Alonzo Verge Jr. Explained

Alonzo Verge Jr.
Position:Point guard / shooting guard
Height Ft:6
Height In:3
Weight Lbs:164
League:Basketbol Süper Ligi
Team:Yalovaspor Basketbol
Birth Date:17 October 1998
Birth Place:Aurora, Illinois, U.S.
Nationality:American
High School:
College:
Draft Year:2022
Career Start:2022
Career End:2022
Years1:2022–2023
Team1:MKS Dąbrowa Górnicza
Years2:2023
Team2:Apollon Patras
Years3:2023
Team3:Al-Rayyan Doha
Years4:2023–2024
Team4:Golden Eagle Ylli
Years5:2024–present
Team5:Yalovaspor
Highlights:
  • Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year (2020)
  • First-team NJCAA DI All-American (2019)
  • Second-team NJCAA DI All-American (2018)
  • MCCAC Player of the Year (2019)
  • 2× First-team All-MCCAC (2018, 2019)

Alonzo Verge Jr. (born October 17, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for Yalovaspor of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL). He previously played for the Moberly Area CC Greyhounds and the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Early life and high school career

Verge was born in Aurora, Illinois, and grew up in Hillside and Bellwood.[1] He attended Willowbrook High School in Villa Park, Illinois for his first two years. Verge did not play basketball as a freshman in order to focus on academics.[1] As a sophomore, he averaged 23 points, five rebounds, three assists and four steals per game, leading his team to its first conference title since 1972, but was suspended for the playoffs.[2] Verge planned to transfer to Proviso West High School in Hillside; due to eligibility issues, he instead transferred to Arlington Country Day School in Jacksonville, Florida for his junior season, playing alongside Luguentz Dort.[3] [4]

As a senior, Verge transferred to Thornton Township High School in Harvey, Illinois. He recorded 43 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and five steals in an 81–70 win over Bloom High School at the Class 4A Richards Regional title game.[5] He averaged 26 points, eight rebounds and seven assists per game and was named Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year.[1] Verge competed for the St. Louis Eagles on the Nike EYBL circuit, playing alongside Jayson Tatum, Tyler Cook and Jeremiah Tilmon. He did not have any NCAA Division I offers out of high school due to academic struggles.[4]

College career

Moberly Community College

Verge was suspended for five games during his freshman season at Moberly Area Community College for a violation of team rules. He averaged 20.8 points, 6.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds and two steals per game as a freshman, collecting Second Team National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I All-American and First Team All-Missouri Community College Athletic Conference (MCCAC) accolades.[6] [7] On November 9, 2018, Verge posted a career-high 55 points, breaking his own school record, six rebounds and five steals in a 106–65 win over Kennedy–King College.[8] As a sophomore, he averaged a nation-leading 30.9 points, 8.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game. Verge set single-season and career program records for scoring and assists. He earned First Team NJCAA Division I All-American honors, joining Eddie Smith as the only two-time NJCAA All-Americans in program history.[9] He was named MCCAC Player of the Year and was a First Team All-MCCAC selection for his second season.[10]

Arizona State

On October 2, 2018, Verge committed to Arizona State.[11] He sprained his right wrist after his season debut and missed three games after reaggravating the injury in practice, as he did not inform the coaching staff of the initial injury. Partially as a result, Verge missed his first 13 three-point attempts.[12] [13] On December 18, 2019, Verge scored a junior season-high 43 points off the bench in a 96–56 loss to Saint Mary's. He recorded the fourth-most single-game points in program history and the fourth-most single-game points by a bench player in NCAA Division I history.[14] [15] As a junior, Verge averaged 14.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, leading the Division I in bench scoring. He was named Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year and All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention.[16] Verge declared for the 2020 NBA draft before withdrawing his name and opting to return to Arizona State.[17] As a senior, he averaged 14 points and 3.8 assists per game. Following the season, Verge declared for the 2021 NBA draft and entered the transfer portal.[18]

Nebraska

Verge ultimately withdrew from the NBA draft and transferred to Nebraska for his final season of eligibility.

Professional career

On August 8, 2022, Verge signed with MKS Dąbrowa Górnicza of the Polish Basketball League (PLK).[19] In 11 games, he averaged 18.8 points, 3.4 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 3.2 turnovers, playing around 27 minutes per contest.

On January 16, 2023, Verge moved to Greek club Apollon Patras for the rest of the season. In 11 league games, he averaged 13.5 points, 7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals, playing around 25 minutes per contest.

On December 19, 2023, Verge signed for the Kosovan club Golden Eagle Ylli.[20] He averaged 24.2 points per game in the 2023-24 Superleague season.

On August 21, 2024, he signed with Yalovaspor of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL).[21]

Career statistics

College

NCAA Division I

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2019–20| style="text-align:left;"| Arizona State| 28 || 9 || 26.8 || .438 || .289 || .737 || 3.5 || 2.3 || 1.4 || .1 || 14.6|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21| style="text-align:left;"| Arizona State| 23 || 21 || 29.8 || .391 || .333 || .809 || 3.9 || 3.8 || 1.2 || .2 || 14.0|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2021–22| style="text-align:left;"| Nebraska| 31 || 31 || 28.4 || .456 || .315 || .770 || 4.5 || 5.5 || 1.6 || .2 || 14.5|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 82 || 61 || 28.2 || .431 || .313 || .771 || 4.0 || 3.9 || 1.4 || .2 || 14.4

JUCO

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2017–18| style="text-align:left;"| Moberly Area CC| 25 || 13 || – || .558 || .320 || .750 || 4.1 || 6.1 || 2.0 || .2 || 20.8|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19| style="text-align:left;"| Moberly Area CC| 35 || 33 || – || .488 || .418 || .759 || 4.2 || 8.2 || 2.4 || .5 || 30.9|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 60 || 46 || – || .510 || .392 || .756 || 4.2 || 7.3 || 2.2 || .4 || 26.7

Personal life

His father, Alonzo Verge Sr., played basketball for Proviso West High School in Hillside, where he earned All-State and All-Area honors.[1] In 2024, he converted to Islam in Therandë.[22]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: O'Brien . Michael . 2017 Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year: Thornton's Alonzo Verge . . October 2, 2020 . March 9, 2017.
  2. Web site: O'Brien . Michael . O'Brien: Alonzo Verge is back, Thornton is a contender . . October 2, 2020 . November 17, 2016.
  3. Web site: Holmes . C. J. . Getting to know Zo: ASU recruit eager to stay on the right path, excel in Tempe . . October 2, 2020 . March 17, 2019.
  4. Web site: Gardner . Michelle . Chicago native Alonzo Verge thriving in role as ASU's sixth man . . October 2, 2020 . February 27, 2020.
  5. Web site: Phillips . Scott . In virtuoso performance, Alonzo Verge finally gets his first regional title at Thornton . . October 2, 2020 . March 4, 2017.
  6. Web site: Embree . Chuck . George and Verge Jr. named NJCAA All-Americans, White to continue basketball career at higher level . . October 2, 2020 . April 12, 2018.
  7. Web site: Men's Basketball All-Conference 2018 . . October 2, 2020.
  8. Web site: Embree . Chuck . Verge blazes the nets setting a Greyhounds record 55 points in win over Kennedy King College . . October 2, 2020 . November 12, 2018.
  9. Web site: Embree . Chuck . Verge revered being one of the greatest players in Greyhounds history . . October 2, 2020 . April 11, 2019.
  10. Web site: Men's Basketball All-Conference 2019 . . October 2, 2020.
  11. Web site: Daniels . Evan . JUCO standout Alonzo Verge commits to Arizona State . . October 2, 2020 . October 2, 2018.
  12. Web site: Booth . Trevor . 'It's going to come': Verge patient amid offensive slump . . October 2, 2020 . December 11, 2019.
  13. Web site: Kaye . Jordan . Comfortable being alone: How college matured Alonzo Verge . . October 2, 2020 . March 10, 2020.
  14. Web site: Alonzo Verge Jr. Scores 43 In @SunDevilHoops Loss To St. Mary's . Arizona State University Athletics . October 2, 2020 . December 18, 2019.
  15. Web site: Bumbaca . Chris . Alonzo Verge Jr. comes off bench to score 43 of Arizona State's 56 points in loss . . October 2, 2020 . December 19, 2019.
  16. Web site: Newman . Logan . Alonzo Verge's move to bench helped spark ASU's Pac-12 run . . October 2, 2020 . March 10, 2020.
  17. Web site: Pascoe . Bruce . Alonzo Verge returning to ASU after testing NBA Draft . . October 2, 2020 . July 18, 2020.
  18. Web site: Washut . Robin . Arizona St. grad transfer Alonzo Verge Jr. commits to Nebraska basketball . . September 24, 2021 . July 8, 2021.
  19. Web site: Alonzo Verge w MKS. August 8, 2022. plk.pl. pl. August 22, 2022.
  20. News: Ylli përforcohet me Alonzo Verge Jr. Klan Kosova. 19 December 2023. sq.
  21. YalovaBasket . 1826197744832090278 . Welcome to Yalova, Alonzo Verge.
  22. News: Basketbollisti amerikan që po luan në Kosovë, konvertohet në Islam (VIDEO). 11 January 2024. sq. 12 January 2024.