Duke receives a verbal commitment from 2013 forward Semi Ojeleye
Sep 9, 2012, 9:42 PM EDT
AP The weekend didn’t get off to the best start for Duke fans with the Lance Thomas lawsuit news, but it’s come to a happy ending of sorts with 2013 forward Semi Ojeleye verbally committing to the ACC school (subscription required).
A 6-6 forward from Ottawa, Kansas, Ojeleye is a versatile player with a build more than equipped to handle physical play.
During the spring and summer Ojeleye’s full array of skills were on display, and once he landed an offer from the Blue Devils in June things really picked up on the recruiting front.
Considered a Top 50 prospect by the major recruiting services, Ojeleye picked Duke over Indiana, Oregon and Stanford.
Ojeleye joins Texas Matt Jones in Duke’s 2013 recruiting class to date, and a look at the Blue Devils’ anticipated roster in 2013 shows that Mike Krzyzewski won’t lack for options on the wings.
Jones and Ojeleye will join a group of wings that will also include Mississippi State transfer Rodney Hood, who has to sit out this season per NCAA transfer rules.
Alex Murphy, who redshirted this past season, is coming off of a summer stint with Finland’s U-20 national team where he averaged 20.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game (U-20 European championships qualifying).
Also to be considered are Amile Jefferson and Rasheed Sulaimon, who are freshmen this season, and Andre Dawkins is expected back for his senior campaign after sitting out the 2012-13 season.
Ojeleye will not only fit in with this group but also have the ability to hit the ground running and contribute immediately.
In Nike EYBL play Ojeleye led Mo-Kan Elite in both scoring and rebounding, averaging 16.0 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest to get the team into the EYBL Finals at the Nike Peach Jam.
At the Peach Jam Ojeleye averaged 17.6 points and 6.3 rebounds to lead Mo-Kan Elite to the semifinals of the event.
Raphielle is also the assistant editor at CollegeHoops.net and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.
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