Eric Newsome

    Eric Newsome is a 1983 graduate of Rogers High School.  Despite being less than six feet tall, Eric dominated the sport of basketball and was one of the greatest basketball players in Rogers High School and the Miami of Ohio University history.

    Eric’s Varsity Basketball career began when he became only the second sophomore in the history of Toledo High School Basketball to be named First team All-City, averaging 23.9 points per game in 1981.

    By his senior year, Eric became the second leading scorer in the State of Ohio.  He was honored for the third straight year as 1^st Team All-City and was again named 1^st Team All-District and 2^nd Team All-State.  Eric rounded out his senior year by being named the most valuable player at the prestigious Ohio North-South All Star Game.

    Beyond Basketball, Eric was named 1^st Team All-City in Cross Country his junior and senior years and held the school’s record for the 2.5 Mile Distance.  Eric graduated with a 3.8 average and earned a scholarship to play basketball of Miami of Ohio.

    As Eric continued his dominance in the sport, he was named to the Naismith 1^st Team All-American Team for players under six feet tall.

    In his freshman year at Miami, he was the sixth man on the team that won the Mid-American Conference and still has Miami’s best record of 24-6.  Eric was runner-up for the Freshman of the Year in the MAC averaging 7.4 points per game.

    During his sophomore year, Eric averaged 17.1 points and scored more points than any other in the history of the school – an astounding 531 points that season.

    In his junior year, Eric was named 2^nd Team All MAC averaging 18.1 points per game shile leading the conference in free-throw percentage for the second year in a row.  That year, the Miami team won the Mid American Conference.

    As a senior, Eric went on to average 20.2 points and was given Honorable Mention All-American Honors.

    Today, Eric’s records still stand among the best players to ever wear a Miami University Basketball Jersey.  In his collegiate career, Eric holds Miami’s record for free-throw percentage.  He is ranked as the fourth leading scorer in Miami University history behind the names of NBA stars Wally Szezerbiak and Ron Harper.  Eric is also ranked in the top ten of several season and career categories for his performance at Miami of Ohio.   Eric continues to hold the Millett Hall record for scoring 40 points (15 of 15 from the free-throw line) in a game against Evansville on December 9, 1987.