Tristen Newton

Tristen Newton was born and raised in El Paso, Texas and was four-year letterman at Burges High School. He finished his career with an impressive 3,266 points, 853 rebounds, 472 assists and 334 steals. As a senior, he led the state of Texas in scoring, averaging 37.2 points per game. He was named the El Paso Times Player of the Year. However, Newton was overlooked by the big Division 1 programs and decided to commit to East Carolina. As a freshman, Newton played in all 31 games, starting 19, and averaged 11.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and led the team with 3.7 assists. He set the ECU freshman record for total assists with 114. His sophomore season was Covid-abbreviated but he did start 16 out of 17 games. He averaged 8.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 steals. He also was 2nd in the AAC in free throw percentage shooting .895. Newton had a breakout junior season for the Pirates in 2021-2022. He started all 30 games, averaging 17.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. He was named Second Team All-American Athletic Conference after his strong season. Newton transferred after the season to play basketball for UConn. He immediately made an impact at UConn. He appeared in 39 games, starting 38 and averaged 10.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and his 4.7 assists led the Huskies. He announced after the season that he would be returning for his 5th year of eligibility. Newton put it all together in his last season of collegiate basketball. He averaged 15.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 6.2 assists. He was named NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player, consensus First Team All-American and was the winner of the Bob Cousy Award, given to the nation's top point guard.