AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Augusta State men’s basketball head coach Dip Metress announced Tuesday that Tom Wright has signed a national letter-of-intent to play for the Jaguars. He will join the program for the Fall, 2007 semester.

A 6-2, 185-pound point guard from Sydney, Australia, Wright was a member of the Under-20 New South Wales squad that recently captured the gold medal. He was named team MVP as a junior and senior for St. Aloysius College High School. The only player in school history to have his number retired (#11), Wright received the M.J. Punch Award for Most Outstanding Individual Sportsmen for the Combined Independent Schools Conference.

“Tom is a true point guard that comes with great credentials from Australia,” Metress said. “He was a finalist for the Under-19 Emus squad which was comprised of the top players from Australia and this is a great honor. Tom has a great work ethic and is highly spoken of by several of the top coaches in the Land Down Under.”

Wright joins Winthrop transfer Jason Killeen as newcomers to the Jaguar program.

Augusta State is coming off the second-winningest season in the history of the men’s basketball program. The Jags posted a 24-7 record and climbed as high as No. 8 in the nation rankings en route to winning the Peach Belt Conference regular season championship and earning the top seed in the NCAA South Atlantic Regional.

The Jaguars return all five starters and 10 lettermen, including Tyrekus “AJ” Bowman, a 6-5 forward who earned All-America honors as a junior and was named the Georgia Player Of The Year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club as well as the Peach Belt Conference Player Of The Year.