Javon Jackson has quickly made his mark at UIC, leading the Flames in scoring this season and setting his sights on a postseason run. The junior guard, in his first season with the team, has become a key figure in UIC’s efforts to make its mark in the Missouri Valley Conference this season.
Jackson, a C.E. King High school graduate in Houston, Texas, played his first collegiate season at Southern Nazarene University (Okla., 2022-23). There, he sat second in the team’s scoring efforts. The next year, Jackson transferred to Utah State, playing under head coach Danny Sprinkle.
“When coach Sprinkle left Utah State, I didn’t know if I was going to stay there or not,” Jackson told MidMajorBasketball.
In that year, Jackson also played under former Aggies assistant coach Johnny Hill, who found himself at UIC among the shift in leadership at both programs.
“Coach Johnny hit me up and told me he had an opportunity at a school and wanted me to come with him,” Jackson said.
Jackson and Hill are in their first seasons under UIC’s newly appointed head coach, Rob Ehsan. Jackson attributes UIC’s success this season to the coaching staff.
“We’re very prepared for every game we go into because of our coaches. Everybody as a collective has been working towards where we are now,” he said. “Everyone knows UIC’s history in basketball, and we took it upon ourselves as a program to rewrite UIC’s story.”
The Flames have been electric this season, posting a big win against Yale (91-79) and serving the previously undefeated Drake Bulldogs their first loss of the season (74-70). Jackson is an offensive powerhouse for the Flames and was a key player in both victories. Averaging 12.7 points per game, he leads UIC’s scoring efforts with 190 points on the season.
At Southern Nazarene and Utah State, Jackson helped both teams win a conference title and earn an NCAA Tournament appearance. For UIC, he aims to do the same.
“Every school I’ve been at, I’ve won a ring, and I want to keep that going. I want to bring that to this program,” he said.
UIC tips off for a highly-anticipated game against Bradley at 3 p.m. ET Saturday.
