FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 24, 2022) – Northern Arizona head men's basketball coach
Shane Burcar is bringing another former Arizona All-State prepster back to his home state with the addition of Trenton McLaughlin in an announcement on Tuesday. McLaughlin, a transfer from Central Connecticut State, was a First Team All-Arizona player during his prep career at Basha High School.
McLaughlin, who will have three seasons of eligibility remaining as an incoming sophomore, is the third transfer into the Lumberjack men's basketball program this spring with connections to the state. NAU previously added
Xavier Fuller out of South Dakota via Mesa High School and
Liam Lloyd out of Grand Canyon University.
"Trent is someone we offered as a sophomore back when I was an assistant coach," said head coach
Shane Burcar. "When he hit the transfer portal, we reached out and he loved his visit. The one thing he'll bring to us is his versatility. He can play anywhere from the 2 through 4 in our league and brings a couple of things that we need. He is a tough defender who will finish possessions with a defensive rebound and he'll knock down open shots because he's an elite shooter."
McLaughlin recently finished his first season at Central Connecticut State, playing in 31 of 32 games as a true freshman. He earned a start at UConn in his collegiate debut, which wound up being the first of eight starts he made this past season.
The 6-6 wing netted seven double-digit scoring games with a high of 14 points twice at Northeast Conference foes Merrimack and Fairleigh Dickinson. In both games, McLaughlin knocked down 4-of-6 from behind the arc.
Long range shooting was McLaughlin's calling card as he was the Blue Devils' second-leading three-point shooter at 39.8 percent. He drained 37-of-93 attempts and was Central Connecticut State's fifth-leading scorer with 5.8 points per game and 181 points total. McLaughlin also averaged 2.7 rebounds per game, tied for the team-lead with 29 steals and had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.1.
While at Basha High School, the Chandler native averaged 19.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game as a senior and earned a spot on both the 6A First Team All-Conference and First Team All-Arizona alongside fellow incoming Lumberjack teammate Oakland Fort, one of
five incoming freshmen announced in November.
The two-time 6A All-Conference and three-time 6A Premier First Team All-Region honoree averaged 17.1 points per game and shot 44 percent from the field, including 196 three-pointers, over the course of his career at Basha. He helped Basha reach the 6A State Tournament in each of his final three years.
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