2021-22 Men's Basketball Roster
El Ellis
- Position:
- Guard
- Height:
- 6-3
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Durham, N.C.
- High School:
- Quality Education Academy
- Prev School:
- Tallahassee Community College
Senior Year in 2022-23
• Averaged team-high 17.7 points and 4.4 assists while starting all 32 games and averaging 36 minutes per contest
• Played 89.9% of the possible minutes in the season, the second-highest utilization rate in program history behind Jim Price’s 94.2% in 1969-70
• Named All-ACC Honorable Mention, just four voter points shy of being named to Third Team
• Named one of three team captains in the preseason
• 1 of 5 UofL players since at least 1992 to have 565 points and 140 assists in a season, joining Russ Smith, Francisco Garcia, Reece Gaines and DeJuan Wheat
• Tied for the seventh-highest scoring average in a season by a Cardinal since 1992
• Had 28 double-digit scoring games in his senior season, as well as 13 games with 20-plus points
• Named ACC Co-Player of the Week on Feb. 20 after averaging 24.5 points vs. Clemson and Virginia
• Averaged 25.8 points per game in February stretch against the league’s top four seeds (at Miami, vs. Virginia, vs. Clemson, at Duke)
• Scored career-high 33 points with five assists at Miami on Feb. 11, becoming first UofL player with those stats since Darrell Griffith in 1980 Final Four
• Had 30 points and 10 assists against Western Kentucky on Dec. 14, becoming first UofL player to hit those marks since Reece Gaines in ‘02
• Only UofL player along with Darrell Griffith with multiple 30-point, five-assist games in a season
Junior Year at Louisville in 2021-22
• Athletic guard who was third on the team in assists (51 total in 32 games), averaging 20.5 minutes of action per game. He started nine games, including six of the last nine.
• Double-figure scorer in seven of the last 12 games, including a career-high 25 in the Feb. 1 meeting against North Carolina. He averaged 10.2 points per game over the last 18 games -- top for the Cardinals in that stretch, while hitting 30-of-82 threes (.366), including 11.3 ppg in the last 12 games.
• Averaged 8.6 points in the 23 games in which he came off the bench, scoring in double figures on 10 occasions as a reserve. He tied for the runner-up position in the ACC Sixth Man of the Year voting.
• Had 10 points and a season-best six assists vs. Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament first round on March 8.
• Led UofL in scoring on five occasions and has scored 18 or more four times, including 18 points vs. Duke and a career-high 25 vs. North Carolina.
• Scored 18 points off the bench against Pitt in Louisville, and followed it with 14 points at Florida State.
• Scored 22 points off the bench at Michigan State. He had scored just 27 points in his first six games of the season prior to that game.
Junior College Career at Tallahassee
• Averaged 17.7 points, 4.3 assists and 3.4 rebounds while connecting on 55-of-132 three-pointers (.417) and 75.9 percent of his free throws (85-of-112) in leading Tallahassee (Fla.) Community College to a 19-3 record in 2020-21.
• Named first-team 2021 All-America by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), becoming Tallahassee’s first two-time All-American.
• Honored as the 2021 Panhandle Conference Player of the Year, becoming Tallahassee’s first repeat Player of the Year winner and just the conference’s third overall since 1997. He also earned first-team All-Panhandle Conference status and was featured on the FCSAA All-State team.
• Scored a season-high 34 points against St. Petersburgh on Jan. 30 and scored 20 or more in 10 games as a sophomore.
• Made multiple three-pointers in 15 games for Tallahassee, which ranked 14th in the nation in the final NJCAA Division I poll.
• His team’s schedule was delayed because of the pandemic during his sophomore year in 2021, starting on Jan. 20 and running through March 27.
• Ranked as the top junior college prospect in the nation in the 247Sports.com composite rankings.
• After leading his team to a 27-6 record in 2019-20, Ellis earned NJCAA second-team All-America honors and became Tallahassee’s first All-American since 2001.
• Named the 2020 Panhandle Conference Player of the Year, just the fourth freshman since 1997 to attain that honor.
• Averaged 14.3 points, 4.5 assists and 3.9 rebounds as a freshman at TCC, connecting on 40.3 percent of his three-point goals (52-of-129) and 84.5 percent of his free throws.
• His father Elbert Ellis, Jr. was a football and track athlete at the University of Pittsburgh before playing with the Carolina Panthers and Green Bay Packers.
• In a July charity softball game, he led his team to victory with a 4-for-4 outing at the plate with a triple and home run, and played well defensively at shortstop.
High School
• Before moving to junior college, Ellis scored 2,382 career points at Quality Education Academy in Winston-Salem, N.C. He averaged 16.7 points, 4.7 assists and 1.2 steals as a senior.
Personal
• Born Dec. 18, 1999 ... Son of Tasha McArthur and Elbert Ellis, Jr. ... Has two siblings, Deon McArthur and Mannie Ellis ... Major is sport administration.
• Best moment of his athletic career to date was being able to have big games against Duke and North Carolina.
• Personal goal at UofL is "getting Louisville back to that winning culture."
• Enjoys roller skating and bowling in his spare time.
• Chose to attend UofL because he “wanted to play for one of the best programs in the ACC."
• Best basketball advice given to him was “hard work beats talent.”
• His mother Tasha has had the greatest influence on his athletic career.
• Wears uniform number 3 because he is the third person in his family with his name, officially Elbert Ellis III.
• When playing basketball as a kid, he pretended he was Kobe Bryant.
• Most proud of his little brother.
• The first thing you would notice when entering his dorm room is "how basic it is."
• Feels Martin Lawrence would be the best actor to play him in a movie.
• Few people know that “I can play every sport.”
• Best thing about being a Cardinal is “being able to be a celeb on campus."
• Would most like to meet Kyrie Irving.
Favorites
Athlete, other than a Basketball Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Movie: Get Rich or Die Trying
TV Show: The Walking Dead
Twitter Follow: @LouisvilleMBB
Instagram Follow: @LouisvilleMBB
Comedian: Kevin Hart
Musical Artist: Young Thug
Food: Chicken
Midnight Snack: Fruit snacks
