PAIR OF FRONTCOURT TRANSFERS JOIN SKYHAWK MEN’S BASKETBALL PROGRAM
8/25/2019 8:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MARTIN, Tenn. – University of Tennessee at Martin head coach Anthony Stewart has welcomed two juniors into the men's basketball program, as Hannes Polla and Jordan Pierce have been added to the 2019-20 Skyhawk roster.
Polla joins UT Martin after playing the last two seasons under head coach Lon Kruger at the University of Oklahoma. Pierce spent last season playing for head coach Kris Baumann at Odessa College after beginning his collegiate career at the University of Dayton.
"Both of these newcomers bring tremendous size and skill to our program," Stewart said. "They are traditional back-to-the-basket post players who bring valuable experience at high-level programs. They are a perfect fit for how we want to play and I am glad to welcome them into the Skyhawk family."
Standing at 6-11 and weighing in at 270 pounds is Polla, who helped Oklahoma to 38 combined wins and a pair of trips to the NCAA Tournament from 2017-19. He saw playing time in 32 overall games, scoring 34 points to go along with 28 rebounds and six blocks over 104 career minutes. He shot 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from the floor while knocking down 75 percent of his free throw attempts (6-for-8).
Polla equaled a career-high with six points against both Wichita State (Dec. 8) and Vanderbilt (Jan. 26) during his sophomore campaign. He also swatted away a career-best two blocks in a career-high 10 minutes against Notre Dame on Dec. 4, 2018. He hauled in a career-high six rebounds during his freshman season in the victory over Kansas on Jan. 23 while also tallying six points and five rebounds against Ball State on Nov. 15, 2017.
A Lahti, Finland native, Polla prepped at the Helsinki Basketball Academy, where he was ranked by ESPN as a four-star recruit and the 34th best center in the Class of 2017. He was coached in high school by Hanno Mottola, who played for the Atlanta Hawks from 2000-02. Polla posted averages of 12.9 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 blocks in the Finnish League in 2016-17 and was also part of the U20, U18 and U16 Finnish National Teams.
Polla helped Finland to a 5-2 record in the 2017 U20 European Division B Championship, tallying 10.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in only 19.6 minutes per contest. He collected 7.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game for Finland's National Team in the 2016 U18 Nordic Championship.
Last season, Pierce helped Odessa post a 28-7 overall record, as the Wranglers advanced all the way to the Elite Eight round of the NJCAA Tournament. He accounted for a team-high .536 field goal percentage (67-of-125), upping that number to 62.1 percent in conference play. He averaged 4.5 points and 3.9 rebounds while ranking second on the squad with 22 blocks as a sophomore.
Pierce scored a season-high 10 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting performance at Howard College on Jan. 17. He snagged at least seven rebounds on seven different occasions, including a season-best 11 boards against Jacksonville College on Nov. 2. He accounted for four multi-block performances in 2018-19, including four swats against Midland College on Feb. 11.
Hailing from Union, NJ, Pierce played his freshman season under head coach Anthony Grant at Dayton. Pierce saw playing time in two games, logging three minutes against Mississippi State (Dec. 3) and grabbing one rebound against Saint Mary's (Dec. 19).
A 7-0, 290-pounder, Pierce prepped at Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch Plains, NJ, where he helped lead the Vikings to a 17-11 record during his senior campaign. He averaged 12.1 points and 9.5 rebounds under head coach Dr. James Reagan as a senior, earning All-County accolades.
Polla and Pierce are one of 10 newcomers on UT Martin's 2019-20 roster, joining five returners (three starters) from last season's squad who won their first-round matchup in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship tournament.
Photos courtesy of University of Oklahoma/Odessa College
Polla joins UT Martin after playing the last two seasons under head coach Lon Kruger at the University of Oklahoma. Pierce spent last season playing for head coach Kris Baumann at Odessa College after beginning his collegiate career at the University of Dayton.
"Both of these newcomers bring tremendous size and skill to our program," Stewart said. "They are traditional back-to-the-basket post players who bring valuable experience at high-level programs. They are a perfect fit for how we want to play and I am glad to welcome them into the Skyhawk family."
Standing at 6-11 and weighing in at 270 pounds is Polla, who helped Oklahoma to 38 combined wins and a pair of trips to the NCAA Tournament from 2017-19. He saw playing time in 32 overall games, scoring 34 points to go along with 28 rebounds and six blocks over 104 career minutes. He shot 51.9 percent (14-of-27) from the floor while knocking down 75 percent of his free throw attempts (6-for-8).
Polla equaled a career-high with six points against both Wichita State (Dec. 8) and Vanderbilt (Jan. 26) during his sophomore campaign. He also swatted away a career-best two blocks in a career-high 10 minutes against Notre Dame on Dec. 4, 2018. He hauled in a career-high six rebounds during his freshman season in the victory over Kansas on Jan. 23 while also tallying six points and five rebounds against Ball State on Nov. 15, 2017.
A Lahti, Finland native, Polla prepped at the Helsinki Basketball Academy, where he was ranked by ESPN as a four-star recruit and the 34th best center in the Class of 2017. He was coached in high school by Hanno Mottola, who played for the Atlanta Hawks from 2000-02. Polla posted averages of 12.9 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.1 blocks in the Finnish League in 2016-17 and was also part of the U20, U18 and U16 Finnish National Teams.
Polla helped Finland to a 5-2 record in the 2017 U20 European Division B Championship, tallying 10.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in only 19.6 minutes per contest. He collected 7.6 points and 8.2 rebounds per game for Finland's National Team in the 2016 U18 Nordic Championship.
Last season, Pierce helped Odessa post a 28-7 overall record, as the Wranglers advanced all the way to the Elite Eight round of the NJCAA Tournament. He accounted for a team-high .536 field goal percentage (67-of-125), upping that number to 62.1 percent in conference play. He averaged 4.5 points and 3.9 rebounds while ranking second on the squad with 22 blocks as a sophomore.
Pierce scored a season-high 10 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting performance at Howard College on Jan. 17. He snagged at least seven rebounds on seven different occasions, including a season-best 11 boards against Jacksonville College on Nov. 2. He accounted for four multi-block performances in 2018-19, including four swats against Midland College on Feb. 11.
Hailing from Union, NJ, Pierce played his freshman season under head coach Anthony Grant at Dayton. Pierce saw playing time in two games, logging three minutes against Mississippi State (Dec. 3) and grabbing one rebound against Saint Mary's (Dec. 19).
A 7-0, 290-pounder, Pierce prepped at Union Catholic Regional High School in Scotch Plains, NJ, where he helped lead the Vikings to a 17-11 record during his senior campaign. He averaged 12.1 points and 9.5 rebounds under head coach Dr. James Reagan as a senior, earning All-County accolades.
Polla and Pierce are one of 10 newcomers on UT Martin's 2019-20 roster, joining five returners (three starters) from last season's squad who won their first-round matchup in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship tournament.
Photos courtesy of University of Oklahoma/Odessa College
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