Men's Basketball Signs Three To National Letters Of Intent
11/14/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 14, 2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State head men's basketball coach Tom Izzo has announced that three players have signed National Letters of Intent to attend Michigan State next fall and play for the 2002-03 Spartan basketball team.
The signees include Maurice Ager (G, 6-4, 175, Detroit/Crockett High School), Paul Davis (F, 6-10, 235, Rochester, Mich./ Rochester High School) and Delco Rowley (F, 6-8, 235, Indianapolis/Arlington High School).
"This recruiting class is one of the better ones we've landed because it fills several of our needs," said Izzo. "When you look at all three players, they each bring something different to the table. We felt we needed a guard the caliber of Maurice Ager, who can play three different positions with his athletic ability. Ager's perimeter game is a perfect complement to Paul Davis and Delco Rowley on the inside. Rowley's strength and power game is a complement to Davis' finesse and offensive skills. I look forward to coaching all three guys in the near future, but hopefully they'll each have championship seasons at their respective high schools.
"I think that in all programs, head coaches get the credit and assistants do the work. Better players make you a better coach and better assistants get you better players. When you look at our recent recruiting classes, I've been fortunate enough to have a great staff that's done an incredible job of recruiting not only great players, but great student-athletes which has benefited our basketball program."
MAURICE AGER (G, 6-4, 175, Detroit/Crockett High School) - Averaged 23 points, six rebounds and three assists as a junior, leading Crockett High School to a 23-3 record and a state championship in Class B ... Shot 58 percent from the field and 48 percent from three-point range as a junior, in addition to shooting 91 percent from the free throw line ... Earned Class B All-State honors from the Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News ... Named Third-Team All-Metro and Second-Team All-Detroit by The Detroit News ... Coach Tom Izzo's first recruit from Detroit's Public School League ... Rated No. 16 by ESPN.com and No. 28 by recruiting analyst Dave Telep ... Rated the No. 3 shooting guard in the nation by ESPN.com ... Helped lead the Michigan Hurricanes to the AAU Tournament of Champions in North Carolina in May 2001, earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team ... Named to the All-Tournament team at the Houston Hoops and Cleveland Shootout AAU Tournaments ... Selected to the top 20 all-star team at the 2001 ABCD Adidas camp ... Averaged 17 points, four rebounds and two assists as a sophomore leading Detroit Crockett to a 17-6 mark ... Plays for Coach Robert Murphy at Crockett High School.
Coach Izzo on Ager: "In Maurice Ager we have one of the best two guards in the country. He's a player with tremendous athletic ability and very good ball-handling skills. What separates him is that in addition to being a great athlete, he's also a great shooter. I think this combination, as he becomes stronger and learns the college game, will make him a very dangerous player. He's been very well coached in high school and has a great understanding of both offensive and defensive concepts, which will help him adapt to the college game even quicker. In addition, he comes from a championship high school program and we hope that he will help us reach our championship goals here at Michigan State. He comes from a great family and a great program, and we're really looking forward to having Maurice Ager as a part of the Spartan basketball family."
PAUL DAVIS (F, 6-10, 235, Rochester, Mich/Rochester High School) - Averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks as a junior, leading Rochester High School to a 13-9 record ... Rated the No. 3 player in the nation by recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons and FoxSports.com's Frank Burlison ... Rated the No. 6 player in the nation by both ESPN.com and recruiting analyst Dave Telep ... Rated the No. 1 power forward in the nation by ESPN.com ... Shot 56% from the field and 75% from the free throw line as a junior ... Named Third-Team All-State, Second-Team All-Metro and First-Team All-North by The Detroit News after his junior season ... Earned All-Oakland County honors and all-conference recognition as a junior ... Named to FoxSports.com's Summertime All-America team after his performance at several summer tournaments, including being named to the Adidas/Big Time All-Tournament team ... Averaged 15.5 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks as a sophomore, leading Rochester to the district finals of the state tournament and earning all-conference accolades ... Plays for Coach Hal Commerson at Rochester High School.
Coach Izzo on Davis: "Paul Davis is a player that committed to us before his junior year and proved that it was not a bad decision since he never rested on his laurels. This past summer may have been his best as he established himself as one of the top power forwards/centers in the country. He had an incredible summer both offensively and athletically as he proved he not only can score points, but he can do it with a little pizzazz.
"We are pleased to have Paul help strengthen our interior game and yet he also has the ability to step out and make shots from the perimeter which makes him even more dangerous. He is a different player than we currently have because he can score with his back to the basket or facing the basket. He'll need much more strength to be the kind of player that he'll someday be. Yet, if he continues to improve like he has the past year and a half, the sky's the limit for Paul Davis."
DELCO ROWLEY (F, 6-8, 235, Indianapolis/Arlington High School) - Averaged 13 points and 8.5 rebounds as a junior at Indianapolis Arlington High School, helping his squad to a 14-8 record ... Earned First-Team All-City and All-Sectional honors in 2001 in addition to being named honorable mention all-state ... Enters the 2001-02 season as a preseason First-Team All-State honoree ... Rated the No. 71 player in the nation by recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons, No. 72 by ESPN.com and No. 87 by recruiting analyst Dave Telep ... Rated the No. 14 power forward in the nation by ESPN.com ... 2001 Nike Camp All-American ... Averaged 8.9 points and six rebounds as a sophomore starter, helping Arlington to a city and conference championship ... Plays for Coach Larry Nicks at Arlington High School.
Coach Izzo on Rowley: "Delco Rowley gives us something we don't have and that's an athletic power forward. At 6-foot-8, 235 pounds, he has the strength and the athletic ability to be an Andre Hutson-type forward. He plays on a good team as a very unselfish player, averaging 13 points and nine rebounds as a junior. He also played some of his best basketball this summer in different AAU tournaments and continues to make improvements in his game.
"In addition to his basketball skills, Delco will be an important addition to the team because of his personality. He's a very outgoing player, who everyone enjoys being around. He enjoys life, he enjoys basketball and he enjoys people. We really think we're going to enjoy him being a part of the Spartan basketball program."
