| |
 Alford nabs first Hawkeye recruit
Posted: Monday April 05, 1999 04:00 PM
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Steve Alford is about to land his first recruit as Iowa's new basketball coach. Rob Griffin, a 6-foot-6, 220-pound forward from Southeastern Community College in West Burlington, plans to sign a national letter of intent with the Hawkeyes on Wednesday, when the spring signing period begins. Griffin is a preseason Junior College all-American who finished eighth in the nation in scoring this year at 22 points a game, Southeastern Community College coach Joe O'Brien said Sunday. Griffin, who also averaged seven rebounds, canceled a visit to Auburn, a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament this year, and lost interest in Missouri when coach Norm Stewart retired last week. Griffin visited Iowa this past weekend and told Alford he will play for the Hawkeyes for the 1999-2000 season. He'll have two years of eligibility at Iowa. O'Brien thinks Griffin will fit in with the Hawkeyes and Alford. "I don't think Steve Alford would have come in and recruited him as hard as he did if he didn't think he could play right away," O'Brien said. O'Brien described Griffin as a "versatile scorer" who can play small forward or off-guard. Griffin made 76 3-point shots in 32 games this year. "He's a great athlete," said O'Brien, whose team finished 22-10. "He's big and strong and quick enough to take it to the hole, even in the Big Ten." Griffin, from Ypsilanti, Mich., was listed as one of the Top 10 junior college prospects in the nation in the 1998-99 Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook. NCAA Division I programs such as Iowa's are allowed 13 scholarship players. Iowa had 10 underclassmen on scholarship this past season who could return if they are eligible and if Alford invites them back.
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Copyright © 1999 CNN/SI. A Time Warner Company. Terms under which this service is provided to you.
| |||||||||||||||||||||
