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Luke Harangody
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Harangody Still Interested In OSU
By Kyle Lamb
Date: May 10, 2005
So much of the focus from Buckeye basketball fans has been on Indianapolis Lawrence North duo Greg Oden and Mike Conley, but there is another player from Indiana who the Buckeyes are very interested in. Luke Harangody of Merrillville Andrean is one of the state's top big men, and he has been interested in Ohio State for quite some time. Kyle Lamb had a chance to speak with Harangody and got the latest on his recruitment.
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Although much of the frenzied hype and speculation has centered around Indianapolis Lawrence North’s
Mike Conley and
Greg Oden, who made official visits to
Ohio State this past weekend, another Indiana standout has quietly remained peacefully under the radar. Monday afternoon, Bucknuts brought him to the surface to get the latest on his own recruitment.
Luke Harangody, a 6-8 PF/C combo from Merrillville (Ind.) Andrean, visited
Notre Dame on Thursday and is listing Ohio State as well as a few other Big Ten schools. We asked the four-star junior according to ScoutHoops.Com to update us on what has been going through his mind.
Harangody averaged 24 points and 12 rebounds this past season as a junior for Andrean. He is being looked at as a possible four or five in a 2006 recruiting class that Ohio State is hoping to complete by the end of the summer.
If Ohio State were to land Oden, Harangody could be viewed as a possible four, or even a center that would take over the reigns after Oden left Ohio State in a couple of years. Currently, Oden is down to Ohio State and Wake Forest with Indiana looking in from the outside.
But here is the latest on Harangody…
Bucknuts: So you took a visit to Notre Dame this past weekend?
Luke Harangody: “Yeah, I did, actually.”
BN: How did that go?
LH: “Well, it wasn’t an official, it was an unofficial visit actually, and it was just on Thursday.”
BN: So you were only up there Thursday?
LH: “Yes.”
BN: How far is South Bend (Ind.) from Merrillville?
LH: “About an hour and a half.”
BN: What all did you do while you were there?
LH: “I met with Coach (Mike) Brey for a while and walked around with the players on campus.”
BN: I remember you mentioned a couple of weeks ago that you had not heard from them (Notre Dame) in a while, have they been recruiting you since then?
LH: “Yes, they have.”
BN: Have they offered you a scholarship?
LH: “Yes.”
BN: Did they do that this weekend or before?
LH: “They offered me before I came up.”
BN: You’re hearing more from Indiana now, too. Where do they stand in the process?
LH: “They are just saying they would really like me to come to school there and they think it would be a great fit for me with my brother being down there (on a football scholarship) too.”
BN: Have you had a chance to take any other visits these past few weeks?
LH: “No, I haven’t.”
BN: Do you have any lined up?
LH: “Actually I might me coming to Ohio State here in a little bit, maybe in a few weeks, but we’ll see.”
BN: What schools are you seriously considering right now?
LH: “Right now it’s still probably Northwestern, Notre Dame, Indiana, Ohio State, and Purdue as the schools I’m most serious about.”
BN: Has Ohio State talked to you about their recruiting efforts and their desire to reel in a few other Indiana players in Mike Conley and Greg Oden?
LH: “Yeah, they have talked to me about that.”
BN: What are your thoughts on the idea of playing with them, especially being Indiana kids?
LH: “I think Coach Matta could bring in a great class and it would be really great for Ohio State. That could be a great team.”
BN: How is your AAU season coming as you guys (SYF Players) had a real good tournament down in Houston at the Kingwood Classic?
LH: “Yes we’re doing really well. We haven’t got to play since then.”
BN: I am guessing you’re really anxious to get back out on the court?
LH: “Definitely.”
BN: Talk about one of your teammates, (6-8 PF) Jamil Tucker. I have seen his name pop up a lot more this spring.
LH: “He just can go inside and out. He has gotten a lot more aggressive and rebounded a lot better. I think he’s gotten a lot better and I think he’s grown up a lot more too. He can bang the three as well.”
BN: I guess I heard him described as a three-point shooter, is that accurate or is that something he does well on the side?
LH: “He does that well too, but he does a lot pretty well but he can also drive and score inside too.”
BN: Is he a legit 6-8 or 6-9?
LH: “I would say that’s right.”
BN: Are you going to take any officials soon or unofficials, or do you know?
LH: “I have to see if I can get anything lined up, but I don’t know here at the time.”
BN: Are you planning to start winding things down this summer?
LH: “Yep, that’s the plan.”
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