tito signs with fresno state

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

Fresno State Signs Tito Maddox To
Letter Of Intent--(May 17, 1999)

On Saturday, the last day for signing National Letters of Intent, one of the last unsigned Top 100 players in the country finally signed a letter as Fresno State signed Compton High point guard Tito Maddox (6'-4" Sr. PG). The signing comes just two days after Noel Felix (6'-9" Sr. PF) from Inglewood signed a letter of intent with the Bulldogs.

There is much speculation that Tito may not become academically eligible for next season, and that he'll have to enter Fresno as a Prop. 48 candidate and sit out a year while he gets his grades up. Tito says he'll be able to get eligible, but reliable sources have told SoCalHoops that Tito is no longer attending Compton High, and if true, the question is where and how will he earn his high school diploma. We have been unable to verify his attendance at Compton because the school, citing privacy concerns would not release the information. Calls to Tito's home went unanswered. The Fresno Bee, which published the report of Tito's signing yesterday, reported that Tito himself said he "has a 2.4 grade-point average and will take the American College Test [ACT] and Scholastic Assessment Test [SAT] in early June." A 2.4 GPA would require Tito to score an 860 on the SAT. Katz spoke with Tito who told him that he has "rectified" his academic problems in the last few weeks and has no plans on going to a junior college, even if he can't get eligible in the fall, which means that he'd enroll at Fresno as a Prop. 48.

Tito told the Bee that Tarkanian had been recruiting him hard in the fall but then stopped during the season; the recruitment renewed later in the spring, and he made an unofficial visit April 30 when he played in Tony Perry's King of the West Roundball Classic. Tito was evidently in Fresno Thursday through Saturday for an official visit. He said he fit in with the Bulldogs' players and wanted to play in an uptempo style. If he gets eligible, Maddox would push rising juniors Demetrius Porter and Nick Irvin at the point, although Maddox and Porter could also play shooting guard.

"I'm not just going for coach Jerry Tarkanian," Maddox said. "I signed with Fresno State. If Tark goes soon, he goes. I want to come in and challenge for a spot," Maddox said. "If I play hard, hopefully I can start."

By Saturday, Fresno State was really the only program recruiting Tito. De Paul, which he had been considering, had gone by the wayside, and UConn and Arizona State, which both had been trying to recruit Tito last fall, had long since gone on to recruiting other players. Andy Katz of the Fresno Bee contacted ASU assistant Tony Benford, who said, "We couldn't wait for him, but he's a helluva player. I didn't see a better point guard in the nation last summer. He's a prototype point guard at 6 feet 4 inches and makes everyone better by pushing the ball."

"Getting Tito helps because he can play the one or the two," Tarkanian said. "Both of these young guys [Tito and Noel Felix] give us a really talented freshmen class for the future."

The Bulldogs signed two other players during the spring, but neither will play in the fall, or possibly at all. Leon Smith, a 6-10 center from Chicago's King High, was expected to declare for the NBA draft by today's deadline and thus become ineligible at an NCAA Division 1 school. Mississippi Gulf Coast 6-11 center Raynell Brewer is ineligible until December at the earliest or until he earns an associate of arts degree. Fresno State lost two seniors in guards Chris Herren and Willie Farley and Tarkanian said junior Shomario Richard will leave because of academic problems. However, the Bulldogs return four of five starters off a 21-12 team in guard Courtney Alexander and forwards Terrance Roberson, Larry Abney and Melvin Ely.