Anticipate a lot of scoring from this offensive-minded guard who will join head coach John Jakus and the Florida Atlantic men’s basketball team for the 2024-25 campaign. That player is KyKy Tandy from Jacksonville State.
KyKy Tandy
Combo Guard
6-2, 190 lbs
Transfer
Jacksonville State
Tandy announced his transfer to the Owls on Thursday morning, a day after visiting the campus. He leaves the Conference USA’s Jacksonville State Gamecocks after one season. He averaged 17.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 32 games, showcasing volume scoring on shooting splits of 41.9% from the field and 38.9% from beyond the arc. He also rarely misses at the charity stripe, making 107 of his 121 attempts.
Tandy’s 2023-24 season featured a lot of scoring nights, including 10 20-point games and two 30-point displays. For the latter, the first happened against FIU when he scored a career-high 35 points on 12-18 shooting from the field and 7-12 from downtown. The second took place in the season-finale, seeing Tandy drop 32 points on 10-17 shooting overall and 6-9 from beyond the arc against Sam Houston.
He used to play at Xavier, spending four years with the Musketeers. In 69 games, he averaged 4.9 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 0.9 assists. He didn’t average more than seven points per game for Xavier and saw his playing time dwindle as each year passed. His last two seasons saw him be riddled with injuries, fixing a stress fracture in his left leg during the 2021-22 campaign and seeing a foot injury sideline him near the end of the 2022-23 season.
Tandy prepped at University Heights Academy for coach Grant Shouse, where he was a four-star prospect and named USA Today Kentucky Player of the Year and National Athletic Association of Private Schools (NAAPS) 3A National Player of the Year. He finished his career with 3,363 points, the eighth highest total in state history. He was also MVP of the Kentucky All “A” State Championship, averaging 22.8 points and 7.0 rebounds for the four-game title run by University Heights.
As a highly rated four-star recruit with a score of 94 on 247Sports, Tandy emerged as the 12th-best combo guard in the Class of 2019, the second-best in the state of Kentucky, and the 82th-best in the country. He made the decision to commit to Xavier in October 2018 despite having enticing Power 5 offers from Ole Miss, Clemson, Auburn, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, and Florida among others.
“Built like a tailback, is fast, explosive and powerful. A good shooter from deep, and should only get better with reps. When attacking the rim he uses his significant vertical explosion and strength to finish through taller players,” said 247Sports’ recruiting analyst Brandon Jenkins back in 2018, comparing Wright to former Arizona Wildcat Mark Lyons.
“On the defensive end his toughness and athleticism give him significant potential, though he does need to have more of a commitment – especially off the ball. A solid prospect who can play both guard spots, but is more suited as a scorer who is a secondary ball handler and decision maker.”
Having entered the portal on April 24th, Tandy had a 91 rating while ranking as the 20th-best combo guard in the nation and the 186th-best overall.
Tandy’s ability to shoot the ball at a sheer volume will prove wonders for an FAU squad looking to have a dynamic offense with the heavily retooled roster they currently have at their disposal.
His highlights from the 2023-24 campaign can be viewed below: