The Donna News

RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros head men’s basketball coach Kahil Fennell announced on Wednesday the addition of guard Dekedran “DK” Thorn, who spent the last five seasons at Alcorn State,for the 2024-25 academic year.

Thorn played in 96 career games at Alcorn State and averaged 6.0 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. Thorn averaged 20.1 minutes per game throughout his career while shooting 37.6% from the floor and 33.2% from three-point range. Thorn helped Alcorn State to back-to-back Southwestern Athletic Conference regular season championships in 2021-22 and 2022-23.

“DK is great,” Fennell said. “He won a lot of games at Alcorn State, winning two SWAC Championships there. He is hard playing, intelligent, can really guard and he is another guy that can shoot the basketball for us. He is another guy that can stretch the defense and play from the perimeter and make plays and make shots out there. You can never have too many guys that can shoot a three and he is another one that does it at a high level. Bringing him and making him a part of this thing is massive for us.”

Last season, Thorn played in 29 games while making 14 starts and averaged 8.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 27.9 minutes per game. Thorn shot 39.6% (86-for-217) from the floor and 36.0% (40-for-111) from three-point range while shooting 75.0% (30-for-40) from the free throw line.

Thorn scored in double-figures 12 times last season, including eight times in his last nine games.

In 2022-23, Thorn played in 30 games, while making 20 starts, and averaged 9.0 points and 3.2 rebounds in 26.9 minutes per game helping Alcorn State to an appearance in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) for the second-straight season. Thorn shot 40.6% (91-for-224) from the floor and 35.6% (48-135) from three-point range while shooting 84.8% (39-46) from the free throw line.

He scored in double-figures 13 times, including a career-high 19 points against Arizona State and Jackson State.

In 2021-22, Thorn played in 20 games, while making just two starts, and averaged 1.5 points and 0.6 rebounds per game. In 2020-21, Thorn played in just five games and averaged 2.4 points and 2.4 rebounds a game after playing just eight games in 2019-20 due to injury.

Thorn lettered in basketball and baseball at Pearland Dawson High School and was an all-district selection after averaging 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.0 steals as a senior. Thorn helped his team to back-to-back district championships.

Thorn joins K.T. Raimey and Cliff Davis as part of Coach Fennell’s first signing class.

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