Roundball Recruiting in high gear

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With addition of center Bradley Ezewiro, LSU basketball gets second signee in as many days

• BY SHELDON MICKLES | STAFF WRITER
•  NOV 14, 2019 - 7:00 PM

 

Walker point guard Jalen Cook, left, was LSU's first signee of the early, one-week signing period that began Wednesday. He was joined Thursday by center Bradley Ezewiro, a native of Torrance, Calif.

AP file photo

 

 

Sheldon Mickles

The LSU men's basketball team received papers Thursday from center Bradley Ezewiro, giving the Tigers two signees for their 2020 recruiting class.

Coach Will Wade announced the 6-foot-8, 230-pound Ezewiro, a native of Torrance, California, who's playing his senior season at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, had signed a national letter of intent with the Tigers.

Ezewiro made it official and joined Walker High point guard Jalen Cook, who signed Wednesday on the first day of the early, one-week signing period.

Ezewiro played last season at Bishop Montgomery High School in Torrance. A three-star recruit, according to 247Sports, he's listed as the No. 10 overall recruit in California and is 29th among centers nationally.

This summer, Ezewiro averaged 8.6 points and 3.6 rebounds in the 13-game Nike EYBL season.

He raised that to 13.4 points and 8.8 rebounds a game during the prestigious Peach Invitational in July with two double-doubles.

 

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LSU basketball coach Will Wade lands prolific scorer in five-star shooting guard Cam Thomas

• BY SHELDON MICKLES | STAFF WRITER
•  NOV 18, 2019 - 3:23 PM

 

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Bradley Ezewiro, left, and Cam Thomas, right, sport LSU shirts at a signing ceremony Monday at Oak Hill (Va.) Academy. Behind the players is Oak Hill coach Steve Smith.

• Photo by Alex McCarthy

 

 

 

LSU coach Will Wade, quesitoning a call against Ole Miss last season, landed his fourth five-star recruit in three years Monday with the signing of shooting guard Cam Thomas of Oak Hill Academy in Virginia.

 

Sheldon Mickles

Will Wade added a big name to his 2020 recruiting class Monday with the signing of five-star shooting guard Cam Thomas of Oak Hill Academy in Virginia.

A 6-foot-4, 190-pounder, Thomas is ranked the 25th overall recruit and the sixth-best shooting guard in the class, according to the 247Sports composite listing.

Thomas, a native of Chesapeake, Virginia, is the fourth five-star prospect to sign with LSU in Wade’s three full recruiting classes.

He signed forwards Naz Reid and Emmitt Williams two years ago, then added forward Trendon Watford last May. Reid has since turned pro, but Williams and Watford are still on the Tigers’ roster.

Thomas joins high school teammate Bradley Ezewiro, a 6-8 three-star center who signed with LSU on Thursday, and Walker High School point guard Jalen Cook, who signed Wednesday, in the Tigers’ 2020 class.

Ezewiro, a California native, and Thomas play for Oak Hill Academy, a boarding school and nationally renowned basketball powerhouse in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia.

Wade said Monday that signing Thomas was a big piece to the staff’s recruiting efforts because the Tigers have to replace senior Skylar Mays after this season. Mays is LSU’s top scorer at 19.7 points per game in its 2-1 start this season.

“It says we need to replace Skylar Mays, (and) we need somebody who can really score,” Wade said when asked what the signing of Thomas says. “He can certainly do that.

“He’s the best scorer I’ve seen come out of high school or AAU since I’ve been coaching. He’s as prolific a scorer as I’ve ever seen.”

This season, Thomas is averaging 32.5 points a game — with a high of 45 — and is shooting 57.1% from the floor and 44.2% from 3-point range.

He is also averaging 3.7 assists and 3.6 steals.

Thomas narrowed his choices to LSU and UCLA after listing those two schools, along with Auburn, NC State and Connecticut, as his finalists.

Thomas, who took an official visit to the LSU campus the weekend of Sept. 13, said the Tigers’ coaches visited four or five times and their level of interest made an impression — particularly Wade.

“He’s going to let me come in and be me,” Thomas said. “That’s one reason why I committed there. He’s going to let me be me.”

When asked what that means, Thomas said it’s a three-level scorer, being a combo guard and making plays to help the team win.

“Some guys are shooters, some guys are scorers,” said Oak Hill coach Steve Smith, who has had 33 McDonald’s All-Americans come through his program in 35 years. “He’s both; he can really score the ball.

“I don’t know of anybody in his class in the country who are better scorers than he is. I’ve coached very few guys that can score the ball like he can."

Alex McCarthy contributed to this report.