Western Kentucky's men's basketball program announced the signing of Jones College transfer guard LJ Hackman (11) on Monday. (JONES COLLEGE ATHLETICS)

Western Kentucky’s men’s basketball program has announced the signing of Jones College transfer LJ Hackman.

A native of Columbus, Mississippi, Hackman joins the Hilltoppers after earning NJCAA First Team All-American honors in 2024-25.

“We’ve been very selective on who to add to our Hilltopper family with this last spot, and LJ is exactly who we needed,” WKU coach Hank Plona said in a news release. “LJ is a complete lead guard who knows how to impact games in so many ways.”

Hackman averaged 16.9 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists for Jones College while helping lead the Bobcats to second consecutive MACCC and NJCAA Region 23 championships in 2024-25. The 6-foot-3 guard shot 47.1% from the field while charting a 84.2% mark from the free-throw line.

Hackman scored in double figures in 29-of-34 contests for Jones College in 2024-25 and finished with 20-or-more points in 11 outings on the year, highlighted by a career-high 30-point effort facing Mississippi Delta on Jan. 9. Hackman’s All-American selection for 2024-25 marked a seventh for Jones College and just the second first-team selection in the program’s history.

The 2023-24 season saw Hackman start in all but two outings for Jones College as a true freshman while posting an average of 13.2 points, 4.2 boards and 3.8 assists per game. Hackman’s 123 assists were good for the highest total on the team. The Mississippi native totaled four 20-point scoring efforts and two double-doubles for the year while finishing the season earning All-MACCC Honorable Mention and an invitation to the All-American JUCO Showcase in Atlanta.

Hackman wrapped his career at Jones College five points shy of 1,000 total and helped the Bobcats to a combined record of 57-11 through two seasons.

Prior to enrolling at Jones College, Hackman attended Memphis East High School in Memphis, Tennessee, for his senior season where he helped lead the team to a 25-8 overall final record and an appearance in the 4A state semifinals. Hackman totaled over 1,300 points for his high school career, also earning all-tournament team honors, a MAC North/South Junior All-Star Game selection and three all-district first-team selections at New Hope High School in Columbus, Mississippi.

“LJ has been coached by two great coaches in coach (Newton) Mealer at Jones College and coach (Jevonte) Holmes at Memphis East and will step in and be able to contribute in a major way from the beginning here at WKU,” Plona said. “LJ is a hard-working young man who will continue to get better and better and we can’t wait to coach him.”