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 David Early, a junior transfer from Marshall University.
#23 David Early | Guard | 6-4 | 235 | Jr. | Logan, W.Va./Marshall
A native of Logan, W.Va., Early spent the past three seasons at Marshall, averaging 4.3 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 14.4 minutes per game across 67 total contests. He made 12 starts in his time in Huntington, shooting 34.1 percent from distance and 73.9 percent from the charity stripe.
Last season, he appeared in 13 games off the bench for the Thundering Herd, scoring 36 points with 23 rebounds and 11 assists. He turned in a season-high eight points in a win at Arkansas State on Jan. 21. Early played 10 minutes in Marshall's victory of Tech on Nov. 14, delivering six points and four rebounds in the win.
During his sophomore campaign, he competed in 32 games, making 11 starts while averaging 5.0 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. He knocked down 37 triples while shooting 33.9 percent from the arc. Early dropped a season-best 14 points at Ohio on Dec. 15, hauled in a season-high seven boards at Eastern Kentucky on Dec. 11, and dished out a season-best eight assists against Florida Atlantic on Jan. 8.
As a freshman in 2020-21, he made one start while taking part in 22 games, firing at a 39.6 percent clip from distance and averaging 4.1 points and 1.2 rebounds per contest. Early exploded for a career-high 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting against Middle Tennessee, finishing 5-for-7 from 3-point range in the Feb. 12 affair.
Prior to his time at Marshall, Early attended and competed at Logan High School in Logan, W.Va., lettering four seasons and finishing as the school's all-time leading scorer with more than 2,200 points. He picked up All-State honors twice, averaging 26.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game as a junior, scoring 30 or more in eight contests. During his COVID-shortened senior campaign, he averaged 27.8 points and 12.1 rebounds per game.
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 Marshall Athletic Communications
