Eastern Michigan's Tyson Acuff transferring to Rutgers

A big-time basketball player from Detroit has found his way to the Big Ten.

Tyson Acuff, a guard out of Detroit Cass Tech who played the last two seasons at Eastern Michigan, is transferring to Rutgers for his senior season. He has one year of eligibility left, after starting his career with two seasons playing at Duquesne. He will be immediately eligible at Rutgers, as the NCAA's two-time transfer penalty is on hold, pending the outcome in a federal court case.

Acuff averaged 21.7 points this past season, eighth in the nation, in 27 games. He averaged 14.3 points in 30 games during his first season at EMU, when Emoni Bates was the team's featured offensive player. Acuff shot 43.3% from the field this past season, down from 45.9% his first season at Ypsilanti, when his shot volume was much lower.

Acuff joins a Rutgers team that was last in the Big Ten in scoring offense in 2023-24, averaging just 65.4 points. He was recruited heavily to Rutgers by assistant coach Marlon Williamson, a Detroit native who also attended Cass Tech and has deep roots in the amateur Detroit basketball scene.

Acuff's transfer was announced this week by his representatives at Texas-based Prestige Management Group. The exact terms of his NIL opportunities aren't known.

Eastern Michigan (13-18) still has five players left in the transfer portal, most recently 7-foot junior center Cyril Martynov, who played in 30 games this season, averaging 2.5 points and 2.6 rebounds in one season at EMU, following his transfer from Georgia Tech.

More than 1,000 men's college basketball players have entered the transfer portal during this current window.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

@tonypaul1984