April 29, 2008

HATTIESBURG, Miss. - Southern Miss sophomore point guard Jeremy Wise has announced today that he will return to school for his junior season instead of testing his stock for the upcoming NBA draft.

"Since the season has ended, I have been talking to my family, my coaches, and my AAU coach (Omhar Carter) to see what is best for me and the people around me," said Wise. "I have been working hard and plan to have the best summer of my life to keep working on my game."

Wise led the Golden Eagles this season with 18.7 points and 4.2 assists, en route to placing second on the sophomore scoring list with 617 points. He is also the first Golden Eagle to record 500 points in back-to-back seasons since Clarence Weatherspoon from 1989 to 1992.

"I want to help my team as much as possible next year," said Wise. "Coach (Larry) Eustachy has been talking to a lot of people in the NBA and if I keep progressing I have a shot at being drafted in the first round. I love Southern Miss and am working hard in school, but my ultimate goal is to play in the NBA."

On February 20 against SMU, Wise became the second fastest player in Southern Miss history to reach 1,000 career points, while leading the Golden Eagles to back-to-back winning records in C-USA play for the first time in school history, as well as tying for the best two year win total in the past 17 seasons at Southern Miss.

The Jackson, Miss. native was the only player to start all 33 games for the Golden Eagles this season, and scored in double-figures in 31 of 33 games, including the last 15. The All-Conference USA performer also scored 20-plus points in 14 games, including a career-high 33 at Alabama on November 23.

"Jeremy is showing a lot of maturity and leadership attributes by making this decision and that will help him become the type of professional that we all want him to be," said Eustachy. "He has the ability to impact winning and has really helped our program lay the foundation for continued success."