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Galena basketball star looking at Nevada, four other schools RENO, Nev. -- Luke Babbitt, Galena High School's 6-foot-7 star forward, has narrowed his possible college choices to Nevada, UCLA, Arizona, Gonzaga and Ohio State. Babbitt is a junior so still has another year left at Galena. Last week, Nevada coach Mark Fox announced Malik Cooke of Charlotte, N.C., and Armon Johnson of Reno had signed national letters of intent to play at Nevada next year.Babbitt earlier had a list of 10 schools he was considering but it did not did not include Ohio State, which contacted him two weeks ago."They called me and said that they heard that I was from Ohio and that they wanted to start recruiting me," said Babbitt, who is originally from Cincinnati."That was real exciting for me because I grew up a fan of Ohio State," he told the Reno Gazette-Journal.Babbitt, one of the most highly recruited players in the country, said he has eliminated Stanford, Washington, Kansas, Texas, Illinois and Duke from the list this week."I think they all appreciated that I told them as soon as possible so they could start looking at other players," he said. "Hopefully this will eliminate a lot of the phone calls and text messages."I just really want to concentrate and focus on our season coming up. I might make one or two visits to a couple of those schools just to see them in a game but my focus now is on our season."Babbitt said UCLA, Arizona, Gonzaga and Nevada were among the first schools to start recruiting him. He has gone to camps at Arizona and UCLA over the past two summers. Ohio State is the only school on Babbitt's Final Five not located in the western United States."I've rooted for them ever since I started watching basketball," Babbitt said. "But all five are equal to me right now. I have no idea who I will choose. I like all five and I would feel real comfortable at any of them."Babbitt was named the Northern 4A Region's Co-Player of the Year last year along with Johnson, Reno Hug's 6-foot-3, 190-pound guard.Johnson led the Northern Region in scoring at 30.4 points per game to go along with 7.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.4 steals per game. A first-team all-state selection, Johnson led the Hug Hawks to the Sierra League championship and the Class 4A state semifinals last season.Cooke is a 6-foot-5, 190-pound forward _ an all-state and all-league selection at Christ School in Arden, N.C. He averaged 19 points and 9.5 rebounds last year, while as a sophomore in 2004-05, he helped lead his team to a state title. He earned team MVP honors in 2005-06 after leading the Greenies to an 18-14 record, a tie for second place in the conference and a berth in the North Carolina state tournament."We are very excited to add these two young men to our program," Fox said."Malik is a true small forward. He is a long, athletic player who can finish. He also has a real knack to get to the glass. I really wanted a true small forward, and he is a good one," Fox said."Armon is a combo guard who really knows how to score. It is so pleasing to have a local player who wants to stay here and play. He will eventually play both backcourt positions." |
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Scout $
11/14 From the Gonzaga site...Luke has eliminated Washington, Stanford, Kansas, Duke, Texas and Illinois. His final five are Gonzaga, Arizona, UCLA, Nevada and Ohio State. Much is going to be made about the fact that we are the only school not in the West. But having grown up out this way is obviously an advantage. It is almost surreal to see schools like Stanford, Kansas, Texas and Illinois being eliminated from a kid's list in favor of the Buckeyes. Great work by Coach Matta and Coach Groce. |
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His coach is a Big Ten guy somehow..I didn't get all of the details. However, this offer and the immediate burst to the top of his list is not just trivial attention. There is a great chance on this one..
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I know a lot of people like Gates because of hi size and strength but I really like this kid...I think Lauderdale will give us the bruiser we need and will be able to play the 4/5 while Oden and eventually Mullens are here.
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Great article! I know there is the Cincinnati heritage, and he says he grew up an Ohio State fan...but this has Thad's work and charisma written all over it. Yeah, he might have liked the Bucks when they went to the Final Four and all, but that would not be enough for him to turn his head this way if things were not going the way they are.
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Scout.com$
Great read on the story behind Babbitt and Ohio State's recent contact. His final five schools are Ohio State, Arizona, Gonzaga, Nevada and UCLA. He hopes to make visits after his season ends in February. Very positive article for Ohio State. |
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I like that he's a lefty and great outside shooter.
Not to many great teams have a scoring lefty on a team. I would like to see him at the SF with 2 bruisers down low but, GATES has to be the most wanted player. A true/pure PF |
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I know everyone wants a banger like Gates, but I have no problem getting a 6-8 guys who can stretch the defense and open things up for guys like Lauderdale, Koufos and Mullens.
We are going to be so good they next five years, it is scary... |
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Agreed 100% wad. Look at it this way....we have options 1a, 1b, and 1c... all of which are 5 star guys. IMO we are assured of getting one of them, Now when in the history of OSU basketball have we had such problems? Simply amazing...
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Hell, with Babbitt and Koufos both stretching the D, guys like Lauderdale should be able to sit under the basket without a defender within 10 feet...
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LinkBack to this Thread: http://www.buckeyeplanet.com/forum/2008-basketball-recruiting/32157-08-nv-pf-luke-babbitt-nevada-verbal.html
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