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Grace College Transfer Elijah Malone Plans to Visit Indiana

Elijah Malone won the Bevo Francis Award playing for Grace College in 2023-24, an award given to the best player among all NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior colleges. Now he's drawing interest from high-major Division I programs, including Indiana, which he'll visit Thursday.

Jack Ankony

Grace College center Elijah Malone.
Grace College center Elijah Malone. / Jeff Nycz, Mid-South Images

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Grace College center Elijah Malone is looking to jump up to the Division I level for his final season of eligibility. His Indiana visit begins Thursday, as first reported by NAIA Hoops Report.

Malone earned the Bevo Francis Award in 2023-24, an award given to the best player among all NCAA Division II, Division III, NAIA and junior colleges. As a senior, Malone averaged 17.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 1.9 assists playing 24.5 minutes per game. He shot an efficient 63% from the field, 36.9% from 3-point range on 103 attempts, and 81.4% from the free throw line.

Malone has heard from 30 Division I programs since entering the transfer portal, according to Fort Wayne's WANE 15 News. He has already visited Notre Dame, and now he plans to visit Indiana and Colorado.

Malone started 117 games and played in 139 across his four-year career. He averaged 9.6 points per game as a freshman, then over 14 points per game from his sophomore through junior seasons. He made the NAIA All-American second team as a junior, and earned a spot on the All-Crossroads League second team as a sophomore.

Coached by Scott Moore, Grace College had a combined 112-45 record across Malone's four seasons with the team. Grace, an NAIA program in Winona Lake, Ind., won the Crossroads League regular season title in both the 2023-24 and 2022-23 seasons, in addition to fourth and fifth-place finishes the previous two seasons. That success carried over into the postseason, reaching the Fab Four in 2023-24 and making the Elite Eight and Sweet 16 prior.

At 6-foot-10, Malone has a versatile game for a center. He's powerful inside, whether its scoring over defenders, rebounding or blocking shots. But he also stepped out to hit 99-of-251 3-point attempts, or 39.4%, across four seasons. A willing passer, too, Malone dished out 179 assists in his career, including a career-high 1.9 as a senior.

He graduated from Prairie Heights High School in LaGrange, Ind., near the Ohio and Michigan borders, where he was a small school All-State honoree in 2019. Moore recognized Malone's talent at a young age.

“‘There's this 6'8 kid from Prairie Heights that is pretty good' is all I kept hearing about back at the beginning of the season," Moore said. "I finally had the chance to go see Elijah play and knew instantly the boy could play. He is very skilled for a big man and offers much more than size. He can shoot it, pass it, and loves to rebound. But the best quality that Elijah brings is his enthusiasm for his teammates, and I can't wait to see that with our team!"  

Grace College center Elijah Malone dunks the ball.
Grace College center Elijah Malone dunks the ball. / Jeff Nycz, Mid-South Images

Indiana landed Arizona center Oumar Ballo on Tuesday, who figures to replace NBA-bound Kel'el Ware in the Hoosiers' starting lineup. But Indiana also lost backup bigs Anthony Walker and Payton Sparks following the 2023-24, creating a need for front court depth. That could be filled with a player like Malone. Indiana still has four scholarships heading into the 2024-25 season, but is off to a good start this offseason, adding Ballo, five-star freshman Bryson Tucker and Washington State guard transfer Myles Rice.

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Jack Ankony
JACK ANKONY

Jack Ankony is a Sports Illustrated/FanNation writer for HoosiersNow.com. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism. Follow on Twitter @ankony_jack.

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