After an extremely successful first year, in which he led Wisconsin to its first Big Ten title in over 50 years, head coach Bo Ryan continued to make his mark on the Wisconsin basketball program in the offseason. According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Ryan received commitments from two players over the weekend: point guard Marcetteaus McGee and center Greg Stiemsma.
McGee is a 6-foot senior guard at Chicago’s Farragut Academy, the same school that produced Minnesota Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett. Unlike Garnett, who entered the NBA draft directly out of high school, McGee is expected to sign a letter of intent Wednesday. The signing will complete Ryan’s first recruiting class, which also includes Milwaukee Vincent guard Maurice “Boo” Wade and Whitefish Bay Dominican forward Ray Nixon.
McGee, who averaged 15 points and six assists per game in his senior year, could make an instant impact on the Badgers. Wisconsin hopes he will be able to step in and split point guard duties with Wade and Devin Harris, both of whom are more suited for the two-guard position.
The Badgers will have to wait a bit longer for Stiemsma; the 6-foot-11, 205-pound center from Randolph is only a sophomore this year. The big man, who received an offer from Marquette and garnered interest from Kentucky, Purdue, North Carolina, Utah, Iowa and Stanford, should be worth the wait, though.
According to recruiting analyst Van Coleman, publisher of Futurestars magazine, Stiemsma is a huge acquisition for UW. Coleman ranks Stiemsma as no lower than a top-five sophomore nationwide and says his standing may increase later in his career.
Stiemsma averaged 13.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 6.1 blocks and 2.2 assists per game this season for Randolph and led the squad to the Division IV state championship. In the title game, Stiemsma finished just short of a triple-double, scoring nine points while grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking 12 shots.
As a sophomore, Stiemsma will have to wait until the fall of 2003 to sign a letter of intent to make his decision official. A very highly touted recruit, he decided to attend Wisconsin after fostering a relationship with Ryan and his staff.
“I built a great relationship with the coaches,” Stiemsma told the Journal-Sentinel. “The facilities are outstanding. The program is phenomenal. It’s a great school to have to opportunity to go to. I didn’t see how anyone could come to the table with anything that could beat that.”
