May 7, 2007

Duquesne University head men's basketball coach Ron Everhart has announced the signing of forward Ricky Jackson (Canton, Ohio/McKinley/Cloud County (Kan.) Community College), the 2006-07 Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Western Division Freshman of the Year, to a National Letter of Intent.

The 6-6, 215-pound Jackson, who will have three seasons of eligibility at Duquesne, joins forward David Theis (Pittsburgh, Pa./Vincentian Academy/Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy) (pronounced TICE) and guard Bill Clark (Redondo Beach, Calif./Worcester (Mass.) Academy) in the 2007-08 recruiting class.

"Ricky is coming off a very good season in one of the better junior college leagues in the country," said Everhart. "He is a proven winner who loves to compete. Ricky would bring a high level of intensity and toughness to any basketball program and I'm proud to say he is going to bring that to Duquesne."

Jackson led Cloud County Community College in scoring (15.3 ppg.), rebounding (6.1 rpg.) and blocked shots (18) in teaming with University of Pittsburgh recruit 6-10 Cassin Diggs to help the Thunderbirds to a 23-10 record in the highly-competitive KJCCC. Jackson shot 53.0 percent from the field, 41.9 percent from the 3-point arc (13-of-31) and 77.2 percent from the foul line. He scored a season-high 32 points in a 75-66 win over KJCCC Western Division champion Dodge City (26-6) and added a season-best 13 rebounds against second-place Pratt (24-8). Jackson, who topped the 20-point mark six times, scored in double digits in 26 of 31 games. He finished the year with six double-doubles.

Prior to enrolling at Cloud County, Jackson teamed with current Michigan State forward Raymar Morgan to lead Canton (Ohio) McKinley to back-to-back Division I State Championships. McKinley's back-to-back Division I titles were the first since Cincinnati Elder did the same in 1974. Jackson, who helped McKinley to a 51-3 record in two seasons, was named MVP of the state championship semifinals and also earned a spot on the Division I All-Tournament Team. As a junior he was selected to the 2005 Associated Press Division I All-Ohio third team.

"It is exciting to have a player from a program the caliber of Canton McKinley," said Everhart. "They have had a long tradition of success and produced many outstanding players."

Jackson played his first two high school seasons at St. Thomas Aquinas where he was AP Division III first team All-Ohio and District Player of the Year as a sophomore. In all, Jackson, who finished his high school career with 1,364 points, was AP All-Ohio all four seasons - first team as a sophomore, third team as junior and honorable mention as a freshman and senior.

In addition to being DU's third recruit, Ricky will also be the third person with the surname Jackson on the 2007-08 roster, joining junior guard Aaron and senior guard Reggie.

JOVON MOSES RELEASED FROM NATIONAL LETTER OF INTENT
In related news, Everhart announced that November early-signee 6-8 forward Jovon Moses (Brooklyn, N.Y./Genesis One (Miss.) Christian School) has asked for - and received - a release from his National Letter of Intent.

DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL 2007-08 SIGNEES

NAME              POS    HT   WT    CL   PPG   RPG   HOMETOWN/LAST SCHOOLBill Clark  G    6-5   200   Fr.  20.5  10.0  Redondo Beach, Calif./Worcester (Mass.) AcademyRicky Jackson   F    6-6   215   So.  15.3  6.1   Canton, Ohio/Cloud County (Kan.) CCDavid Theis F    6-7   220   Fr.  19.0  11.0  Pittsburgh, Pa./Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy