Victoria Vivians
'15 ELITE 60 guard Tiara Murphy is Big Ten bound. *Photo by Haley Weit.
The class of 2015 decided yet again to join the commitment craze this past week. From UNLV to Clemson players are choosing their futures.
Tiara Murphy To Purdue
Purdue coach Sharon Versyp and her staff have done an excellent job working inside the talented state of Indiana and keeping in-state prospects at home in the 2015 class. Previously the Boilermakers already scored two Hoosier State prospects in the junior class -- Dominique McBryde and Lamania Cooper, both from Indianapolis.
This week the program was able to continue that early local success as Purdue added one of the top prospects in the state of Indiana and one of the top point guards in Tiara Murphy of South Bend, Ind., and added her to its already loaded 2015 recruiting class.
Murphy is a scoring-minded lead guard with the ability to keep a defense honest, as they have to be aware of her presence on the floor because of her perimeter shooting and off the bounce ability. If she can continue to mature physically and get stronger as she prepares for her career at the Big Ten school, she should be able to be a key cog for Versyp and her staff throughout her career.
No. 64 Victoria Vivians To Mississippi State
It was a major week in recruiting for Mississippi State. The Bulldogs were able to keep one of their states top prospects, Victoria Vivians of Forest, Miss., close to home in the SEC. She will give Mississippi State a talented forward with the ability to score the basketball from all over the floor.
In her junior year, Vivians was one of the countrys unofficial leading scorers as she averaged close to 40 points a game as a 6-foot forward. Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer and his staff will be eager to add that kind of scoring punch to their line up as Vivians has the ability to be a day one impact recruit for the Bulldogs.
Vivians joins four-star guard Morgan William of Birmingham, Ala., and Blair Schaefer of College Station, Texas, as members of Mississippi States 2014 class.
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No. 118 Durant to Hofstra
As a program Hofstra has done an excellent job recruiting the metro areas of New York and Philadelphia. This week the coaching staff continued their success in those regions as they scored one of the more athletic forwards in the class, Aushanae Durant of Newark, N.J. She is a four-star prospect who is ranked 110th in the ELITE 150.
Clemson Scores A Pair
Clemson coach Audra Smith and her staff added two prospects that should help them change the culture at the ACC school as they were able to go out west and score skilled lead guard Alexis Carter of Tigard, Ore., and a very good perimeter shooter in Shelbie Davenport of Murfreesboro, Tenn., in the same week.
Carter is a bundle of energy at the point guard position and should help bring leadership and work ethic to the Tigers program. Davenport is also a quality addition as she is a proven winner who has won a high school national championship and been a knockdown shooter throughout her career.
AROUND THE RIM
4-star wing Ward to Rhode Island: An uber-athletic forward, Dominique Ward of Mt. Holly, N.J., pledged this week to Rhode Island. Ward gives the Atlantic-10 school one of the best athletes in the 2014 class. Ward also will join her summer teammate and good friend Tyler Raysor at Rhode Island as Raysor made a verbal pledge in early August.
4-star guard Byrd to Xavier: Xavier added talent to its roster this week with the addition of Jada Byrd of Lithonia, Ga. Byrd is a solid athlete with a developing skill set at the wing position. As a prospect she has a nice bank of untapped potential and has shown skill development throughout her time in the prep ranks.
4-star forward Smith to Old Dominion: As a class of 2015 forward Gianna Smith is a nice early pick up for Old Dominion. Smith has the ability to play multiple positions for the Conference USA school as she is strong enough to play around the basket and is developing the skill set to be more successful on the perimeter. More than anything, Smith is a quality local prospect who will stay home and play her college basketball.
3-star wing Johnson to UNLV:Brooke Johnson of Hanover, Calif., had a very good summer with her Cal Swish club team. The 5-11 prospect emerged as a quality wing in the 2014 class as she showed she had the potential to make an impact as a slashing wing who plays with poise. This week she made a verbal pledge to UNLV and will play her college basketball in the Mountain West.
3-star forward Akigbogun to Texas: Texas added a physical presence in the lane this week with the addition of Diani Akigbogun to its 2014 recruiting class. Akigbogun is a powerfully built forward who should fit in well as she can provide energy and rebounding to a line up that is loaded with incoming scoring talent in the next couple of years.
3-star guard McKinney to UTEP:LuLu McKinney, has the potential to bring an immediate scoring impact to the Texas-El Paso lineup. She is a quality athlete who has been consistently aggressive offensively. McKinney is a nice pick up for the Conference USA school as it was able to keep one of the top in-state point guards home. Follow @KeilMoorePSB
