EMCC sophomore DeAndre Lewis named to All-MACCC Men's Basketball Second Team

JACKSON – East Mississippi Community College sophomores DeAndre Lewis and Dukiaha Jones have earned repeat all-conference basketball honors for their respective 2025-26 season performances. Lewis was named to this year's All-MACCC Men's Basketball Second Team, while Jones garnered honorable mention recognition on the women's all-league team.

As voted on by the conference's head basketball coaches, the 2025-26 All-MACCC men's and women's basketball teams were announced Wednesday by the Jackson-based Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference.

Lewis, who received honorable mention all-conference recognition a year ago as an EMCC freshman, posted improved numbers in virtually every statistical category this past season. Along with ranking as the Lions' third-leading scorer (16.1 ppg) and leading rebounder (6.0 rpg) on the year, Lewis also elevated his sophomore shooting percentages to 47.9 percent overall from the field, 40.4 percent from beyond the three-point arc and 78.2 percent from the free throw line.

A 6-foot-5, 185-pound swingman, Lewis reached the 20-point mark seven times on the season, highlighted by a career-best-tying 31 points (11-14 FGs, 5-7 treys & 4-6 FTs) in EMCC's 105-101 win at Wallace State-Hanceville. With three double-doubles during the year, Lewis was tabbed MACCC Men's Basketball Player of the Week in late January after averaging 24.5 points and 9.5 rebounds during games against Region 23 champion Jones College and Southwest Mississippi. He began the week with 27 points and 11 rebounds versus the Jones Bobcats and followed with 22 points and eight boards against the Southwest Bears.

As a two-year starter for head coach Billy Begley's EMCC Lions, Lewis averaged 15.6 points (780 career points) and 5.4 rebounds (268 career rebounds) in 50 career games. Along with recording career shooting percentages of 44.6 percent overall from the field, 39.7 percent from three-point range and 77.0 percent from the charity stripe, Lewis also finished his EMCC career with 85 career assists and 66 career steals.

Lewis, who was a 2023-24 Jackson Clarion-Ledger Preseason Dandy Dozen pick at Canton High School, was rated 34^th nationally among this year's class of junior college men's basketball players by JucoRecruiting.com.

On the women's side, EMCC's Jones also earned all-conference hoops honors for a second straight season. A product of West Point High School, Jones collected honorable mention recognition this past year after being named to the 2024-25 All-MACCC Women's Basketball Second Team as a freshman.

A two-year starting guard for head coach Isaiah Butler's EMCC Lady Lions, Jones improved her scoring average to a team-leading 13.8 points per game this season (from 10.4 ppg in 2024-25). She also bettered her rebounding average to 5.0 boards per contest (from 3.7 rpg as a freshman). Noted as one of the premier backcourt defenders in the MACCC, Jones ranked among the conference leaders in steals for the second consecutive season with 75 this past year after totaling 77 steals as an EMCC freshman.

Offensively, Jones produced five 20-point outings on the year, highlighted by her career-best, 28-point effort against Region 23 champion Northwest Mississippi. She also scored 25 points versus Southwest Mississippi along with having posted a trio of 23-point games this past season.

Jones also continued to sparkle on the defensive end of the floor as a sophomore by raising her career collegiate total to 152 steals. This past year, she had five games with six or more steals, including eight swipes against Pensacola State in the season opener and another eight steals versus Southwest Mississippi in conference play.

During her 51-game EMCC career, Jones averaged 12.1 points (619 career points), 4.4 rebounds (224 career rebounds) and 1.5 assists (79 career assists) in addition to averaging nearly three steals per contest.