As the days on the calendar peel off to reveal the month of March and the college basketball season winds to a close, talk of madness, buzzer-beaters and championships start to dominate the college basketball scene.
For Illinois head coach John Groce, though, March serves as just another month to continue planting his imprint into the program as he finishes up his first year as head coach. His team sits at a 21-10 record and firmly into the field for the NCAA tournament, but Groce still has his eye on recruiting.
Cliff Alexander, a Class of 2014 center prospect from (Chicago) Curie Metro High School, attended Illinois’s final home game of the season Saturday. Alexander ranks as the No. 5 prospect in the Class of 2014, according to Scout.com, and the No. 2-ranked prospect at center behind fellow Chicagoan Jahill Okafor, who is also a recruiting target of the Illini.
The Orange Krush serenaded Alexander with a “We Want Cliff” chant during Saturday’s game, which elicited a smile from the high school junior.
“I loved it,” Alexander said of the Krush’s chant. “They showed a lot of love. I loved the crowd.”
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Alexander decided to attend Saturday’s game last Wednesday after Groce visited his practice. The prospect cited the coaching staff as one of the primary reasons for his interest in Illinois, along with a certain high-profile scorer on the current Illini roster — Brandon Paul.
“He got game,” Alexander said.
A formidable list of the country’s elite basketball programs is in the running for Alexander, including Kentucky, Michigan State, Indiana, Louisville, Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin.
Before Alexander can dwell on any college choices, he must finish his high school basketball season first. Alexander contributed 16 points and 16 rebounds in Curie’s demolition of (Chicago) Bogan High School in a regional final last Friday and will face fellow 2014 rival Okafor on Thursday in a sectional semifinals matchup.
Meanwhile, Groce used a light day following a loss to Iowa to trek to Evansville, Ind., on Wednesday and visit Class of 2014 point guard JaQuan Lyle.
On Wednesday, Lyle confirmed the visit via Twitter, tweeting “Coach Groce coming to practice today..”
Lyle previously attended Illinois’ loss to Michigan in January and also received the chant treatment from Orange Krush.
“He really loves the game of basketball,” Lyle said of Groce on Jan. 27. “He really looks forward to turning this school around. He just talked about me and how great I’d fit into the program. I really agree, but I just have to take my time and see.”
Lyle has offers from Louisville, Indiana, Florida, Georgetown, Cincinnati, Ohio State, North Carolina State, Texas and Tennessee in addition to Groce and Illinois.
Thomas can be reached at [email protected] and @ThomasBruch.
