The Scout: USC Upstate - Jalyn Patterson
Breaking down the game of USC Upstate's JUCO guard, Jalyn Patterson
The eighth installment of The Scout is here, this time breaking down USC Upstate’s newest JUCO guard, Jalyn Patterson.
Without further ado, let’s get right into the breakdown.
Player Bio:
Before transferring to USC Upstate, Patterson spent 1 season at Navarro College.
2025-26 (Freshman Season):
In his freshman season at Navarro, Patterson averaged 14 PPG, 3.6 APG, 2.4 RPG, and 2 SPG across 30 games.
Earned 2nd Team All-Region XIV Honors for his efforts.
Pre-College:
Held offers from Charlotte, Tulsa, and Bethune-Cookman before going JUCO.
Dropped 44 points against Darryn Peterson in High School.
Brother of former Minnesota guard Lu’cye Patterson.
Film Review:
Film from Navarro College (X):
Scoring Ability:
The first thing that becomes evident when watching Jalyn Patterson on film is his ability to score, and to do so efficiently. Last season at Navarro, Jalyn Patterson averaged 14 PPG on 56.5% True Shooting and 50.16% Effective FG percentage. In D1 last season, 14 guards 5’10” or shorter had a 55% True Shooting or higher, including two Big South legends in Rob Martin and Darryl Simmons. When moving the True Shooting percentage down to 50%, it still bodes well for Patterson with Big South 2nd Team Kareem Rozier being included, along with new Longwood guard MJ Williams. At that 50% level, 48 guards since 2008 have been 5’10 or shorter and had averaged a 50% or better True Shooting percentage, the 2nd most out of any league in D1 basketball, behind the Southland with 53.
USC Upstate is the perfect spot for a guard like Patterson to be with those shooting numbers. Last season, USC Upstate’s lead guard, Karmani Gregory, took 13.3 FG Attempts Per Game, with both Bendinger and Adkins also taking 10+ Attempts Per Game. Upstate added two very high-scoring JUCO guards in Derek Edmond and Jalyn Patterson, who will likely fill two of those three offensive shot diets. Compared to Patterson, Patterson comes in as the better of the two guards from JUCO, with better 3 Point shooting and production across all facets, though only a marginal dip in 2-point shooting.
Playmaking:
Another massive part of Patterson’s game is his ability to play make and find the open man. Whether it’s Patterson’s ability to just find the open man while driving, finding the open cutter for a backdoor lob, or playing off the pick and roll, he makes the pass. Patterson also does a very good job at keeping control of the ball, something he honed in on during the season. During the first 3 games of the season, Patterson had 10 turnovers to 9 assists. For the rest of the season, Patterson only had 1 more stretch of 3 games in the whole season with 10 turnovers, and even then, Patterson held a positive Assist to Turnover, having 11 assists, holding a 1.1 Assist to Turnover during that stretch.
During the entire season, Patterson had an Assist to Turnover Ratio of 2. Last season, 6 players, 4 of whom were PGs, had Assist-to-Turnover Ratios of 2 or more. Those 4 guards were High Point’s duo of Rob Martin and Conrad Martinez, along with Winthrop’s Kareem Rozier and Charleston Southern’s Luke Williams. All 4 considered among the best playmaking guards in the league. If Patterson can keep building on his ball control and playmaking, he has a very good chance of succeeding.
Defensive Issues:
The most glaring flaw for Patterson is his ability on the defensive end. Unlike his undeniable offensive power, the defensive abilities are very lacking in my opinion. Many of Patterson’s defensive flaws stem from his size; against bigger guards, he is at a massive disadvantage. In Jalyn Patterson’s 4 toughest opponents at the JUCO level, Patterson allowed two 20+ point games, a 15-point, 6-assist game, and an 8-point, 7-rebound, and 7-assist game, and Navarro ended up losing all 4 games.
The one thing you can look to and see a ton of promise for Patterson, though, is his ability to apply ball pressure and create turnovers. Last season at Navarro, Patterson had 58 steals in the regular season and a season-high 7 in their conference tournament loss. In both of Marty Richter’s seasons at Upstate, he has had success with players who create a ton of steals, whether that’s Tyler Smith, Mister Dean, or Breylin Garcia. Patterson had around a 3-4% Steal Percentage last season, which would have been one of the highest in the entire Big South. Even if Patterson drops to 2-2.5%, he would be in the 50th-70th percentile for guards in steal percentage.
Final Thoughts:
Since becoming Upstate’s head coach, Marty Richter has placed a CLEAR emphasis on JUCO recruiting, especially for its star players. In his three recruiting classes at USC Upstate, Marty Richter has signed 11 JUCO players, including 4 players in this year’s class. Last year, USC Upstate had 7 JUCO players in the Top 9 most minutes players, 8 if you include Learic Davis. Marty has always leaned on JUCO PG’s to lead his team, and I think he does that again with Jalyn Patterson, which might be his best JUCO player yet.
Jalyn Patterson is very Chris Clemons-esque: both are small guards who can attack at will, aren’t afraid to shoot from anywhere, and attack the ball on defense. I don’t think Patterson is quite the player that Chris Clemons was, but I believe they played comparable styles. I think realistic expectations are a bit of an up-and-down for Patterson, but I do think you’ve seen a ton of flashes, and I believe he finishes the season strong, setting up the potential to return, much like Karmani Gregory, and have a breakout junior season.