Noel Johnson Transfers To Play Basketball At Auburn - AuburnTigers.com

Noel Johnson Transfers To Play Basketball At Auburn Clemson Transfer

Noel Johnson

Jan. 14, 2011

AUBURN -- Noel Johnson (No - Elle Johnson), a 6-foot-8, 200-pound, sophomore guard has transferred from Clemson to attend Auburn University and play basketball in 2011-12, head coach Tony Barbee announced Friday. Johnson will be eligible following the 2011 fall semester and will have 1.5 years of eligibility for Auburn.

"We are excited about Noel joining the Auburn Family," said Barbee. "He is a talented player. When you have a guy with his size and his skills, a 6-foot-8 guard who can handle it, who can shoot it, who can pass it, he is a matchup nightmare for teams. He is a big-time shooter. When he lets the ball go you think it is going in every time. He shoots with range. He can do a lot of things. He is very skilled.

"As good of a basketball player as he is, he is just as good a person. I am excited about what Noel is going to bring the Auburn Family on and off the floor."

A consensus top 56 prospect coming out of Fayette County High School in Fayetteville, Ga., in 2009, Johnson was rated as the nation's No. 30 prospect by ESPNU, No. 40 by HoopsReport.com, No. 48 by PrepStars, No. 53 by Rivals.com, No. 54 by Hoop Scoop and No. 56 by Scout.com.

Johnson played in seven games this year for Clemson while starting one and averaged 2.9 points and 1.6 rebounds in 13.1 minutes. He played the most minutes in Clemson's freshman class last season playing in all 32 games, averaging 4.8 points in 14.8 minutes per game. He shot 36.7 percent (29-of-79) from 3-point range and 73 percent from the foul line.

Johnson averaged 9.0 points in Clemson's postseason games against NC State and Missouri in the NCAA Tournament First Round. In the ACC Tournament first round game vs. NC State, he scored an ACC-high 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from 3-point range.

Rated as the No. 3 small forward in his class by ESPNU, Johnson earned first-team All-State honors as a senior when he averaged 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists for coach Andre Flynn. He led Fayette County to the Class 4A state championship game and a pair of region championships.

He averaged 23.8 points and 8.4 rebounds as a junior, was a three-time team MVP and scored over 1,500 points in his high school career.

Johnson enrolled in classes at Auburn on Thursday. He is the son of Lynbert "Cheese" Johnson, a star at Wichita State from 1976-79, who played for the NBA's Golden State Warriors.