pepperdine 10/25 commitments

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

Pepperdine Gets Two Big Verbals:
Turner & Kimble--(Oct. 25, 1999)

Reliable sources have informed us that Pepperdine picked up two absolutely huge verbals over the weekend, getting commitments from Will Kimble (6'-10" Sr. PF/C) of San Bernardino Pacific, and Robert Turner (6'-7" Sr. SG/SF) of Western HS in Orange County. Both players took official visits this weekend, along with a third recruit, Jason Morrissette (6'-5" Sr. SG/SF) from LA Fairfax, who is said also to be considering committing to the Waves. According to our sources, Kimble and Turner were accompanied by their parents on the visit, and they committed during the visits; Morrissette was not accompanied by his parents and wanted some additional time to consider Pepperdine's offer, and may yet commit to Pepperdine later this week.

Kimble and Turner have been particularly high priorities for Pepperdine since earlier this fall. Prior to some especially great performances by Turner at the Long Beach Fall Hoops Classic and the Pump Fall Premier Tournament, not much was known about Turner, but thanks to some great publicity by Frank Burlison at the OC Register and Turner's extremely athletic play, he literally blew up, much to the chagrin of Cal State Fullerton, which had been quietly watching him for the last few years. The commitment of Kimble is especially important for the Waves because it will join him with his current high school teammate, Michael Hall (6'-3" Sr. PG/SG) who committed to Pepperdine last weekend, and it also gives coach Van Breda Kolff an additional big man next year when the team will need to replace Nick Sheppard (6'-11" Sr. C) who graduates after this season. Likewise, Turner (and Morrissette) also puts the Waves in a position where they'll have one, possibly two more guys who are athletic enough to play the 2, 3 or 4 spots, and who will also fill the gaps created when Tezale Archi, Robert Fomby, and Tommy Prince, all graduate. We'd expect that all three (Hall, Kimble, and Turner) will be immediate impact players for the Waves, and likewise, Jason Morrissette would also be a big impact player as well if he commits.