Indiana is another step closer to returning to greatness. Thursday, Lawrence Central junior forward Jeremy Hollowell committed to join his friends to do something special at Indiana debuting 2012.
“With Indiana, I saw something amazing was about to happen,” Hollowell said at his afternoon press conference. “I didn’t want to regret it.”
Hollowell chose Indiana over Ohio State, Purdue and Cincinnati. He averaged 18.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game this season with the Bears, who lost to North Central 83-61 in the sectional finals.
This adds to an already stellar recruiting class for Tom Crean in what will be his fifth recruiting class with the Hoosiers. In the end, it was Coach Crean who sealed the deal for Jeremy.
“He made me feel like a real priority for them. I think that was the biggest thing – how hard he recruited me and him being the head coach that was a big factor in showing that he really wanted me.”
The 6-7 small forward boasts a versatile game, with a quality combination of ball handling and scoring. In the handful of high school games I have seen him, Hollowell has clearly been the best player on his team and been forced into being a leader. He is very lean (something Crean will hope to work on) and will use his long arms to his advantage on defense and guarding the in-bound pass. His wing-span is incredible, something he can use to his advantage.
Hollowell’s biggest weakness is his lack of confidence and inconsistencies. One game he will completely dominant, sending fans home from the game talking and then others he is fairly quiet. He will definitely improve with veteran leadership that will be at IU when he arrives on campus in another year.
The best word to describe his personality is stoic. There’s no question he has a love for the game but in every interview I see with him, he is laid back and reluctant. Instead I want to see a smile, passion and excitement.
I credit Hollowell for coming to a conclusion and wanting to get the decision out of the way. Talking with people very close to Jeremy, he felt this was the right decision a couple weeks ago. Last week he came to the conclusion that he wanted to get it over with, make his decision and focus on AAU summer ball.
Five players have now given their verbal pledge to IU head coach Tom Crean, four of which are ranked in the top 100:
| Indiana 2012 Verbals | Rivals | Scout | ESPN |
| Hanner Perea | 10 | 16 | 30 |
| Yogi Ferrell | 17 | 20 | 23 |
| Jeremy Hollowell | 39 | 23 | 38 |
| Ron Patterson | 78 | 63 | unranked |
| Peter Jurkin | 137 | unranked | unranked |
A couple things to keep in mind—these players have a lot of room to improve in a year and a half before coming to Bloomington and coaches pay little attention to rankings. All that matters is how they see the players fitting in with their program and how they can contribute. I trust most coaches over recruiting services.
This is another big step in the right direction for the Hoosier program. After three of the worst years in Indiana basketball history, the bright days are coming. Crean has locked down Indiana’s best talent in quest for banner six.
Below is video of Thursday’s press conference.
Here’s highlights of Hollowell in action.