By JOSH NEWMANMarkis McDuffie is heading to one of the nation’s top mid-major programs.
The 6-foot-7 wing out of New Jersey power St. Anthony of Jersey City and the Sports U AAU program tweeted Sunday morning that he has verbally committed to Wichita State and head coach Gregg Marshall. McDuffie chose the Shockers over VCU, while SMU and Boston College were also in the mix. “I thought this was the best fit for me. The campus, the people, the players were great,” McDuffie told SNY.tv. “The coaches were very supportive, the skill development was great and Coach Marshall gave me a great opportunity to play and excel depending on how hard I work and I’m willing to do that.” “Even though it’s far, I know I’m on a mission to do something special for my family.” McDuffie is still growing as a player as he is thought to have great upside, specifically as a wing at the next level. “He’s an effective player right now,” Hall of Fame St. Anthony coach Bob Hurley previously told SNY.tv. “Last year he led us in scoring as a junior. I think he had a pretty good out-of-season [summer] period, so you’re getting a pretty good player right now.” “But when you look at him physically, you realize that he’s nowhere near where he’s going to be. He’s rail thin yet, physical comparisons would be to Kevin Durant, that type of physique. The projection on his growth is that he’s probably going to level off somewhere around 6-9 so you have a kid with great length who is a very good player without the body yet, without any physical strength yet. He’s very versatile and can do a little bit of everything. McDuffie is the first St. Anthony player from the Class of 2015 to choose a school. The Friars are coming off of a 23-5 season in which they lost to Roselle Catholic, 60-57, in the NJSIAA Non-Public B final. “Last year probably helped him a lot having to play the whole season as a four man and having to compete physically against people who were much stronger and just try to figure out how to be clever,” Hurley said. “This year because we’re a lot bigger, he’ll be playing his natural college position, which is like a wing man.” Follow Josh Newman on Twitter
