Larry Eustachy Inks Another Nationally-Ranked Recruiting Class

AMES, Iowa - The Iowa State men's basketball team inked another highly-touted recruiting class for the 2001 season with the announcement of four signees in the early signing period. High school seniors Ricky Morgan (6-0, point guard, Northern H.S., Pontiac, Mich.), Adam Schaper (6-9, forward, Kankakee Valley H.S., Wheatland, Ind.) and Jared Homan (6-8, forward, St. Mary's H.S., Remsen, Iowa) and junior college transfer Tommie King (6-7, forward, Western Nebraska C.C., Scottsbluff, Neb.) all signed national letters of intent to compete at Iowa State for the 2001-2002 season.

"I am very pleased with the kids we signed," Iowa State head men's basketball coach Larry Eustachy said. "We really thought our last two classes needed to be in the top-20 nationally with the great players we lost. I think we have done a good job in accomplishing that goal."

The class is currently ranked No. 17 in the Midwest by Midwest Hoops and many of the early signees have been ranked nationally, including Morgan, who was rated as the ninth-best point guard in the nation according to the Bob Gibbons All-Star Report.

Iowa State Signee Capsules

Ricky Morgan
Guard, 6-0, 180, Freshman
Pontiac, Mich. (Northern)

High School
Rated as the ninth-best point guard by Bob Gibbons All-Star Report...listed as one of the nation's top seniors by Athlon...was a high honorable mention All-America selection by Street & Smith's...an excellent ballhandler and passer, Morgan averaged 9.9 assists per game as a junior...also had a respectable 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ration...averaged 10.5 points and 4.2 steals per game as a junior...played in a number of the High School AAU tournaments for the local Michigan Mustangs squad which featured top-rated recruits Kelvin Torbert (Michigan State) and Robert Whaley (Missouri)...in the finals of the Show-Me Shootout, Morgan scored 22 points, dished out 13 assists and collected four steals to help his squad to the title...a two-year starter for Northern, Morgan helped lead his high school to a 39-8 mark in Class A Michigan basketball, the class comprised of the biggest schools in the state...Northern made the Final Four during his sophomore campaign...chose Iowa State over Michigan State, Pittsburgh, UNC-Charlotte, Marquette and Nebraska...coached in high school by Robert Rogers...AAU coach was Chris Grier.

Adam Schaper (pronounced SHOP-er)
Forward, 6-9, 205, Freshman
Wheatland, Ind. (Kankakee Valley)

High School
A preseason McDonalds All-America nominee...A high honorable mention All-America selection by Street & Smith's...listed as one of the nation's best seniors by Athlon...a highly skilled player who can play both back-to-the-basket and on the wing...was a member of the same AAU team as current Cyclone Shane Power...missed the first part of his junior season (five games) with a broken arm...battled back from the injury to average 18.0 points and nine rebounds per game...named to the Jasper County All-Area team...team beat Indiana power Gary West Side behind Schaper's 22 points and 11 rebounds...rated as the 16th-best power forward in the Midwest and the eighth-best player in Indiana...attended the Adidas camp this past summer and was the 6th-best rebounder...benches 270 pounds...also received interest from Purdue, Utah, Stanford, Rutgers, Indiana State and Mississippi State...coached in high school by Tom Black...son of Terry and Phyllis Schaper.

Jared Homan
Forward, 6-9, 225, Freshman
Remsen, Iowa (St. Mary's)

High School
A honorable mention All-America selection by Street & Smith's...was a Class-1A 2nd-team all-state selection as a junior...was also named first-team all-district, all-conference and all-Plymouth County...a strong player with solid post moves who is one of the state's best shot blockers...a two-year starter, Homan averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds and seven blocks per game for Remsen St. Mary's in his junior campaign...team went 14-8 in 1999-2000...competed at the FutureStars and Adidas camps in the summer of 2000 which garnered him interest from a number of schools...a lifelong Cyclone fan, has cousins and an uncle who attended Iowa State...chose Iowa State over Boston College, New Mexico, Creighton, Drake and Northern Iowa...coached in high school by Jeremy Stukenholtz...son of Dave and RaNae Homan...owns a 3.9 GPA...wears size 16 shoes.

Tommie King
Forward, 6-7, 225, Junior
Seattle, Wash. (Black River/Western Nebraska Community College)

Western Nebraska Community College
Rated as the sixth-best power forward in junior college by the Sporting News...a versatile and talented player who can score and rebound...averaged a team-high 16.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game to help lead the Cougars to a 22-12 record and a Region IX Championship game...King scored in double figures in 29 of 34 games and scored 20 or more points 13 times as a freshman...tallied a season-high 31 points in the Region IX Tournament vs. Sheridan...coached his freshman year at Western by Dave Campbell, who is now on Barry Collier's staff at Nebraska...Trace Bevell is his coach this season...has a 40-inch vertical leap and runs a 4.4 40...also received interest from LSU, Cincinnati, Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas State.

High School
Played at Renton High School before transferring to Black River...played just one season at Renton, averaging 22 points, eight rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.7 steals and 1.5 blocks per game...played all five positions at Renton...coached at Renton by Dave Comer...was considered a playground legend at Campbell Hill Elementary School in Seattle...King played against the likes of Jamal Crawford (a rookie with the Chicago Bulls) Jason Terry (a member of the Atlanta Hawks) and Michael Dickerson (a member of the Vancouver Grizzlies)...was teammates with Crawford in the Seattle Prime Time Summer League.