UCLA on Sunday landed a pledge from 6-foot-10 Ikenna Okwarabizie of Tyler (TX) College, who will have three years of eligibility remaining.
“He is a strong, physical presence,” Tyler coach Mike Marquis told SNY.tv. “He rebounds and defends well. On offense, he runs the floor, finishes around the rim and is an above average passer.”
A native of Nigeria who was not initially qualified to play Division 1 ball, Okwarabizie will add depth at the center position for the Bruins, who lost freshman big man Kevon Looney to the NBA Draft and 2015 recruit Stephen Zimmerman to UNLV.
“We are very proud of Ike and happy that he has achieved his goal of playing high level Division 1 basketball,” Coach Ras Vanderloo wrote on Facebook. “To say that we have a player that has committed to a place like UCLA makes everyone associated with East High basketball very proud. We wish him nothing but the best at UCLA. Go Bruins.”
At Sioux City (Iowa) East High School in 2013-14, the big man averaged 13 points and 12.5 rebounds a game.
