'My Calling Card': Elliot Tulip Brings Much-Needed 3-Point Shooting to Southern Miss

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – As gritty as Southern Miss men's basketball was in 2025-26, one weakness the team had was 3-point shooting. Thanks to an influx of new talent brought in by head coach Jay Ladner and his staff this offseason, it seems as if that issue has been addressed, and Elliot Tulip figures to be a big part of raising the Golden Eagles' efficiency from deep.

Tulip knew what he wanted when he entered the transfer portal. The Meridian native wanted a coaching staff that believed in him, a locker room with shared values and a place where he could help win basketball games. At Southern Miss, he found all three of those things rather quickly.

Now, the 6-foot-6 junior guard has an opportunity to give the Golden Eagles something they've lacked over the last few years: a dependable 3-point sniper. This week, Tulip took some time to talk with Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI about his journey to Southern Miss, his game, and what could be next.

Finding the Right Fit at Southern Miss

Southern Miss Basketball, Elliot Tulip — Southern Miss guard Elliot Tulip during his first Golden Eagles photoshoot. | Southern Miss Athletics

Homeschooled until his junior year of high school, Tulip took a less visible path to college basketball. He spent his first two collegiate seasons at Division II West Alabama, where he developed into a productive scorer while learning how to better understand the game unfolding around him.

“I feel like just kind of understanding the pace of the game, when’s the right time for things, the right shots, the right pace for everything. In high school you're kind of just free-flowing. You’re learning how to play. And then in college, you learn there's more of a timing and a pace for everything. So I'd say that's probably the biggest take that I had before I came here. Just kind of learning the timing, when's the right time to do different things," Tulip tells Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI.

His production at West Alabama gave Southern Miss plenty to like. As a sophomore, Tulip averaged 11.3 points and led the Gulf South Conference by shooting 41.4 percent from 3-point range. He scored in double figures 18 times and made at least five 3-pointers in five games.

For a player who had flown under the radar, the Golden Eagles' interest carried a lot of weight in his decision about his next destination. Ladner and his staff made sure Tulip understood both how much they wanted him and what they envisioned for him going forward.

“The biggest thing for me is I wanted to play for a school and a coach that just wanted me to be there more than anything," Tulip said. "I mean, they were just on top of it from the day the portal opened. They were really vocal about what they wanted out of me, and that meant a lot to me. The culture was another big one. What they said they wanted to have locker-room-wise and on-the-court-wise was also a big one for me. So just being wanted and the culture here were the two biggest things for me.”

No matter how great a shooter a player is, there is still an adjustment that comes with moving up a level, but Tulip knows what to expect going into this season.

"It's a step up in all aspects," Tulip said. "Everybody's bigger, quicker, stronger, faster. Especially physically. Everything's kind of a level up from Division II."

A Shooter Who Can Help in Several Ways

Southern Miss fans should have plenty of reasons to appreciate Tulip's shooting. With Jalyke Gaines-Wyatt, Isaac Taveras, Camden Cerese and others capable of getting into the lane and finding teammates on the perimeter, there should be plenty of opportunities for him to catch the ball with room to work.

That pairing can benefit everyone involved, even if Tulip isn't always the one shooting or scoring. When defenders have to respect Tulip on the perimeter, it becomes harder to crowd the lane, something opponents did to Southern Miss often last season. And when they close out aggressively, his effective shot fake gives him another way to create an advantage.

Aside from the shooting, though, Tulip says there's more to his game that the fan base might not yet know about.

“I think something [the fans] might not know… I'm more known for my shooting than anything, but I mean, I think my basketball IQ. Just having that IQ and knowing the flow of the game. I think I'm a better facilitator than I probably get credit for, but just the IQ, knowing where guys need to be at on the court, and facilitating a little bit," Tulip said.

At 6-foot-6, Tulip also gives Ladner options with his lineups. He appears to be firmly in the rotation after having a strong offseason and could see time at multiple positions, potentially including power forward in certain matchups. There is a path for him to fill a role similar to the one Curt Lewis held during the 2025-26 season while also helping different combinations of players function together.

His great work ethic and steady approach should help him handle those responsibilities. For Tulip, being dependable means making good decisions alongside whichever four teammates share the floor with him.

“Shooting's kind of always been my calling card, but I’m bringing that IQ presence, a calming presence, a winning presence, to every part of the court I'm on," Tulip said. "But especially shooting. That's always going to be probably the best thing that I do, but being able to provide a calming presence to any group that I'm with is always something I pride myself on.”

A Rebuilt Roster with a Shared Goal

After losing so many players from last year, Ladner and his staff had considerable work to do this summer. Given the challenges of rebuilding in today's college basketball landscape, they deserve credit for assembling a roster with an encouraging mix of strength, speed, athleticism and shooting.

Tulip is an important part of that effort. Just as encouraging, though, is how he describes the relationships forming within the group despite having only been together for a handful of months.

“I think we have a lot of guys with similar values, and that always makes it easier to mesh together," Tulip said. "This is a pretty close group, which is something I'm excited about. We all have a pretty common goal. I think we can all come together, and as long as everyone's end goals are the same, it makes it easier for us all to achieve it.”

How that connection translates once the season begins will determine plenty. Southern Miss will have to turn its individual strengths into consistent production, and Tulip understands that this roster reaching its ceiling comes with daily responsibilities.

“My expectation, everyone's expectation, is a conference championship," Tulip said. "I think that's what everybody wants to do. We have the pieces to do it. It's just about coming in every day, working hard and making sure that we can max out as a group and not leaving anything up to chance.”

For Tulip, there is something special about getting that opportunity at a school he loves, with coaches who made their belief in him clear from the beginning. Southern Miss gave the once-overlooked guard a place to take the next step in his career, and now he has a chance to help the Golden Eagles take theirs too.

Stay tuned to Southern Miss Golden Eagles On SI for more basketball coverage in the coming weeks, and be sure to check out our Southern Miss basketball page to catch up on all the other player profiles we've published over the offseason.

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