Eastern Michigan Athletics
Photo by: Steve King/KingStudios
Jackson and Minnie Join Eastern Michigan Men's Hoops
8/22/2016 10:08:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Paul Jackson and Elijah Minnie will have to sitout the 2016-17 season as transfers
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Eastern Michigan University Head Men's Basketball Coach Rob Murphy announced the signing of two more student-athletes that will join the Eagles' roster for the upcoming 2016-17 campaign, Monday, Aug. 22. The Green and White added a pair of NCAA Division I transfers in Paul Jackson (Lithonia, Ga.-Martin Luther King Jr. (Eastern Kentucky)) and Elijah Minnie (Monessen, Pa.-Lincoln Park (Robert Morris)). The duo will each have to sitout the 2016-17 season due to NCAA transfer regulations, but will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning with the 2017-18 season.
Jackson joins the Eagles after spending two seasons as a Colonel at Eastern Kentucky University. In his sophomore season, Jackson was the Colonels' primary point guard, starting in 20 of his 30 games played. The 6-foot-1 guard averaged 27.2 minutes per game, scoring 7.1 points per contest, while dishing out five assists. The Lithonia, Ga. native held an assist to turnover ratio of 2.2 during the 2015-16 campaign, a number which ranked third in the Ohio Valley Conference, while his five assists per contest also ranked third in the OVC. Additionally, Jackson shot at a high percentage, knocking down 45.1 percent of his field goal attempts, while also connecting on 42.1 percent of his three-point shots. During his freshman year, Jackson appeared in 24 of the team's 33 games and started twice, averaging 1.7 assists per game with a 2.73 assist-to-turnover ratio. As a high schooler, Jackson earned 5A irst team all-state honors after averaging 21.5 points, 7.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game for Martin Luther King Jr. High School his senior season. In addition, he garnered first team all-region and second team all-metro honors while leading DeKalb County in scoring and assists. He dished out over 700 career assists and was a team captain as a junior and a senior.
Minnie comes to Eastern after competing for Robert Morris University the previous two years. In two seasons at RMU, Minnie appeared in 54 games, starting 36 of them. Overall, he averaged 8.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, shooting 47.5 percent from the floor, while connecting on 76.5 percent of his opportunities from the charity stripe. During his sophomore campaign, Minnie posted 14 double-digit scoring performances to go along with three double-doubles on his way to averaging 12 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Additionally, he was exceptional defensively, blocking 1.9 shots per contest, including a career-high six rejections, on the road at Bryant, Jan. 23. Minnie posted a career-best 29 points at New Mexico State, Nov. 24, when he went 11-of-18 from the floor and 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. In his freshman season, Minnie appeared in 32 games, starting 21 of them. He averaged 6.8 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, while posting 1.1 blocks per contest. In high school, the Monessen, Pa. native helped lead Lincoln Park High School to both a WPIAL and PIAA Class A championships in 2014. Minnie averaged 15.7 points , 12.3 rebounds and five blocks per game during his senior season and was named to the 2014 Pennsylvania All-State First Team.
Jackson joins the Eagles after spending two seasons as a Colonel at Eastern Kentucky University. In his sophomore season, Jackson was the Colonels' primary point guard, starting in 20 of his 30 games played. The 6-foot-1 guard averaged 27.2 minutes per game, scoring 7.1 points per contest, while dishing out five assists. The Lithonia, Ga. native held an assist to turnover ratio of 2.2 during the 2015-16 campaign, a number which ranked third in the Ohio Valley Conference, while his five assists per contest also ranked third in the OVC. Additionally, Jackson shot at a high percentage, knocking down 45.1 percent of his field goal attempts, while also connecting on 42.1 percent of his three-point shots. During his freshman year, Jackson appeared in 24 of the team's 33 games and started twice, averaging 1.7 assists per game with a 2.73 assist-to-turnover ratio. As a high schooler, Jackson earned 5A irst team all-state honors after averaging 21.5 points, 7.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game for Martin Luther King Jr. High School his senior season. In addition, he garnered first team all-region and second team all-metro honors while leading DeKalb County in scoring and assists. He dished out over 700 career assists and was a team captain as a junior and a senior.
Minnie comes to Eastern after competing for Robert Morris University the previous two years. In two seasons at RMU, Minnie appeared in 54 games, starting 36 of them. Overall, he averaged 8.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, shooting 47.5 percent from the floor, while connecting on 76.5 percent of his opportunities from the charity stripe. During his sophomore campaign, Minnie posted 14 double-digit scoring performances to go along with three double-doubles on his way to averaging 12 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Additionally, he was exceptional defensively, blocking 1.9 shots per contest, including a career-high six rejections, on the road at Bryant, Jan. 23. Minnie posted a career-best 29 points at New Mexico State, Nov. 24, when he went 11-of-18 from the floor and 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. In his freshman season, Minnie appeared in 32 games, starting 21 of them. He averaged 6.8 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, while posting 1.1 blocks per contest. In high school, the Monessen, Pa. native helped lead Lincoln Park High School to both a WPIAL and PIAA Class A championships in 2014. Minnie averaged 15.7 points , 12.3 rebounds and five blocks per game during his senior season and was named to the 2014 Pennsylvania All-State First Team.
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