Tag: myreon jones

This incoming Gator is ranked among 247Sports’ most impactful transfers

Florida landed a commitment from senior combo guard Myreon Jones, who is poised to have a big impact on the Gators next season.

If the Gators wanted to be a competitive team next season, they absolutely had to get it right in the transfer portal. With only one spot left open, it looks like they nailed it. Head coach Mike White has done well to get the guys he wants in the transfer market in previous seasons, and he seems to have pulled it off again, pushing hard for his guys and getting most of them.

One of the Gators’ newly committed players – senior guard Myreon Jones –even cracked 247Sports’ list of the 20 biggest commitments (so far) of the college basketball transfer portal. Jones was courted by most of the teams in the south both as a recruit and as a transfer, but Florida was able to seal the deal with him and will likely deploy him as a starter. That was enough to get him a cameo, ranked at the 19th spot on the list.

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“An explosive scorer, his offense will be needed in Gainesville,” commented 247Sports’ Eric Bossi. “Improving on his efficiency and being a little more consistent with the jumper will be key.”

Jones was billed as a high-end three-star recruit coming out of high school and 247Sports’ own player page listed him as a combo guard. The Nittany Lions used him first as a shooting guard before attempting to flex him into more of a point guard role by the end of his career at Penn State. However, that was more due to the needs of the program than his skills as a ballhandler or offensive facilitator.

He could take over ball handling duties while Tyree Appleby is off the floor, but he is unlikely to unseat the incumbent point guard. Regardless, he raises the potential for Florida to have some considerable offensive firepower by a significant degree. His shooting can be streaky, but he’s exciting when he’s on his game.

As the primary weapon at Penn State, he scored 15.3 points per game while shooting 39.5% from deep last season. Those numbers are expected to decline a little against stiffer SEC defenses, but the skills that allowed him to be a killer in the B1G are all still there. If he gets hot at the right time, he’d be high on the take charge during a Florida postseason run.

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Meet Florida basketball’s five incoming players for next season

The Gators lost over a third of the 2020 roster but they’ve been active in the transfer market and reeled in a quintet of impactful players.

In the weeks following the Gators’ early exit from the NCAA tournament, six of the team’s players departed the program. In response, head coach Mike White has been hot on the recruiting path, quickly pulling in four transfers to add to a single 2021 recruit in an effort to patch up this leaky roster.

Florida’s approach so far this season has been consistent with previous years, mostly targeting older, high-performing players from weaker conferences looking for a new challenge in the SEC. One of the advantages of this approach is adding experience to a team filled with a lot of younger players whose youth sometimes got the better of them last season.

All in all, the Gators’ basketball program will be taking on a very different look next season, so let’s examine the players who White has already gotten to sign on with the team next season.

Talented Penn State scorer Myreon Jones could take Gators’ offense to the next level

UF landed a talented scorer from Penn State this offseason via the transfer portal, which should offset some of its losses this offseason.

Name: Myreon Jones

Number: TBA

Position: Guard

Class: Junior

Height: 6’3″

Weight: 180 lbs.

Hometown: Suwannee, Ga.

High School: Lincoln Academy

Previous School: Penn State

Twitter: @MyreonJones21

2020-21 statistics:

GP MIN FG% 3P% FT% REB AST BLK STL PF TO PTS
25 30.3 39.4 39.5 77.3 2.7 2 0.1 1.3 1.4 1.2 15.3

Overview:

Jones wasn’t a big-time recruit coming out of the Lincoln Academy in Suwannee, Georgia. As a three-star recruit, his only major college basketball offers came from Penn State and Memphis. He chose to play for the Nittany Lions. He averaged just over 10 minutes per game in 30 games as a freshman, though he averaged just four points a game.

He became a starter as a sophomore in 2019-20 (starting all but one contest), and he boosted his scoring average to 13.3 while averaging three assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals. He was given an All-Big Ten honorable mention for his efforts.

Jones was once again very productive offensively, averaging a career-best 15.3 points, but his shooting percentage dropped from over 44% to just 39.4%. After a losing season for the Nittany Lions, he decided to transfer for his final season of eligibility.

He was one of the top transfers available on the market, and he announced on Twitter last week he planned to join the Gators. After losing six players this offseason between the transfer portal and the draft, Florida will likely start Jones at one of the guard spots. Being a senior, he may have to be a leader on his new squad sooner rather than later.

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This experienced, high-scoring guard is joining the Gators via the transfer portal

Entering his senior season with a shot of a prominent role in White’s preferred three-guard lineup he is a good fit for nearly any scheme.

The Gators’ roster sprung several leaks after they were eliminated form the NCAA tournament, leaving head coach Mike White with the difficult task of restocking a team with only one incoming recruit. He’s taken to the transfer portal with gusto, swiftly landing commitments from three players. The most recent of that trio is former Penn State Nittany Lions guard Myreon Jones.

The 2020-2021 season was kind to Jones, who finished as the leading scorer on Penn State’s roster. He’s spent his entire collegiate career playing against mid-major competition in the B1G, but he has nothing left to prove there. He averaged double-digit scoring in both of his previous two seasons and is a serious threat from beyond the arc.

Entering his senior season with a shot of a prominent role in White’s preferred three-guard lineup, Jones is a good fit for nearly any scheme. He’s proficient as a pick and roll ball handler, while shooting spot ups or off screens, and as a cutter. That makes him an especially attractive player for Gators fans, who have often bemoaned White’s struggles to identify players who fit into a coherent scheme.

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The biggest concern about bringing Jones to Florida is his size. The Gators’ backcourt is already pretty small, with likely starting point and shooting guards Tyree Appleby and Brandon McKissic both clocking in under Jones’ listed 6-foot-3-inch height. That could pose a problem in on-ball situations, especially if the defensively talented Niels Lane or bigger-bodies Kowacie Reeves, Jr. can’t shoot enough to earn regular playing time.

Nevertheless, Jones is a talented scorer and has two years of eligibility remaining, and assuming everything goes to plan, he should see a lot of playing time next season. He’s a good fit for this Gators team who lost a lot of scoring talent when Tre Mann filed for the draft with very little coming down the pipe when it comes to high school recruits. He’ll also serve as a cushion in the depth chart to prevent Lane or Reeves from being overexposed to SEC competition if they need to simmer on the bench for a little while longer.

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This Penn State transfer has Florida basketball high on his list

The Florida Gators basketball program has made the top four for this former Penn State guard’s recruitment as he’s set to transfer.

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Mike White and Florida are hoping to replenish some talent on the roster after seeing an exodus this offseason. Florida added transfer Brandon McKissic earlier this week, and it received some good news from another transfer.

Former Penn State standout Myreon Jones is among the dozens of players that are in the transfer portal, and he’s quickly taking action in terms of his decision.

Jones announced his top four schools on Friday. The teams that made the list are Florida, LSU, Ole Miss and Arkansas.

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The 6-foot-3-inch, 180-pound guard averaged 15.3 points and 2.7 rebounds last season while shooting 39.5% from the field. He would be a big addition to Florida’s backcourt and, hopefully, replace the production lost from Tre Mann and Scottie Lewis.

With Jones taking this step in his recruitment, he hopes to make his decision next week and announce his new program.

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Penn State basketball transfer Myreon Jones focusing on four SEC schools

Penn State’s leading scorer could make his transfer decision final as early as this week. Four SEC schools are in the mix.

One of Penn State’s top basketball players appears to be heading to the SEC to continue his college basketball career. Myreon Jones is closing in on making his decision for his transfer, and all four remaining candidates reside in the Southeastern Conference.

According to Dushawn London of 247 Sports, Jones is expecting to make a final decision between Florida, LSU, Arkansas, and Ole Miss. A decision could come as early as next week.

It had been previously reported that Ole Miss was among the first schools to contact Jones once he made the decision to enter the transfer portal. But programs like LSU and Florida would certainly appear to be lucrative transfer options. Arkansas also is coming off a solid run in the NCAA Tournament.

Jones was Penn State’s leading scorer in the 2020-21 season with 15.3 points per game.

Jones was one of six players from the Penn State men’s basketball team to enter their name in the NCAA transfer portal at the conclusion of the season. Izaiah Brockington decided to remain at Penn State to play for newly hired head coach Micah Shrewsberry. Guard Jamari Wheeler opted to commit to a Big Ten rival, Ohio State. Jones is currently sitting in the transfer portal with forwards John Harrar, Seth Lundy, Trent Buttrick, and Patrick Kelly.

Get to know new Penn State basketball head coach Micah Shrewsberry

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Three Penn State players Badger fans need to know

Wisconsin hits the road to take on No. 20 Penn State on Saturday. Badger fans should be sure to know these three opposing players.

Wisconsin enters Saturday’s contest against No. 20 Penn State in State College having won 12 straight against the Nittany Lions, but this could very well be the second game in a row the Badgers see an impressive head-to-head winning streak come to a close after snapping a run of 15 straight victories against Illinois in Wednesday’s loss to the Illini in Madison.

Head coach Pat Chambers has his squad ranked in the AP Top 25 poll for the first time in 24 years, and the Nittany Lions look like a pretty safe bet to get back to the NCAA Tournament after an eight-year hiatus. Before falling at Rutgers on Tuesday, Penn State had put together a five-game winning streak that including home victories over No. 4 Maryland and No. 23 Iowa. It’s clear at this point in the season that this is the best group Penn State has had in a very long time.

With that being said, here are the three players on the other side who Badger fans should keep a close eye on throughout Saturday’s contest.

Lamar Stevens – Forward

Current stats: 16.1 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.4 spg, 1.2 bpg, 46.1 FG%

One of the all-time great players in the history of Penn State’s program, Stevens is capping off a marvelous career with an outstanding senior season.

The 6-8 forward from Philadelphia was named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 list that was released earlier this week and is looking like a top contender for Big Ten Player of the Year honors as the conference’s No. 5 scorer and No. 13 rebounder. Stevens is also one of Penn State’s top defenders, ranking second on the team in both blocks and steals.

The Nittany Lions may have lost both matchups to the Badgers last season, but Stevens certainly was not to blame; he scored 22 points in both contests.

Mike Watkins – Forward

Current stats: 11.1 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 3.3 bpg, 1.0 spg, 62.8 FG%

Dec 14, 2019; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions forward Lamar Stevens (11) and forward Mike Watkins (24) react to a play against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the second half at the Bryce Jordan Center. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

At this point, you have to sympathize a bit with Nate Reuvers and Micah Potter. The two bigs have had to bang with two of the Big Ten’s most formidable post players in Ohio State’s Kaleb Wesson and Illinois’ Kofi Cockburn in Wisconsin’s last two games, and the trend is set to continue on Saturday against Watkins.

While the 6-9, 254-pound senior isn’t as dangerous a scorer as those two, he’s just as much of a dominant force in the paint. One of the Big Ten’s top defenders, Watkins leads the conference in blocks per game, and he’s a monster on the boards as well (No. 6 in rebounds per game).

While racking up points isn’t exactly what he does best, Watkins is still more than capable of getting his on that end of the floor. At 61.9 percent, his career field goal percentage ranks second among all active Big Ten players.

Myreon Jones – Guard

Current stats: 14.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.3 spg, 44.4 FG%, 41.1 3P%

After averaging 4 points in just 10.8 minutes of action per game as a freshman last year, Jones’ production has skyrocketed in year two.

Thee 6-3 guard out of Birmingham has added more than ten points to his scoring average as a sophomore and has been Penn State’s best offensive player not named Lamar Stevens this season. He ranks behind only Stevens in scoring and is also the team’s top facilitator at just shy of three assists per game.

Jones is one of the Big Ten’s top marksmen from long-range, boasting the No. 10 three-point percentage in the Big Ten.