MARTIN, Tenn. – University of Tennessee at Martin head men’s basketball coach Ryan Ridder has announced the signing of Brady Shoulders to the 2024-25 Skyhawk roster. Shoulders is a 6-6, 200-pound guard from Eddyville, Ky. who will be a freshman at UT Martin next fall.
Last season, Shoulders was part of a Lyon County High School program that went 31-6 and won the Region 2 championship for the second straight year under head coach Ryan Perry. Shoulders collected 17.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game as a junior, ranking in the top-20 in the entire state in the latter category. He shot 51.5 percent from the floor and sank 35.9 percent of his three-point field goal tries as the high-powered Lyons led the state of Kentucky in scoring (82.5 points per game) and ranked second in scoring margin (+19.8) in 2022-23.
Shoulders had his fair share of big games during an impressive junior season in 2022-23. He had 23 points and 15 rebounds in Lyon County’s region quarterfinal win over Hopkins County Central, helping pave the way for his second straight spot on the Region 2 All-Tournament team. He also produced a triple-double of 27 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists against Dawson while going off for 31 points (on 12-of-19 shooting) and 18 rebounds in a win over Holy Cross.
“Our staff is fired up to get a talented and versatile player like Brady during the early signing period,” Ridder said. “Obviously with Brady playing a little over an hour up the road, we have made it a priority to try and recruit the best high school prospects in our area. He has been part of a historic run at his high school and is a winner in every sense of the word. He is exactly the kind of person and player we are looking for here at UT Martin.”
After the Lyons had not qualified for the KHSAA Sweet 16 tournament since 1951, Shoulders has been a part of back-to-back state postseason appearances as Lyon County boasted a 60-12 record in that span. The Lyons defeated John Hardin for their first state tournament victory in school history in 2022 and followed that with another opening-round triumph over Newport in the 2023 event, eventually falling to state runner-up George Rogers Clark. Shoulders’ debut in the state tournament was an 18-point, 11-rebound, 4-assist performance in the win over John Hardin. During the 2023 KHSAA Sweet 16 tournament, Shoulders averaged 13.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per outing while committing only three turnovers.
Entering his senior season, Shoulders has already scored 1,347 points to go along with 869 rebounds over 138 career games played. He has drained 157 three-pointers as part of his 517 made field goals while adding 156 free throws. He is a two-time All-Region 2 and All-District 5 performer going into the 2023-24 campaign as Lyon County was recently ranked the No. 1 preseason team in the commonwealth by the Louisville Courier Journal newspaper.
Shoulders is the Skyhawks’ first signee in the Class of 2024 as UT Martin is coming off a 19-win season and an Ohio Valley Conference Championship semifinals appearance in 2022-23.
