EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball announced the signings of six-foot-nine junior forward Julius Rajala (Helsinki, Finland) and six-foot-one junior guard Marcellous Washington (Lexington, Kentucky) for the 2016-17 season. The pair is the first to sign with USI in the late signing period.
Rajala transfers to USI after two seasons with the University of Loyola-Chicago. He tied a career-high with six rebounds versus the University of Evansville in February. The Helsinki, Finland, native signed with Loyola-Chicago after playing on Finland’s 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup preliminary squad.
“Julius enables us to have length in the lane on defense and offense,” said USI Head Coach Rodney Watson. “He spent the past two seasons competing in the Missouri Valley Conference against outstanding players like Evansville’s Egidijus Mockevicius and Drake’s Jacob Eveold.
“Julius can run, screen, catch, and score,” continued Watson. “He has a nice mid-range game and will give us a much-needed defensive post presence along with Davis Carter (USI’s returning junior center from Denver, Colorado).”
Washington joins the USI program after two years at Sinclair Community College (Dayton, Ohio). He averaged 10.5 points and 4.6 assist per game in two seasons with the Tartans, posting a two-year high 11.3 points and 5.5 assists per contest as a sophomore in 2015-16. The incoming junior guard scored a two-year game-high 25 points three times and dished out a collegiate career-high 11 assists twice.
Prior to playing for Sinclair, Washington starred at Bryan Station High School (Lexington, Kentucky). He averaged 11 points and four assist per game in route to earning All-City honors as a senior by the Lexington Herald – Leader.
“Marcellous is a skilled point guard,” said Watson. “He is fast in pushing the ball and sees the floor well. Marcellous enjoys getting his teammates the ball and placing them into a position to score. He is a good shooter and will allow Alex (Stein) and Bobo (Drummond) to be much more versatile.”
The Screaming Eagles were 19-11 last season, 10-8 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, and return All-GLVC senior guard Bobo Drummond (Peoria, Illinois) and GLVC Freshman of the Year Alex Stein (Evansville, Indiana).
