East Kentucky Miners announce first signee

October 10, 2007 - Continental Basketball Association 1 (CBA 1)
East Kentucky Miners News Release


PIKEVILLE, KY. - Former Syracuse standout Josh Pace is bringing his exceptional game to Eastern Kentucky. The East Kentucky Miners have signed Pace, a 6-foot-5 guard/small forward who is fresh off of an exceptional season with the Nelson Giants of New Zealand's National Basketball League (NBL). A Griffin, Ga. native, Pace has been a part of championship teams in both the college and professional ranks. He is the first signee for the East Kentucky Miners, an expansion team in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA). He is New Zealand's reigning player of the year.

"As an organization, we're very excited to have Josh Pace onboard," said East Kentucky Coach Kevin Keathley. "Having won a national championship at Syracuse and played for legendary coach Jim Boeheim, Josh will be a great foundation builder for us."

Keathley is confident in Pace's abilities.

"He's a versatile player that can really get to the rim and create," said Keathley. "His ability to defend on the perimeter as well as in the paint will be pivotal for us in what we try to do within our basketball system."

A former sportsmanship award winner, Pace has displayed strong quality character traits.

"Josh will be a great addition to Eastern Kentucky," Keathley added. Pace was a leading contributor during each of his four seasons with the Syracuse men's basketball program, appearing in 32 of 36 games in his freshman campaign.

He was an important part of Syracuse's 2003 National Championship run as a sophomore, scoring a season-high 14 points against Auburn in the Sweet 16 and 12 versus Texas in the National Semifinals. Pace scored eight points and pulled down eight rebounds in the national title game versus Kansas. He averaged 8.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals, and made good on .639 percent (23-of-36) of his shots during the 2003 NCAA Tournament.

After Carmelo Anthony departed the Syracuse basketball program for the NBA, Pace took on an even bigger role in his junior season, averaging 9.5 points and 33.9 minutes per game.

In his senior season, Pace averaged 10.8 points per game for one of the nation's top college basketball programs. Pace scored a career-high 22 points against Rice during his senior campaign.

An asset both on the court and in the community, Pace was awarded the Big East Conference Sportsmanship Award. In addition, Pace was named to the All-Big East team as an Honorable Mention selection and earned an All-Big East Tournament team nod. He averaged 7.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game at Syracuse, playing in 129 games, 65 of which he started.

After graduation, Pace played in the 2005 Utah Jazz Summer League. The Syracuse product played on three separate teams overseas during the 2006 season.

Pace was named an NBL All-Star as a member of the Nelson Giants during the 2007 season, averaging 19.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. He led the Giants to the NBL title and claimed the league's Most Valuable Player award.

East Kentucky will open its inaugural season in the CBA on Friday, Nov. 16 in Pittsburgh versus the Xplosion.



Continental Basketball Association 1 Stories from October 10, 2007


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