in the last year, joining Modesto Christian’s Jeff Wu and Sierra’s Joshua Patton, both of whom will be freshmen this fall.

“They said he can come in right away and contribute, but he’s willing to do whatever it takes to help the program,” Beyer High coach Kyle McKim said. “They’re excited to have him, and he’s excited to go there, too.”

The 6-foot-3, 176-pound combo guard averaged 15 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Stanislaus District’s breakout program. The Patriots reached the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I quarterfinal, where they lost to Cosumnes Oaks, 85-82 in overtime.

“They kept everything real. They told me what would happen and they took their time with me. They didn’t just offer,” Dancer said. “They evaluated me before they offered, so I knew they knew what kind of player I was.”

Dancer first caught Katz’s eye during the summer before his junior year. The attention increased again this summer when Dancer impressed at the Sacramento State team camp in mid-June. The Hornets offered Dancer a full ride one week later.

“It’s a great feeling. Not many kids get looks from public schools,” Dancer said. “It’s good for everyone. I think it inspires kids to know that if you go to a public school you can still make it. You don’t have to go to a private school.”

McKim appreciates Dancer’s allegiance to the Patriots program. He believes that was a quality that endeared him to the Hornets coaching staff.

“He’s a tremendous talent, obviously, but he’s also got a good head on his shoulders,” McKim said. “He was like this when he came in as a freshman. A kid with that kind of talent and that mentality, you just knew he was destined to do good things. He puts everyone before himself and has a tremendous work ethic.”

It has shown on the court, where Dancer has become a galvanizing force behind the Patriots’ revival.

Since he arrived on campus, Beyer has improved its win total each season. Beyer was 13-14 during Dancer’s freshman year (he didn’t play varsity), 16-12 in his varsity debut in 2013-14 and 24-5 last winter.

The Patriots finished three games back of Modesto Christian in the Modesto Metro Conference but earned a No. 5 seed – and a home game – in the Division I tournament. Beyer eliminated No. 12 Burbank in the first round, 65-62, before taking Cosumnes Oaks to the brink.

Dancer was a star at every turn. He was named to the all-Modesto City Classic, Turlock Godinez and Columbia College tournament teams. He led the Patriots in scoring, rebounds and assists and was named to the all-MMC first team.

Now he wants to play for a section championship. With his future set, that becomes the No. 1 goal this season.

“Our team is focused on getting to the section title game this year after falling two games short,” he said. “That’s our big goal. To go further would be awesome.”

This story was originally published July 2, 2015 at 7:20 PM with the headline "Dance partners: Beyer hoops star chooses Sacramento State."