UNC zeroes In on record-breaking freshman sharpshooter

New head coach Michael Malone and his staff have hit the ground running, already targeting several major transfer-portal prospects since he first landed in the Triangle on April 7, the opening day of the portal.

One of those players is former New Mexico shooting guard Jake Hall, whom the Tar Heels have contacted, according to Joe Tipton of On3. Hall is the No. 51 overall prospect in the transfer portal in On3’s transfer portal rankings.

In his lone season in Albuquerque, Hall was named Mountain West Freshman of the Year and earned first-team All-Mountain West honors, becoming just the third freshman in conference history to be a first-team selection, joining future NBA All-Star Kawhi Leonard of San Diego State and 2013 NBA Draft No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett of UNLV.

Hall set both UNM and Mountain West freshman scoring records with 605 points, averaging 16.4 points per game on 47% shooting from the floor.

He established UNM freshman records with 30 double-figure scoring games and 12 20-point games and set the UNM freshman single-game scoring record with 32 points at Utah State on March 7, tying his UNM freshman mark with seven 3-pointers in that game.

Hall was also one of the nation’s elite 3-point shooters. He hit 43.2% from beyond the arc, the 10th-best mark nationally among players who made at least 2.5 3-pointers per game. He set a school record with 117 3-pointers and posted a UNM record nine games with at least five 3s.

He started all 37 games, setting the UNM single-season record for starts.

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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Tar Heels chase elite sharpshooter from New Mexico