On April 1st, Longwood Men’s Basketball forward Elijah Tucker elected to enter the transfer portal. However, two weeks later, on April 17, Longwood announced Tucker would return for his final year of eligibility.
“What brought me back were the people. Coaching staff, professors, and the friends I’ve made relationships with at Longwood. Longwood is such a tight-knit community, you really turn around to love the people and the place. It’s the people that make Longwood, it was hard to say, ‘No,’ to come back,” Tucker said.
Tucker has been crucial to the Lancers’ success in his two seasons, playing in all 32 games this year, averaging 9.7 points per game and leading the team in rebounding with 159. However, his journey off-the-court is a testament to his character.
The Georgia native and his family are no strangers to accolades in the sports world. Elijah’s mother, LaShonda Stephens Tucker, was a member of two national basketball championship teams at the University of Tennessee (UT). Elijah’s father, Josh Tucker, was an offensive tackle at UT and was drafted into the NFL. It wasn’t until the seventh grade that Elijah decided to pursue basketball. “I really liked football growing up; I had to make a decision because I was still skinny and I’m getting taller, but I’m not getting bigger,” he said with a laugh.
Coming out of Cherokee High School in Canton, Georgia, Elijah received multiple offers eventually committing to Xavier University. “I really felt like the man, because not too many people from our county or high school went to high major D1 schools. Everyone was patting me on the back, applauding [me], and it was a good feeling to have,” Elijah said.
Arriving at campus, Elijah came down with mononucleosis (mono) after two weeks and made the drive back home from Ohio to recover. While at home, his sickness worsened.
“He was hanging out with some of his best friends, and they said [Elijah] wasn’t acting right. He was starting to slur his words and just seemed out of it; he started to get a sharp pain in his back. He couldn’t sit down; we took him [to the emergency room] for that,” Elijah’s father said.
At the emergency room, Elijah and his family were told by doctors that Elijah had developed lesions on his lungs. “[The doctors] described it to me as these little masses on my lungs that eventually spread to my brain. It was blocking the brain fluid from draining down my spinal cord. They had to do an EVD drain, which is brain surgery,” Elijah said.
“I didn’t want to let any of my family or friends down. I didn’t want to have to go back home and have to tell everybody, ‘I’m not going to be able to play again,’ [because] then I wouldn’t know what to do,” Elijah said. “It was my freshman year, and I really [hadn't] thought about what major I would be in or what [my] career path would be after basketball,” Elijah added.
In their tight-knit community, word spread around about Elijah's surgery. “People started to come by and bring meals, they’d send thoughts and prayers,” Josh Tucker said. After the surgery, Elijah saw how the community had responded. The recovery process was next which took at least three months before Elijah could start conditioning.
Unable to play his first year at Xavier, Elijah in his second season was able to play in seven matches. On November 7th, 2022, Elijah played against Morgan State, only logging three minutes, but to Elijah, it meant more than that. “I think that was one of the most important feelings in my life, [Xavier] didn’t really know if I was going to be able to play again. So being able to work my way up and [be] given the opportunity, even though it wasn’t significant minutes; it meant a lot to me,” Elijah said.
Xavier would make the NCAA tournament in Elijah's second year, he wouldn’t play in the tournament. “I think he felt he didn’t contribute to that, but he definitely contributed [at Longwood],” Josh Tucker said.
On March 28, 2023, Elijah entered the transfer portal, and by May, he was officially a Lancer. “He’s about the team first. His commitment to being as good as he can be, but also not at the expense of putting himself beyond the team. [Elijah] established himself right away with his physicality but then knowing the type of person he was; the fact that he wanted a chance to compete, and he wanted to win,” Longwood Associate Head Coach Marty McGillan said.
In his first season as a Lancer, Elijah became a vital piece in the latter half of the season for Longwood. Averaging 7.9 points and 4.3 rebounds across 34 games played. In the final 10 games of the season, Elijah would become a starter for the team and be a key piece in the Big South Tournament.
In the second round, Elijah was a massive factor in the upset win over the number one seed, High Point. In the second half, the team found themselves down 15, but as a unit, Longwood battled their way back to force overtime. In the first 2 minutes of overtime, Elijah scored the first six points for Longwood, helping the Lancers take down the Panthers.
As Longwood prepped against UNC Asheville, Elijah had suffered a leg injury that would sideline him for the championship game. “I ended up having to go to the emergency room, and basically it was just a really bad contusion, [from] all the blood from me getting hit in my quad,” Elijah said.
Unable to play in the championship match, Elijah watched alongside his father from the hospital. The Lancers went on to beat Asheville 85 to 59. The team dedicated the win to Elijah, saying the win was for him. “All those things didn’t surprise me that our team rallied around him just because of the investment he made, not just in himself, but more importantly to his teammates,” McGillan said.
Seeing how the team dedicated the win to him, Elijah said, “I felt like they understood I wanted to be there; they know if I could have been there, I would have.”
The Lancers advanced to the NCAA tournament for a first-round matchup versus the Houston Cougars, Elijah would return in time to start the game, and although a loss to the Lancers, the season was a success for Longwood and a massive triumph for Elijah in his basketball career.
Josh Tucker reflected on Elijah’s journey, and said, “As you go through the journey, you don’t know how far you’ve gone until you look back.”
“I’m really grateful, living in the moment, not everybody gets that chance. I think giving gratitude and honor to the Most High is very huge for me,” Elijah said.
Now that he is back in Farmville for his last year of eligibility, Elijah said he looks forward to his final year at Longwood. “I really want to see the JPB sold out every home game this year. I want to have Lancer Nation and all of Farmville at the games cheering loud. It gives us more excitement to play; play for the fans, play for the town, play for one another,” Elijah said.
