NMSU to bring in UCF transfer Brandon Suggs for the 2023-24 season

(Courtesy: NMSU Athletics)

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico - Finding high-level talent and experience is often a difficult task in Division I basketball, however, it appears Head Coach Jason Hooten has done so with his newest signee.
 
Hooten announced Wednesday that Central Florida transfer and fifth-year senior Brandon Suggs has made the decision to close out his collegiate career in Las Cruces.

Suggs becomes the fifth member of the Aggies' 2023-24 squad and is the fifth signee in less than two weeks.
 
Brandon Suggs | Sr. | G | 6-6 | Powder Springs, Ga. | UCF | East Carolina | McEachern HS

• As a senior at Central Florida, he appeared in 32 of the Knights' 34 contests and earned eight starts while averaging 19.3 minutes, 6.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.
• Posted career-high efficiency marks from both the field and the three-point line as he finished the year converting on 46.8% of his field goal attempts in addition to shooting 41.2% from beyond the arc.
• Notched double figures eight times during the 2022-23 campaign, including recording a season-high 17 points in UCF's double-overtime victory over Memphis on Jan. 11.
• Prior to spending his senior season at UCF, Suggs played at East Carolina where he appeared in 73 total games and made 49 starts during a successful three-year career. While competing for the Pirates, the Georgia native averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game.
• In his final season at ECU, he ranked third on the team in minutes per game (29.7) while averaging double figures in scoring (10.1) in addition to hauling in 4.1 rebounds per game and 2.6 assists per contest.
• Standing at six feet six inches, Suggs has excelled at getting in passing lanes his entire career and has tallied 103 steals in 104 games at the Division I level, including a career-high 36 steals during the 2021-22 season before departing for UCF.
• As a junior, he registered double digits in scoring in 15 of the 24 games he appeared in, including a career-high 25 points in a home win over Coppin State. Suggs also tallied five or more rebounds in nine games during the 2021-22 season.
• In 2020-21, Suggs made 11 starts and appeared in 18 of the Pirates' 19 games during an abbreviated season. He finished the season as the team's third-leading scorer after averaging 9.6 points. He also ranked second on the team in rebounds per game – averaging 4.3 boards per tilt.
• Suggs also finished his second season with EDU shooting 43.5% from the field to rank second among Pirates with more than 50 shot attempts and 15^th in the American Athletic Conference in shooting percentage.
• He burst onto the scene in his first year at the collegiate level as he was one of just four Pirates to play in all 31 games. He also appeared in the starting lineup 22 times on his way to averaging 8.3 points while shooting a staggering 45.5% from the field. He also recorded 3.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and nearly one steal per game as a true freshman.
• At the free throw line, Suggs made 82 free throws on 104 attempts to finish ranked 11^th in The American in free throw shooting percentage at 78.8%.
• As a freshman, Suggs was the Pirates' leading scorer on three different occasions, including posting a season-high 18 points on 8-16 shooting at SMU on Jan. 22, 2020. He also recorded his first-ever collegiate double-double on Dec. 18, 2019, when he posted 10 points and 10 rebounds against UMES.
• In high school, Suggs spent his senior year at the Massanutten Military Academy in Woodstock, Va., where he averaged 14.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
• Before suiting up for Massanutten, he starred for McEachern High School in his hometown of Powder Springs, Ga. While at McEachern, he was chosen by the Georgia Coaches Association for the 2018 North-South All-Star Classic and led the Indians to the 2018 Region 3 6A title. He was also a two-year letterman on the football and boy's tennis team.
• Suggs is the son of Willie and Tanda Suggs and has three siblings – Brian, Deija and William.

 
QUOTABLE | Head Coach Jason Hooten
"We are extremely excited about the signing of Brandon. He gives us a tall wing with length and athleticism. Brandon played on a great team at UCF this past season and was considered the team's best defender by some. He was a double-figure scorer at ECU, and we feel with his skill level and size that will be the case in Conference USA. Brandon has a tremendous family, and we are so excited to have them join ours!"