Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
Rutgers officially announced the signings of guard Nkereuwem “Kerwin” Okoro of The Bronx and forward Junior Etou of Maryland (pictured).
“We are very excited to add these talented young men to our program,” said head coach Eddie Jordan. “Kerwin is a competitive playmaker who brings toughness to the floor. Junior is a skilled and team-oriented player who rebounds and defends with tenacity. Both love to play the game.”
Okoro, who signed a scholarship agreement, will transfer to Rutgers after spending this past season as a freshman at Iowa State under head coach Fred Hoiberg. He played in nine games for the Cyclones. Okoro arrived in Ames after playing at St. Raymond’s High School, where he helped the Ravens to the 2012 CHSAA title under head coach Oliver Antigua. He had 21 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks in the championship game to earn playoff MVP honors. Okoro averaged 15.5 points as a senior to earn his second First Team All-CHSAA honor, as well as First Team All-Bronx accolades from the New York Post.
Etou, who signed a National Letter of Intent, averaged 14.8 points and 10.1 rebounds-per-game as a senior this past season at Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, Va., under head coach Joe Wootten.
As previously reported, he also played for Jordan on the DC Assault 17U team.
He earned Third Team All-MET honors from the Washington Post and helped the Knights to the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference and Alhambra Invitational titles. Ranked among the top 150 players overall (139) nationally by Rivals, Etou is a native of the Republic of Congo and is the cousin of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka.
Okoro and Etou join wing Craig Brown (Miami, Fla.) and point guard D’Von Campbell (Arlington, Texas) in Rutgers’ 2013 class.
Brown averaged 18.0 points and 8.0 rebounds this past season as a sophomore at Broward College in Davie, Fla., to earn First Team All-Southern Conference honors. Campbell averaged 12.1 points and 4.0 assists as a sophomore at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College in 2012-13 to help the Blue Dragons to the NJCAA No. 1 ranking during the regular season.
Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
Rutgers officially announced the signings of guard Nkereuwem “Kerwin” Okoro of The Bronx and forward Junior Etou of Maryland (pictured).
“We are very excited to add these talented young men to our program,” said head coach Eddie Jordan. “Kerwin is a competitive playmaker who brings toughness to the floor. Junior is a skilled and team-oriented player who rebounds and defends with tenacity. Both love to play the game.”
Okoro, who signed a scholarship agreement, will transfer to Rutgers after spending this past season as a freshman at Iowa State under head coach Fred Hoiberg. He played in nine games for the Cyclones. Okoro arrived in Ames after playing at St. Raymond’s 
High School, where he helped the Ravens to the 2012 CHSAA title under head coach Oliver Antigua. He had 21 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks in the championship game to earn playoff MVP honors. Okoro averaged 15.5 points as a senior to earn his second First Team All-CHSAA honor, as well as First Team All-Bronx accolades from the New York Post.
Etou, who signed a National Letter of Intent, averaged 14.8 points and 10.1 rebounds-per-game as a senior this past season at Bishop O’Connell High School in Arlington, Va., under head coach Joe Wootten.
As previously reported, he also played for Jordan on the DC Assault 17U team.
He earned Third Team All-MET honors from the Washington Post and helped the Knights to the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference and Alhambra Invitational titles. Ranked among the top 150 players overall (139) nationally by Rivals, Etou is a native of the Republic of Congo and is the cousin of Oklahoma City Thunder forward Serge Ibaka.
Okoro and Etou join wing Craig Brown (Miami, Fla.) and point guard D’Von Campbell (Arlington, Texas) in Rutgers’ 2013 class.
Brown averaged 18.0 points and 8.0 rebounds this past season as a sophomore at Broward College in Davie, Fla., to earn First Team All-Southern Conference honors. Campbell averaged 12.1 points and 4.0 assists as a sophomore at Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College in 2012-13 to help the Blue Dragons to the NJCAA No. 1 ranking during the regular season.
