St. John’s adds solid wing scorer, Malik Ellison

According to a release from St. John’s, Malik Ellison has signed a National Letter of Intent to attend St. John’s and play basketball for the Red Storm. A 6-foot-6, 175-lb. incoming freshman from Voorhees, N.J., Ellison was one of the top available shooting guards for the Class of 2015. He received a consensus rating of No. 53 for his position and No. 11 in New Jersey by national recruiting services.

“Malik is an explosive athlete who comes from an outstanding basketball family,” said St. John’s Head Coach Chris Mullin. “He has a natural scoring ability and can thrive in our program because of his relentless work ethic. Malik is a good shooter with range and handles the ball well.”

The son of former Louisville star and 10-season NBA veteran Pervis Ellison, Malik Ellison put together an impressive senior campaign at Life Center Academy (N.J.) after suffering a broken leg in the summer following his junior year.

Upon his return, Ellison had a breakout performance at the Spalding Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass., contributing a game-high 28 points and four steals to lead Life Center Academy to a 60-54 victory over Orangeville Prep. Ellison finished his senior season at Life Center averaging 20 points, seven rebounds, and four assists per game to draw attention from high major programs.

Ellison competed as part of the We-R1 AAU team whose alumni include AJ English (Iona) and Ben Bentil (Providence).

Ellison is the fourth student-athlete Mullin has signed at St. John’s since being named head coach last month. He joins 6-foot-8 forward Darien Williams, 6-foot-10 forward Tariq Owens and 6-foot-6 guard/forward Ron Mvouika. Williams is a junior college transfer with three years of eligibility and Mvouika is a graduate transfer with one year left. Both student-athletes are available for the 2015-16 campaign. Owens comes to St. John’s from Tennessee, and per NCAA transfer regulations, he must complete one full year of residency before competing for the Red Storm.

Chris Mullens has made a solid impact in his first recruiting class, adding inside help for the future in Williams and Owens, while Ellison and Mvouika will add immediate perimeter depth for the Red Storm.

He has an excellent recruiting staff, and we look forward to the kind of impact they will make next fall with a full summer to recruit natinally for the “Storm”.