photo by: John Young

Lawrence High senior Anthony Bonner (15) elevates over a group of Shawnee Mission North defenders during their state semifinal game Friday evening at Koch Arena in Wichita. The Lions' 78-64 win propels them into the 6A state championship game where they will face Wichita East in a rematch of the Topeka Invitational championship game earlier this season. Wichita East gave Lawrence High their only loss on the season.

It’s been more than a year since former Lawrence High basketball standout Anthony Masinton-Bonner decided to transfer from Colorado State to finish his college eligibility elsewhere.

And after a summer stint at Missouri State that ended with him stepping away from the game altogether last August, Masinton-Bonner has found a new home.

Earlier this week, Masinton-Bonner was one of four signees announced by the Emporia State men’s basketball program for the 2020-21 season.

Masinton-Bonner shared the news by posting a cartoon image of him in ESU gear to his Twitter page.

The post included the phrase “To be continued” and featured a bee emoji to represent the Emporia State Hornets.

The 6-foot-3 graduate of Colorado State who started 37 of his 93 games in Fort Collins, Colo., averaged 11.2 points and shot 51.3% from the floor, 41% from 3-point range and 86.5% at the free-throw line during his final season with the Rams.

“Anthony is a huge addition to our program,” ESU coach Craig Doty said in a news release announcing the move. “He averaged double-figure scoring in the Mountain West Conference as a junior and comes to Emporia State with over 2,000 minutes of high-level NCAA DI basketball under his belt.”

The former Sunflower League Player of the Year at LHS helped lead the Lions to a 23-2 record and the Class 6A state title game in 2015. He scored 695 career points at Colorado State and brings more than just experience to Doty’s Division II program.

“Expect a lot of our action to run through Anthony, who has the ability to really score it yet is also unselfish and has great court vision,” Doty said. “He has proven to be efficient from the field and from the 3-point line in his career. We connected really well with Anthony during the recruiting process and look forward to adding his experience and abilities to our roster.”

The official schedules are not out yet, but one of Masinton-Bonner’s final college games may take place in his hometown.

For years, Emporia State has been on a two-year rotation to play Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse during one of the Jayhawks’ two exhibition games to open the season.

The Hornets played in Lawrence two seasons ago.