NEW: Friars Land Another Recruit
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
One thing that we have learned since Ed Cooley arrived in Providence is that the man can recruit.
Monday, PC landed another solid player as 6'-6" point guard Brandon Austin chose PC over both Connecticut, Texas and UCLA.
Here's what the Philadelphia Enquirer had to say about him:
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTImhotep's Brandon Austin, one of the city's top basketball players, committed to Providence on Monday night.
The 6-foot-6 senior point guard said his decision came down to the Friars and Connecticut. He also had offers from Texas and UCLA.
"It was a hard decision," said Austin, who added that Providence coach Ed Cooley "said I'll be his No. 1 guy from the moment I step on campus."
A dynamic ball handler, Austin said he was told by the Providence staff that he will start as a freshman. "It means someone trusts me and believes in me to take their team to the next level," he said.
Austin committed to Penn State in February before reopening his commitment over the summer.
Imhotep head coach Andre Noble said Austin is a competitive player with a drive to win. Austin led Imhotep to the PIAA Class AA title last season.
"Any time a kid gets a scholarship to go somewhere, it's a good thing," Noble said.
A look ahead to next season shows Cooley's Friars stacked in the backcourt with both Kris Dunn and Austin at the point. Bryce Cotton, Josh Fortune and Ricky Ledo are all 2-guards, although Ledo could very well play the "3" or small forard position.
Add to that the depth up front with LeDontae Henton, Kadeem Batts, Carson Desrosiers, Sidiki Johnson, Tyler Harris and the incoming Rodney Bullock, and it appears that there will also be an embarrassment of riches in the front court as well.
Assuming that all players are both healthy and eligible, it will be a nice problem for Cooley and the Friars to have considering how undermanned they have been this season.
