The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Add Graduate Transfer Neal
4/13/2016 | Men's Basketball
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss Basketball added a key backcourt piece Wednesday with the signing of New Mexico guard Cullen Neal. A postgraduate transfer, Neal will be immediately eligible for the Rebels in 2016-17 and has two years of eligibility remaining.
A 6-5 point guard and the son of Lobo head coach Craig Neal, Cullen averaged 12.3 points, 3.7 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game for New Mexico last season. He started 31 games for the Lobos, knocked down 53 3-pointers and shot 74.4 percent from the line. A communications major, Neal holds a 3.8 grade point average and will graduate from New Mexico this summer before enrolling at Ole Miss.
"We are very excited to have Cullen join our program," said Ole Miss head coach Andy Kennedy. "He is a versatile, experienced player who has performed at a high level under his father at New Mexico. His impact on our program will be felt immediately!
"I have known Cullen and his family for many years, and his father and I go back 30 years to our playing days. It feels like we just signed my nephew."
Neal scored 21 points against SEC foe Auburn last year and poured in a career-high 29 points and added seven assists in a win over Oral Roberts. He also posted 16 points and five assists against NCAA Tournament participant Purdue and scored 26 points and added five rebounds in a win at Mountain West Conference champion Fresno State.
He averaged 24.5 points and 4.0 assists per game in 2014-15 before an ankle injury ended his sophomore season after three games and he received a medical redshirt. As a freshman in 2013-14, Neal was the fourth-leading scorer at 7.1 points per game as the sixth man for the Lobos, who won 27 games and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. He posted season-highs with 24 points and six 3s against Marquette.
A consensus top-100 prospect out of high school, Neal was named the New Mexico Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior after leading Eldorado High School to the class 5A state title. He averaged 26.4 points and 7.3 assists per game as a senior and earned first team all-metro, all-state and Parade All-American honors.
Neal finished his high school career with 2,311 career points, third-most in New Mexico high school history, and 497 assists, which is the fifth-most in state history. The 2012 New Mexico Mr. Basketball, he was also named to the Hot 100 Top 100 Players, HoopScoop Top 100, Rose Hoops Top 100, Rivals Top 100, Nike Top 100 and Pangos Top 100 lists.
