Robert Morris Basketball
Robert Morris Adds High-Flying Wing from Nicholls State
Robert Morris rounded out its guard rotation earlier this week with a pair of transfers that will join two returners and two incoming freshman, but the roster still lacked depth and star power at the wing and in the frontcourt. Andy Toole and his staff added a breakout candidate to one of those areas on Wednesday.
Former Nicholls State and Arizona Christian guard/forward Jalik Dunkley committed to Robert Morris, according to his Instagram account.
Dunkley, a native of Hamilton, Canada, began his collegiate career at NAIA Arizona Christian before transferring to Nicholls State last year. Last season, in his first year of playing Division-I basketball, Dunkley started 27 of 30 possible games and averaged a strong 12.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.
Dunkley excelled at using his size to get to his spot inside of the perimeter as he shot 56% from the field, but never lit it up from three-point range as he shot just 38 triples. Despite the low number of attempts, Dunkley still managed to shoot 34% from three.
His play last season earned him Southland Player of the Week and the No. 2 play on SportsCenter’s Top-10 Plays to start the calendar year in January.
His path to Division-I started at the NAIA level where he helped Arizona Christian to a 30-win season and a trip to the NAIA Fab Four. He averaged 9.9 points and 5.5 rebounds while shooting 51% from the floor as a freshman.
Dunkley’s journey to Robert Morris is very similar to Josh Omojafo’s, a former standout for Toole and the Colonials, as they grew up in the same area, took some time at a non-Division-I program to develop their game before bursting onto the scene at a mid-major.
The addition of Dunkley gives Robert Morris legit size on the wing and provides depth as Eddie Cooke III was the lone player on the roster capable of playing on the wing. While Dunkley and Cooke will not be the only wing players on the roster by the time that the season rolls around, the two of them are very capable options for Toole next year.
Dunkley is the ninth confirmed member of next season’s Robert Morris roster but is already one of the more polished and experienced players. As the offseason continues to progress, expect at least two more wing options and a handful of forwards to still be added.
