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Purdue receives commitment from former UT-Arlington guard, eligible immediately

Matt Painter

AP Photo

AP

In 2014-15 Purdue was one team that had good fortune when it came to adding a graduate student to the mix, with former Colorado State guard Jon Octeus being a key player on a young team that reached the NCAA tournament for the first time in three seasons. The hope in West Lafayette is that they’ll have similar luck with Johnny Hill, as the former UT-Arlington guard has decided to use his final year of eligibility at Purdue.

Purdue will be the 6-foot-3 guard’s third college stop, as he played two seasons at Illinois State before deciding to transfer to UT-Arlington following a coaching change at ISU. In his lone season at UT-Arlington, Hill averaged 10.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.

Hill played in just 21 of the Mavericks’ 31 games last season due to a wrist injury suffered in a win at Louisiana February 7. Considered one of the Mavericks’ best defenders, Hill made 15 starts and played an average of 26.9 minutes per game.

His addition gives Purdue more depth and experience on the perimeter, with upperclassmen Rapheal Davis and Kendall Stephens and rising sophomores P.J. Thompson and Dakota Mathias being the returnees from last year’s NCAA tournament team. The Boilermakers also add two freshmen to the perimeter mix in Grant Weatherford and Ryan Cline.

Hill’s commitment means that Purdue has one scholarship remaining for the 2015-16 season, with the program among many in the race for former Michigan State commit Caleb Swanigan.

News of Hill’s commitment was first reported by ESPN.com.