Christmas came early for men’s basketball coach Joe Golding, as he signed his first Division I recruiting class in December that will bring four new faces to Moody Coliseum.
Two of the signings are incoming freshmen Michael Grant and Christian Albright. Grant is a 6’5″ guard from McKinney and Albright is finishing up his senior year in Dallas.
Grant will add substantial size to an otherwise small group of guards, which will help provide length for a defensive-minded coaching staff.
“Michael Grant can play either the one, two or the three for us,” Golding said. “He is a long and rangy athlete, and he can attack the rim. He has a huge upside and will continue to get better. He is a really good basketball player, and an even better kid, and that is what we are looking for.”
Albright will be the largest forward on the roster next season, and is part of the biggest group of players the Wildcats have added in recent memory.
“Christian is a four-man that can step outside and shoot it well,” Golding said. “He can also score in the paint and he is a relentless rebounder. He is really a tough kid, and we think he has a chance to be a good player for us.”
ACU will also be adding a couple of junior college transfers to the 2013 squad in shooting guard Mike Harmon and center Jacob Lancaster.
Harmon is a touch under 6 feet tall, but will undoubtedly is a sharpshooter and add experience because of his two years of junior college basketball.
“Mike is a very good shooter and a good person,” assistant coach Brian Burton said. “He comes from one of the best junior college programs in the nation, and that’s what we want, kids that are used to winning and come from winning programs.”
Lancaster’s 6’10” frame will make him one of the biggest players in the Southland Conference as soon as he shows up for Welcome Week, and the coaching staff believes he is a guy that can make an immediate impact.
“Jacob is a great kid, he was homeschooled until junior high and did not start playing basketball until he started high school,” Golding said. “He can step outside and shoot threes, he is an excellent free throw shooter, and can also score inside. With what we do with our ball screen offense, it is really hard to guard when your big guys can step out and shoot. He is a great Christian kid, and fell in love with this place when he got here.”
The men’s basketball team is currently above .500 and fighting hard to make the post-season tournament and push for a Lone Star Conference title.
“Angelo State beat Tarleton State this week, so it is one of those years where everyone is beating up on everyone,” Burton said. “We just have to make sure that we are doing more of the beating up and less of the getting beat up.”
