By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Over the next several weeks, we'll be taking a dive into getting to know the members of the 2023-24 Tennessee Tech men's basketball team.
Head coach John Pelphrey's roster will feature 17 student-athletes for the second straight year, with 10 newcomers and seven faces already familiar to Golden Eagle fans. Back for the Tech squad in 2023-24 are Diante Wood, Grant Slatten, Grant Strong, Erik Oliver, Jayvis Harvey, Bogdan Zimonjic, and Jerome Beya.
New to the crew for 2023-24 campaign are sophomore guard Brandon Brown (Bristol, Tenn. / Lees-McRae), sophomore guard Nick Choate (Livingston, Tenn. / Livingston Academy), sophomore center David Craig (Johannesburg, South Africa / Mercer), sophomore guard Josiah Davis (Kitchener, Ontario / West Virginia), junior guard David Early (Logan, W.Va. / Marshall), sophomore forward Daniel Egbuniwe (Memphis, Tenn. / Little Rock), junior forward Rodney Johnson Jr. (Bryan, Texas / Weatherford College), freshman guard Kyle Layton (Birmingham, Ala. / Mountain Brook HS), freshman forward Rylee Samons (Pikeville, Ky. / Pikeville HS), and junior guard DeSean Woods (Lexington, Ky. / Southern U.).
Today we'll take a close look at newcomer Josiah Davis, a sophomore transfer from West Virginia University.
#4 Josiah Davis | Guard | 6-3 | 195 | So. | Kitchener, Ontario/West Virginia
A native of Kitchener, Ontario, Davis will represent the sixth Golden Eagle to call Canada home in the program's history. A transfer from West Virginia, the incoming, sophomore competed in six games for the Mountaineers in the 2022-23 campaign, averaging 0.8 points, 0.3 rebounds, and 0.2 assists in just 1.5 minutes per game.
He made his collegiate debut against Tech's longtime, Ohio Valley Conference rival Morehead State on Nov. 15, hauling in a rebound in one minute off the bench. Davis scored a season-high five points against Penn three days later, sinking 3-of-4 attempts from the charity stripe. He also saw action against Portland State, Florida, Buffalo, and at Oklahoma.
Prior to his arrival in Morgantown, W.Va., Davis attended Teays Valley Christian School in Scott Depot, W.Va., averaging 19.0 points, 9.4 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 2.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game as a senior. He dropped 34 points in a win over Maryville Christian (Tenn.) High School in the National Association of Christian Athletes (NACA) National Championship game and tacked on 11 boards, five dimes, three steals, and two rejections while shooting 50 percent from the floor. The guard scored 25 points to earn MVP honors at the North-South Game as well.
As a junior, he helped guide Teays Valley Christian to a 19-9 record and the USBA State title while competing against other prep programs on the national level. Davis earned team Player of the Year accolades, averaging 20.8 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 69 percent from the field and 42 percent from distance.
Davis previously competed for the Canadian Under-16 National Team, helping the squad capture a silver medal at the FIBA U-16 America Championship in Brazil.
Fans are encouraged to check back in the coming weeks as we continue our dive into the 2023-24 roster and take a look at the newest members of the Golden Eagles.
Photo courtesy of West Virginia Athletic Communications
