By NICK MEDLINE
Special to ZAGSBLOG
This past weekend, Samir Sehic and his dad counted: The Cypress (TX) prospect played 29 games over a 19-day span to open July.
It certainly yielded something. Sehic picked up new offers including Notre Dame, Nebraska, Penn State, Northwestern and Vanderbilt.
In the process, the 6-foot-9 power forward earned his spot among the fastest rising players this evaluation period.
“I play with a high motor and coaches tell me that I can play the game smart,” Sehic told SNY.tv. “I can play inside-out, stretch the floor, and that can separate me from others.”
Sehic initially broke out at the Ty Lawson/Victor Oladipo camp from July 9-11, where analysts raved about his performance. Sehic led the camp in both scoring and rebounding — a rare feat at any elite tournament. Currently ranked No. 125 in the Rivals.com listings, the number should improve after his sharp July.
He also picked up some of the above offers after his play at Peach Jam this past weekend, with most major coaches in attendance. All of the teams that recently offered Sehic are, of course, the hardest in pursuit, with his recruitment wide open.
Northwestern was among the first schools to offer Sehic this July after Chris Collins traveled to D.C. and watched him play. The head coach and his staff were immediately sold.
The Wildcats are looking to build off recent recruiting momentum and add another solid fit this offseason. By the second week, they focused primarily on Sehic and Newton (MA) power forward Aaron Falzon.
“Outside of the basketball aspect, [NU] has the academics,” Sehic said. “I’m prideful in that and I have a 3.8 GPA. I want to go somewhere I can fit in, and Coach Collins plays just how I like to play. It’s been a perfect fit for me so far.”
Sehic compared Northwestern to Vanderbilt — another of his key offers — in that both have strong academics. He said that despite their differing styles for the SEC and Big Ten, both have the combination. He also praised Vanderbilt assistant Adam Cohen, who recruited Sehic while in the same position at Harvard.
Iowa also became an early standout in his recruitment, given that they offered him in early May. That strong evaluation could pay off in later months.
“They’ve been there from the beginning,” Sehic said. “They were really one of the premier basketball schools to have offered me. They’ve been very supportive.”
Now, as if several new offers weren’t enough, Sehic hit the road again on Wednesday for another shot at even more.
“I’m not really focused on the college aspect,” he said. “I’m just going out there to play my basketball.”
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