Rice Basketball Signs Four
11/14/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 14, 2008
HOUSTON - A power forward with international playing experience, two of the Top 20 seniors from the talent-rich state of New Jersey and a small forward who becomes the first male student at his high school to sign a National Letter of Intent at a Division I school in any sport make up first-year coach Ben Braun's inaugural early signing class.
Rice University announced Friday the Owls have signed 6-7 power forward Egheosa Edomwony (Princeton, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton), 6-5 wing Chris Eversley (Chicago, Ill./Walter Payton College Prep), 6-8 power forward Arsalan Kazemi (Isfahan, Iran/The Patterson School) and 6-2 combo guard Tamir Jackson (Paterson, N.J./St. Benedict's Prep).
"I am excited about our recruiting class. This class gives us great balance at each position. What I especially like is these players are multidimensional on the floor and each have the ability to make their teammates and our team better. In addition to being outstanding basketball players, this is also a class of outstanding young men. They will fit in very well Rice."
Kazemi, who is attending the Patterson School, a college preparatory school in North Carolina, captained his Iranian Under-17 national team and heads into his senior year ranked 82nd overall in the 2009 prep signing class according to scout.com. The ESPN College Basketball Prospect list ranks him the No. 44 power forward nationally.
"Arsalan is a highly skilled player who also possesses great strength," Braun said. "He is very adept at playing to his back to the basket or out on the floor. He should be a very tough match-up for our opponents."
Jackson averaged 14 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists during his junior season for a St. Benedict's Prep team which posted a 24-1 record and finished the season ranked No. 2 in several national polls. He grabbed national attention when he scored 29 points on ESPN in a victory over then, No. 1-ranked Oak Hill. The Paterson, N.J., native ranks as the No. 28 shooting guard in this year's signing class in the latest ESPN College Basketball Prospect list.
Jackson was the first player to commit to this year's signing class.
"Tamir is a proven winner," Braun said. "He comes from a storied high school program and has strong leadership qualities. Tamir has the ability to contribute to our team from either guard position as a playmaker or scorer."
Like Jackson, Edomwonyi is also a Top 20 prospect from the Garden State. He is a senior at The Hun School of Princeton and ranks as the No. 121 power forward in this year's signing class according to ESPN.
"Egheosa is a talented post player who can run the floor and who plays with great power and agility," Braun said. "He's a great competitor and will really help our team up front."
Eversley becomes the first male student at Walter Payton College Prep in Chicago to sign a national letter-of-intent with a Division I school. He led his prep team as a junior, averaging 16.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. His high school team posted a 20-9 record and finished fourth in the Chicago Public Red North-West League.
"Chris is an agile wing player whose strength is attacking the basket," Braun said. "Chris can knock down the three and has a solid mid-range game."
Rice opens its 2008-09 season Saturday when the Owls play host to Portland State.
