MILWAUKEE – AJ McKee of Charlotte, North Carolina, and John Lovelace Jr., of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, have signed with the Milwaukee men's basketball program this offseason and have officially been added to the roster this week.
 
McKee comes to Milwaukee following a stellar run at Queens University, where he was a three-year starter (he started the last 108 games consecutively). The 6-foot-2, 200-pound guard and was a key reason for the success of the Royals.
 
"We are excited to announce the signing of AJ McKee," head coach Bart Lundy said. "AJ is a tough defensive-minded player who also has a great offensive game. Our fans will love his toughness and blue-collar effort. Personally, it means a lot that AJ wants to finish his career here at Milwaukee after playing for me at Queens for three seasons. He is a winner!"
 
This past winter, McKee led the team in scoring with his 18.8 ppg average, while adding 4.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. He ranked third in the Atlantic Sun Conference in scoring, becoming the seventh player in program history to cross the 1,500-point mark for a career. He connected on 44.7 percent (215-of-481) of his field goals overall, including 32.3 percent (62-of-192) from three-point range, while connecting on 73.4 percent (127-of-173) from the line. He scored in double-figures in 31 of 33 games and was named ASUN Second-Team All-Conference.
 
In 2022-23 he started all 33 games and averaged 15.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. McKee was named an ASUN Third-Team member, netting 20+ points on 10 occasions including a season-high 28 points at North Florida in January. For his career, he has appeared in 121 games (113 starts), averaging 13.1 points per contest.
 
Lovelace, a 6-foot-7, 205-pound guard, is set to return home after spending the past two seasons at Youngstown State.
 
"We are also excited to announce the signing of John Lovelace," Lundy said. "John is a Milwaukee native and is coming home to represent his city. We are happy that John is now suiting up for the Panthers after having many great games against us in the past. John is a true switchable player with offensive and defensive abilities to play virtually any position on the floor. He will add to our toughness and edge, which may be his best attributes. John is a high character young man and will make his hometown proud."
 
This past winter, Lovelace appeared in all 32 games for the Penguins, averaging 6.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game in just over 18 minutes a night. He shot 46.2 percent (79-of-171) from the floor, 36.8 percent (21-of-57) from deep, and 71.7 percent (33-of-46) from the free throw line. He scored a career-high 29 points against Lake Erie in November and also had 15 points in 18 minutes off the bench when YSU played at Milwaukee.
 
In two seasons, he appeared in 65 games, shooting 48.1 percent (127-of-264) from the floor while averaging 5.4 points and 2.4 rebounds. Prior to his collegiate career, Lovelace spent one season at We Are United Prep (17 points/8 rebounds per game) after playing his high school ball at Brown Deer High School, where his coach was current MKE assistant Jose Winston.