4/3/2020 basketball Edit

Jalen Harris becomes latest Arkansas-to-high major transfer

Jalen Harris is transferring to Georgetown for his final season. (Arkansas Athletics)

Andrew Hutchinson • HawgBeat

Managing Editor

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Jalen Harris wasn’t in the transfer portal very long.

Just nine days after deciding to leave Arkansas and play his final season elsewhere, the point guard announced Thursday that he would finish his career at Georgetown.

The move makes Harris the third person with ties to the Razorbacks in the Big East. He joins his former head coach - Mike Anderson at St. John’s - and a former teammate - Darious Hall at DePaul - in the conference.

Despite drawing criticism for a costly mistake against Mississippi State, Harris had a successful two-year run in Fayetteville. He leaves with his name on the UA top-10 lists for single-game assists (t-7th, 12 at Colorado State), single-game assists in an SEC game (t-8th, 10 at Missouri), single-season assists (7th, 189 in 2018-19), single-season assists per game (8th, 5.6 in 2018-19), single-season assist-to-turnover ratio (7th, 2.9-to-1 in 2018-19), career assists per game (6th, 4.0) and career assists-to-turnover ratio (4th, 2.3-to-1).

Harris is joining a Georgetown team that went 15-17 overall and 5-13 in Big East play this year. Its season ended with a 75-62 loss to Anderson and St. John’s a day before the coronavirus shut everything down.

The Hoyas had a pair of guards with 100-plus assists this year, but both were seniors. If leading scorer Mac McClung - who missed a chunk of the season with an injury and is also a good passer - decides to go pro, Harris will help fill a large void in Patrick Ewing’s fourth season as head coach.

According to HogStats.com, Harris is the 15th player to transfer from Arkansas to another high-major program. As seen in the list below, he’s the ninth in the previous 10 years to do so.

(NOTE: For the purposes of this list, “high-major” teams are those in the AAC, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC, or were considered “high-major” at the time. For example, Rotnei Clarke transferring to Butler is not included, because it was still in the Horizon League and had not yet joined the Big East.)

2019 - Keyshawn Embery-Simpson - Tulsa (AAC)

2019 - Gabe Osabuohien - West Virginia (Big 12)

2018 - Darious Hall - DePaul (Big East)

2016 - Jimmy Whitt Jr. - SMU (AAC)

2015 - Nick Babb - Iowa State (Big 12)

2013 - Hunter Mickelson - Kansas (Big 12)

2012 - Devonta Abron - TCU (Big 12)

2011 - Jeff Peterson - Florida State (ACC)

2007 - Cyrus McGowan - Miami (Fla.) (ACC)

2002 - J.J. Sullinger - Ohio State (Big Ten)

1998 - Glendon Alexander - Oklahoma State (Big 12)

1986 - Byron Irvin - Missouri (Big Eight)

1978 - Steve Bates - Michigan State (Big Ten)

1978 - Houston Nutt - Oklahoma State (Big Eight)

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