FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 11, 2020) – Reaching to the Midwest to bolster their 2021-22 roster, the Northern Arizona men's basketball team received a commitment from Jayden Jackson out of Milwaukee, Wis. on Wednesday.
"The thing I'm most impressed about Jayden is he averaged 20 points a game last year and he's a low volume shooter," said head coach
Shane Burcar. "For someone to average 20 points in high school, usually they're high volume, but Jayden was not. He's a total team player who comes from a great program with a great coach in John Ricciardi. I can see him coming in here and having a great college experience."
Jackson, a guard out of Whitefish Bay High School, has already eclipsed the 1,000 point threshold entering his senior season. He is coming off a fantastic junior season in which he earned North Shore Conference First Team honors after averaging 19.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.6 steals per game. With Jackson running the point, the Blue Dukes compiled an 18-7 record and won the regional championship.
Through his first three seasons at Whitefish Bay, Jackson, a three-time team MVP, holds career averages of 15.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals while shooting 68 percent overall and 48 percent behind the arc.
Standing at 6-3, Jackson will also have the size and ability to play at both guard spots.
"He'll be able to guard a bigger guard in our league and he's athletic enough to guard a quick 5-10 guard," Burcar said. "He's exactly the type of player we want – someone who will rebound – and his versatility matches the style we want to play."
Jackson is also a standout football player, earning first team all-conference honors as a utility player and second team all-conference honors as a defensive back last fall. Jackson helped lead the Blue Dukes to the Division 3 State Playoffs in 2019 while playing quarterback and wide receiver in addition to starting as a hybrid safety.
Accomplished and garnering interest in both sports, he held Division I scholarship offers in both football and basketball before ultimately turning his focus to hoops in his senior year.
"It's a heck of a time to recruit right now in the pandemic and him and his mother invested their own time and money to come here and see Flagstaff and the university without any coaches around," Burcar said. "He made a solid decision to want to come here. His want to be here coming from Wisconsin is something that I respect the heck out of him."
