Kendrick Davis Officially Signs

UNTLifer · June 8, 2004

Mean Green Basketball Signs Kendrick Davis

DENTON (6/7/04) – The North Texas men’s basketball team issued its final scholarship for the season as head coach Johnny Jones signed Houston, Tex., native and Univ. of Arkansas transfer Kendrick Davis.

Out of Clements High School in Sugar Land , Tex. , Davis originally signed with Arkansas and spent his freshman and sophomore seasons playing for the Razorbacks. The 6-4, 181-pound guard will have to sit out the 2004-05 season due to NCAA transferring rules, but will have two years of eligibility remaining with the Mean Green.

“We’re excited about the addition of Kendrick Davis to our basketball program,” said Jones. “He is an exceptional player and this will give us a head start on recruiting for our 2005 class. After visiting with Kendrick and his family, I feel that he will be a great fit for UNT and UNT will be a great fit for him and as well.”

After an exceptional freshman season, Davis came back to average 5.4 points and 1.2 rebounds per game in 12.7 minutes per contest as a sophomore. He shot .341 from the field, .262 from the three-point line and ranked second on the team in free-throw percentage at .895 (34-38).

Davis scored a season-high 19 points twice, against Jacksonville and South Carolina , and posted a season-high four assists in two games as well. He put up his best single-game numbers in the outing against Jacksonville , recording four assists, four rebounds and one block to go along with his 19 points. He reached double figures in the scoring column six times, including a 10-point effort in 12 minutes against nationally-ranked Mississippi State .

The left-handed shooting guard made an immediate impact on the Arkansas team his freshman season, averaging the third most points on the team with 10.3 points per game. He also averaged two rebounds and 1.4 assists per game while shooting 37.9 percent from the field, .339 from beyond the arc and a team-best 79.1 percent at the free throw line. Davis began his career with a 13-point effort in the season-opener against Jackson State and the next game scored 23 points against Oral Roberts to become the first UA newcomer to score game highs in his first two outings since 1996.

Some of Davis ’ best games during his freshman campaign came against nationally-ranked competition. He hit his biggest shot of the season against then-No. 20 Mississippi State as he made a driving layup with 25 seconds remaining in the game that gave the Razorbacks a 53-51 victory. Davis scored 14 points and added four rebounds, three assists and two steals against then-No. 20 Illinois . He made three of five three-pointers and scored a team-high 13 points against No. 4 Alabama on Jan. 8 and scored 15 points (all in the second half) and had four rebounds against No. 20 Georgia on Jan. 18.

Davis led the team in scoring during 2002-03 eight times, scored in double figures 18 times, had a pair of 20-point performances and led the team in assists five times.

At Clements High School , Davis earned all-state, all-city and all-district recognition and was named District 20-5A MVP after averaging 30 points, 5.4 assists and 4.6 rebounds as senior. The high-school standout led Clements to the district championship and a 22-11 record under head coach Ralph Farley. He had games of 46, 45 and 41 points during his senior season. Davis ended his high school career as Clements’ all-time leader in points scored (1,563) and three-point field goals made (241).

As a junior, Davis averaged 19.5 points and 3.6 assists on a 25-10 team. He averaged 6.6 points and 5.0 assists as a sophomore on a 26-9 club, and 7.0 points and 4.0 assists as a freshman on a 25-8 squad.

June 8, 2004

ranked second on the team in free-throw percentage at .895 (34-38)

We could have used that this past season!

Rudy · June 14, 2004

It sucks that he will have to sit out a year, I think its pretty pathetic that a player has to sit out a year, but ANY coach can transfer on a whim and coach the next year.

GrandGreen · June 14, 2004

It sucks that he will have to sit out a year, I think its pretty pathetic that a player has to sit out a year, but ANY coach can transfer on a whim and coach the next year.

You have a valid point about the fairness of the transfer rules. However, you would have pure chaos without the transfer rules, you would have the "elite" schools recruiting the lower level colleges and player turnover at all levels would be completely out of control.

Rudy · June 14, 2004

True, in that case, if you were to transfer to a BcS school, maybe you should have to sit out a year. It may give players more of an incentive to stay with a "non-elite" program.