Basketball recruit narrows choices

Jeff Raasch

ISU basketball recruit Reggie George has narrowed down the list of schools he is interested in, and Iowa State is on the list.

The 6-foot-9, 235-pound forward is also considering Texas Christian and Mississippi State. Bill Barton, his coach at Notre Dame Prep School in Fitchburg, Mass., said George will make his decision in the next two weeks after visiting Mississippi State.

“He has unlimited potential,” Barton said. “He has a very good perimeter game for a big man.”

George averaged seven points and five rebounds per game for Notre Dame Prep against some of the best prep talent in the country. Barton said he didn’t know if George is leaning towards one school over another.

“I really don’t at this time,” Barton said. “But he’s definitely leaning towards going to one of those three schools.”

Iowa State did not officially sign any players on Wednesday, the first day of the spring signing period for prep basketball players to sign with colleges. The period runs through May 15.

Three players signed with Iowa State during the early signing period last November, including George’s teammate at Notre Dame Prep, Will Blalock.

“He’s a very explosive player,” Barton said of the 6-foot-2 guard. “He’s got a tremendous 40-inch vertical and he’s very athletic. His game is taking it to the basket. He will entertain the crowd with his alley-oop catches and dunks. He’s very good in the run-and-gun type offense.

“Transitional defense to offense he is superb in. He’s probably one of the top 10 players in the country at that,” Barton said.

Blalock averaged 20.1 points, 7.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game as a junior at East Boston High School before transferring to Notre Dame Prep for his final season. Blalock averaged 10 points and five rebounds for Notre Dame Prep last season. He and another signee, Curtis Stinson, are both top 100 national recruits.

Justin Holt, the third member of the 2003 recruiting class, will have three years of eligibility remaining after spending one year at Tacoma Community College. The 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward was the 2002 Washington state player of the year and originally signed with Oregon State out of high school. After a coaching change there, he decided to attend Tacoma.