Monday, July 14, 2008

            JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (July 14, 2008) - ETSU men's basketball coach Murry Bartow announced Monday that former Alabama Crimson Tide guard Justin Tubbs (Trussville, Ala.) has decided to transfer and join the Buccaneer program.

            Tubbs, a 6-3, 188-pound guard, will sit out the 2008-09 season by NCAA rule and will have two seasons of eligibility remaining in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

            "We're excited that Justin has decided to join our program," Bartow said. "Our coaching staff thinks he has a bright future and can really help us. He's a very well-rounded student-athlete that has excelled in the classroom, and he's played at a very high level having spent two years playing in the SEC."

            An Academic All-SEC selection in 2007-08, Tubbs averaged 3.1 points and 1.2 rebounds a game for Alabama a year ago, playing in 19 games and averaging 7.3 minutes a contest. Ironically, Tubbs first collegiate start came against ETSU's Atlantic Sun Conference rival Belmont last season.

            "I'm really happy to be coming to ETSU," Tubbs. "The thing for me was the way I connected with the coaching staff. They did a good job of getting to know me and I felt like they had a plan for my future. Because I'll be a fourth year junior when I'm eligible next year, my goal is to just get more experience during practice and get better. Hopefully the fans will see an athletic player who really plays defense and can knocked down shots."

            An accounting major, Tubbs was also All-Academic during his freshman season for the Crimson Tide and earned the team's 2007 "Hustle Award" for daily effort. He played in 28 of 32 games as a freshman, averaging 9.6 minutes and 3.2 points a game. He scored a career best 13 points against Alabama State by going 5-of-5 from the field, including a 3-of-3 clip from 3-point range. Other highlights of his first season in Tuscaloosa included a four-steal effort against Arkansas.

            In high school, Tubbs averaged more than 16 points and four rebounds during both his junior and senior campaigns, shooting better than 78 percent from the foul line and 45 percent from 3-point range. 

            Tubbs said academics are extremely important to him.

            "I take my academics seriously," Tubbs said. "Anything can happen on any day, and I don't want to fall short in the classroom because unexpected things happen. I take care of that first and then play ball."

            Tubbs will round out ETSU's 2008-09 recruiting class, joining center Seth Coy (Montgomery, Ind.), shooting guard Jarvis Jones (Memphis), forward J.C. Ward (Marietta, Ga.) and point guard Adam Sollazzo (Tampa, Fla.). Tubbs is the only player of the group that is not a true freshman.