Geron Johnson #55

A junior college transfer from Garden City Community College in Kansas … Saw action in 33 games and made 26 starts … Held out of the season’s first three games due to an NCAA-imposed suspension for receiving extra benefits prior to enrolling at Memphis … Averaged 10.4 points (tied for third on team), 4.6 rebounds (third on team) and 3.5 assists (second on team) … Had 14 blocked shots and 59 steals (second on team) … Shot 44.4 percent from the floor, 35 percent from the three-point arc and 70.8 percent from the free throw line …Had 18 double-figure scoring games and one double-digit rebounding performance … Recorded 15 games with four or more assists … Had 17 games with two or more steals … Ranked among Conference USA leaders (overall games) in assists (10th), steals (2nd) and assist-turnover ratio (10th).

Postseason (NCAA/C-USA Tournaments): Started all five postseason contests … Averaged 9.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists … Had one block and eight steals … Shot 39.6 percent from the floor, 32 percent from the three-point line and 50 percent from the foul line … In NCAA Tournament action, averaged 9.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists … Shot 31.6 percent from the floor, 30.8 percent from the arc and 100 percent from the charity stripe … Led team with 16 points and 37 minutes played in the NCAA Tournament third-round loss to Michigan State … With Tigers down 11 points late in first half vs. the Spartans, hit consecutive three-pointers in a 12-4 run to close the lead to 32-29 at the half … In the Tigers’ NCAA Tournament second-round victory over Saint Mary’s, put together a brilliant defensive performance against Gaels’ All-America guard, Matthew Dellavedova … Forced Dellavedova to turn the ball over six times compared to seven assists for a 1.1 assist-turnover ratio (Dellavedova entered game with a 2.3 assist-turnover ratio) … Also held Dellavedova to 10 points (six points below his average entering the game) and 23.1 percent shooting from the field (entered game shooting 40.9 percent) … Had two points and five boards vs. the Gaels … In the Conference USA Tournament (three games), averaged 10.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists … Played a season- high 46 minutes in the C-USA Tournament championship game win over Southern Miss … Posted 10 points, six boards, five assists and one steal vs. the Golden Eagles … Hit a key three-pointer in the second overtime to give Memphis a 75-74 lead … Had 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the C-USA Tournament semifinal win over Tulsa … Accounted for 15 points (9 points, 2 assists on 2 treys) in a 20-11 second-half run that extended a 41-35 lead to 61-46 … In the C-USA Tournament quarterfinal victory over Tulane, tied season bests for assists (8) and steals (4) and added seven points and two rebounds … Dished out six of his eight assists in the first half vs. the Green Wave to help Memphis build a 44-27 halftime lead.

Conference USA play: Started all 16 league games … Averaged 10.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists … Had seven blocks and 30 steals … Shot 44.1 percent from the field, 35.5 percent from the three-point arc and 70.4 percent from the charity stripe … Had seven double-figure scoring games and one double-digit rebounding contest … Posted nine games with four or more assists and nine contests with two or more steals … Ranked among Conference USA leaders (league games only) in assists (9th), steals (3rd) and assist-turnover ratio (11th) … Had 19 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals in the regular- season home finale win over UAB … Tied a season high with eight FG made vs. the Blazers … Grabbed a season-best 10 boards and added seven assists and three steals in a road win at UTEP … Assisted on back-to-back baskets (trey, dunk) to break a 51-all tie and give Memphis a 56-51 advantage with 2:16 left … Played 15 minutes and did not score in a road win at UCF (second scoreless game of season) … Dished out seven assists and added five boards and two steals in a home victory over Southern Miss … Scored 11 points and had five assists and three steals in a road victory at Marshall … Netted eight of his 11 points in a 10-2 second-half run that extended a 46-41 lead to 56-43 with 8:22 left … Nearly posted a triple-double with 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in a home win over UCF … Netted a season-high 25 points and tied a season best with four steals in a road victory at Southern Miss … Also tied a season high with 8 FG made … Added eight boards and seven assists vs. the Golden Eagles … After Southern Miss cut the lead to 65-61, scored the game’s next five points to jump-start a 16-6 run that extended the lead to 81-67 … Capped the spurt with a three-pointer … Scored 19 points and pulled down seven rebounds in a road win at SMU … Recorded season highs for treys made (5) and attempted (9) vs. the Mustangs … Netted six of his 19 points in a 12-5 second half-opening run that extended a 22-17 halftime advantage to 34-22 with 15:23 left … Hit two key three-pointers in the final seven minutes to help keep Memphis in the lead … Dished out seven assists and blocked two shots in a home win over Tulsa … Had 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists in a road win at East Carolina … Had first scoreless game of season in a home win over Marshall … Played a season-low 12 minutes vs. the Thundering Herd … Scored 18 points and added four rebounds and five assists in a home win over Tulane … Tied season highs for FG made (8) and steals (4) vs. the Green Wave … Had seven points, five boards, three assists and three steals in a road victory at Rice … Scored eight points and grabbed six boards in a road win at UAB … Had three steals in league-opening home win over East Carolina.

Non-conference play (regular season games only): Played 12 non-league games and made five starts … Held out of the season’s first three games due to an NCAA-imposed suspension for receiving extra benefits prior to enrolling at Memphis … Averaged 11.0 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists … Had six blocked shots and 21 steals … Shot 47.1 percent from the floor, 36.4 percent from the three-point arc and 75 percent from the free throw line … Had eight double-figure scoring games … Posted three games with four or more assists and six games with two or more steals … Played 37 minutes in a road loss at Xavier … Scored 14 points and added seven rebounds, four assists and two steals vs. the Musketeers … Accounted for 12 of the Tigers’ 14 points (2 treys, 2 assists on 2 treys) in a 14-4 run that turned a 41-31 deficit into a 45-all tie … Hit a three-pointer at 6:27 mark of second half to give Memphis its first lead of the game … Netted 16 points and grabbed five boards in a road win at Tennessee … After Volunteers cut the Memphis lead from 21 points to six, hit a clutch three-pointer to stretch the advantage back to nine with 6:10 left … Over a minute later, hit another key trey to extend a five-point lead to eight with 4:46 left … Blocked a season-high three shots and scored 10 points in a home win over Loyola, Md. … Had 10 points, three boards, three assists and two steals in a home victory over Lipscomb … Scored 12 points and pulled down eight rebounds in a home setback to Louisville … Posted 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists in a home win over Austin Peay … Had a season-high four steals vs. the Governors … Scored 21 points and added three rebounds, three assists and three steals in a home victory over Ohio … Recorded a season-best eight FG made vs. the Bobcats … Had 13 points and six rebounds in a home win over UT Martin … Dished out five assists and had four rebounds, three steals and three points in a win over Northern Iowa at the Battle 4 Atlantis in The Bahamas … Made season debut vs. Minnesota (loss) at the Battle 4 Atlantis in The Bahamas … Scored four points vs. the Golden Gophers.

Played his junior college career at Chipola College (Fla.) in 2010-11 and Garden City Community College (Kan.) in 2011-12 … Played in 25 games at Garden City in 2011-12 … Led the Broncbusters in scoring with a 19.6 average and also posted a 5.6 rebounding average (fourth on team) … Also tops on the Garden City team in assists (4.6 apg), field goal percentage (51.4) and free throw percentage (76.4) … The Broncbusters finished the 2011-12 season with a 17-12 record … In 2010-11 at Chipola College, averaged 10.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists … Shot 39 percent from the field and 85 percent from the free throw line … Helped lead the Indians to a 25-6 overall record and the Panhandle Conference championship … Chipola’s season ended in the NJCAA Region 8 title game.

Why did you choose the University of Memphis?

Coaching Staff and they’ve never won a NCAA Championship, I want to have an impact on that, and it’s close to home.

How is it playing for Coach Pastner?

Great, I wouldn’t want to change any of my coaches, they are irreplaceable.

What has been the most influential or beneficial tip that Coach Pastner or his staff has ever said to you?

“Hold yourself accountable, stay low offensively and defensively.”

What are your thoughts about playing in an NBA arena like the FedEx Forum?

Makes you feel like you are a Pro already. A DREAM.

Who is the funniest person on the team, practical joker, etc?

Adonis, Chris and Joe; 3 way tie!

What things did the Team need to work on during the off season?

Defensive rebounding, talking at all times.

Which athlete has influenced you the most in how you play and your drive to play?

Michael Jordan, Norris Cole, and Derrick Rose/p>

Where is your favorite place to eat when you are hanging with the guys?

Ching’s Wings

When you need a break, what do you do?

Play “Call of Duty”

When did you first realize just how dedicated the city of Memphis is to their Tigers?

As soon as I get to Memphis, they only talked about Tiger Basketball.

If you could tell people who aren’t from here one thing about Memphis, what would it be?

If you are a Memphian, you are accepted and it’s a Big City.

What is the one thing you are most proud of when it comes to the City of Memphis?

Memphis Madness and the support and love people show; they embrace you.

Jookin is the newest dance craze to originate in Memphis. Can you Jook and if not, what is your best dance move?

No Dancing!

Memphis has a prominent place in America’s musical history. Who is your favorite Memphis artist, group, or musician?

Yo Gotti