R. J. Cole

R. J. Cole (born August 24, 1999) is an American college basketball player for the UConn Huskies of the Big East Conference. He previously played for the Howard Bison.

R. J. Cole
No. 1 – UConn Huskies
PositionPoint guard
LeagueBig East Conference
Personal information
Born (1999-08-24) August 24, 1999
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Anthony
(Jersey City, New Jersey)
College
Career highlights and awards

Early life and high school career

Cole attended basketball powerhouse St. Anthony High School. He was ranked a three-star prospect and maintained a 4.0 grade point average. Cole turned down offers from Boston University and Monmouth to play at Howard, where he believed he could make an immediate impact.[1]

College career

As a freshman at Howard, Cole averaged 23.7 points per game and 6.2 assists per game, leading the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in both categories. He scored 42 against UNC Wilmington on December 22, 2017; one of his five games in excess of 30 points. Cole was named to the First Team All-MEAC and MEAC Rookie of the Year.[2]

As a sophomore, Cole was named MEAC Player of the Week on five occasions. He had a season-high 36 points in the regular-season finale versus Norfolk State.[3] Cole led the MEAC in scoring with 21.4 points per game. He was named the MEAC Player of the Year and was an Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American. Cole led Howard to the College Basketball Invitational, where the team fell to Coastal Carolina despite 14 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals from Cole. After the season, Cole declared for the 2019 NBA draft but did not hire an agent, which left him with the option to withdraw from the draft and return to school for his junior year.[4]

After withdrawing from the draft, Cole transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn). He chose UConn over Alabama and Seton Hall.[5]

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Howard 333237.9.394.359.7703.96.11.7.023.7
2018–19 Howard 343335.6.415.387.8194.16.41.9.021.4
2019–20 UConn
Redshirt
Career 676536.7.404.370.7954.06.21.8.022.5

References
  1. Kidwai, Aman (December 27, 2018). "Howard's RJ Cole Is Taking the Road Less Traveled to College Basketball Stardom". Washington City Paper. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  2. "MEAC Announces 2017-18 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors" (Press release). March 2, 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  3. "MEAC Announces Men's Basketball All-Conference Honors" (Press release). Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
  4. Maisonet, Eddie (April 9, 2019). "Howard's RJ Cole, MEAC Player of the Year, declares for NBA draft". The Undefeated. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  5. Borges, David (May 15, 2019). "Howard transfer R.J. Cole commits to UConn". New Haven Register. Retrieved May 15, 2019.
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