(Contributors: Dakota Thompson)
Verdell Jones III Biography
Verdell Jones III is a basketball player born in Champaign, Illinois who played for Indiana University. He played the guard position for the Hoosiers for four seasons between 2008 and 2012. He was recruited by Tom Crean and played for Champaign Central High School in Champaign, Illinois. He was a freshman for head coach Tom Crean’s first season.
- Name: Verdell Jones III
- Position: Guard
- Nationality: USA
- Age: 35 years old
- Birthday: June 25, 1989
- Hometown: Champaign, IL
- High School: Champaign Central High School (Champaign, Illinois)
- Height: 6’5″ (195 cm)
- Weight: 195 lb (88 kg)
- Seasons: 4 (2008-2012)
- Jersey: #12
- Current Team: None
- NBA Draft: 2012 / Undrafted
- Education: Sport Communication Broadcast
Awards and Accolades
- No. 23 All-Time Scoring upon graduation
- 2009 All-Big Ten Honorable Mention
- 16 games with 20 points or more
Verdell Jones III High School Recruiting Profile
Verdell Jones III was a 3-star Point Guard from Champaign, Illinois. He went to Champaign Central High School and was a graduate of the 2008 class. He was one of the highest rated point guards nationally, coming in at 27th among seniors per ESPN.com, 30th per Scout.com. He was the 127th best prospect overall in the country. He won many accolades while in high school including being the Champaign News-Gazette Area Player of the Year and an All-State choice as a senior.
He was a three-year starter and averaged 17.6 points per game, 4.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists. He led the Maroons to the Class 3A semifinals as a senior and a 25-8 record. He finished his high school career with 602 assists, which was 6th on Illinois’ all-time list.
- 247 Composite Ranking: 0.9468
- Rivals: 3-Star (26th Point Guard, 126th Overall)
- Scout: 30th Point Guard
- ESPN: 89 Rating, 27th Point Guard
Verdell Jones III was one of the highest rated players out of high school. He received offers from Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota, Tennessee and Southern Illinois. He chose Indiana and enrolled at Indiana on 6/30/2008.
Verdell Jones III Seasons with the Hoosiers
6-25 (1-17 Big Ten)
10-21 (4-14 Big Ten)
12-20 (3-15 Big Ten)
27-9 (11-7 Big Ten)
🏅 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Indiana University Career Statistics
| Season | G | GS | MP | FG | FGA | FG% | 2P | 2PA | 2P% | 3P | 3PA | 3P% | FT | FTA | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-2009 | 28 | 25 | 799 | 105 | 236 | 0.445 | 85 | 175 | 0.486 | 20 | 61 | 0.328 | 78 | 110 | 0.709 | 22 | 64 | 86 | 100 | 21 | 15 | 99 | 66 | 308 |
| 2009-2010 | 31 | 31 | 974 | 149 | 373 | 0.399 | 128 | 296 | 0.432 | 21 | 77 | 0.273 | 144 | 190 | 0.758 | 28 | 93 | 121 | 105 | 28 | 13 | 87 | 53 | 463 |
| 2011-2012 | 30 | 23 | 735 | 72 | 172 | 0.419 | 62 | 139 | 0.446 | 10 | 33 | 0.303 | 71 | 94 | 0.755 | 19 | 68 | 87 | 95 | 21 | 8 | 73 | 54 | 225 |
| 2011-2012 | 30 | 23 | 735 | 72 | 172 | 0.419 | 62 | 139 | 0.446 | 10 | 33 | 0.303 | 71 | 94 | 0.755 | 19 | 68 | 87 | 95 | 21 | 8 | 73 | 54 | 225 |
| Career | 117 | 103 | 3297 | 454 | 1067 | 0.425 | 386 | 839 | 0.460 | 68 | 228 | 0.298 | 371 | 510 | 0.727 | 81 | 304 | 385 | 389 | 97 | 43 | 342 | 232 | 1347 |
Verdell Jones III Indiana University Basketball Career
Immediately upon becoming a Hoosier, Verdell was an impact player. He played in 28 games his freshman year under first year head coach Tom Crean and started in 25 of them. He led the team with 100 assists and averaged 11.0 points per game. As the season progressed, Verdell improved his game and averaged 15.6 points in the last 10 games of the season. He suffered his first injury of his career against Cornell when he was taken off the court in a stretcher after running into a pick. At this point, the Hoosiers were 4-2 and they subsequently lost to No. 15 Wake Forest and No. 5 Gonzaga. He returned against Kentucky, but the rest of the season, he only recorded one more win as the Hoosiers had one of their worst seasons in history. Their final record was 6-25 (1-17 B1G).
Verdell Jones III and the Hoosier squad saw mild improvement in his sophomore season as they went 10-21 (4-14 B1G). He was an honorable mention for All-Big Ten by the media and one of two players for the Hoosiers to start in all 31 games. he led the team with 463 points (14.9 points per game) and was second with 105 assists.
As a Junior, Verdell started in 24 games and played in 28. He averaged 12.5 points per game and saw his most efficient season of his career with 44.8% on FG%, but his least efficient from the charity stripe at 67.2%. The Hoosiers had another rough season and went 12-20 (3-15 B1G) under third year coach Tom Crean. Despite this record, the Hoosiers continued to recruit future stars including Victor Oladipo and Will Sheehey. They started the season 9-2 and saw moments of brilliance, but struggled in the tough Big Ten conference play. They did tally victories against No. 20 Illinois and No. 18 Minnesota at home.
Verdell’s senior year was one of the most iconic seasons in Hoosier history. They had one of the biggest turnarounds and ended 27-9 (11-7 B1G) under Tom Crean. They were led by new recruit and future NBA star Cody Zeller and Victor Oladipo. The Hoosiers reached national prominence when on December 10, 2011, they topped No. 1 Kentucky in Bloomington 73-72. Verdell Jones was the player to set up the Wat-Shot in the final second of the game. Verdell played in 30 games, started in 23 on the season. He was unable to play in the NCAA Tournament though due to a right knee injury which left many fans and head coach Tom Crean heartbroken as we would not see him play anymore as a Hoosier. Indiana’s season ended with a revenge loss in the tournament against Kentucky. Kentucky ended up winning the tournament this year.
