By Jason Hickman
MaxPreps.com
Basketball: UCLA Gets Love
Ben Howland's UCLA basketball program was dealt an unexpected blow following their Final Four appearance when star point guard Jordan Farmar elected not to return to Westwood and enter the NBA Draft.
But that disappointment was likely put to bed Tuesday when the most celebrated player in Oregon high school basketball history, Lake Oswego High's Kevin Love, committed to play for Howland and the Bruins.
"UCLA just feels right," Love told The Oregonian Tuesday. "It's hard to explain, but I just know, 100 percent, that UCLA is the place I want to be. When it came down to it, the things that really matter to me - having my family close, having a great tradition and stuff like that - are all there. I had to pick UCLA."
Love, a 6-9, 260-pound post player, earned MaxPreps second team All-American honors as a junior after averaging 28.9 points and 17 rebounds per game. A consensus top five player in the class of 2007, Love helped Lake Oswego capture the Oregon 4A title last season.
The future Bruins' recruitment has been a hot topic in the Beaver State since his freshman season. Love's father, Stan, played for the University of Oregon and spent four seasons in the NBA. Many speculated early on that he would follow his father to Eugene, but the Ducks went from a favorite to completely out of the picture over a year ago.
Love's decision came down to UCLA and North Carolina. Both schools pulled out all the stops in an effort to lure a student-athlete who may end up being enrolled for just a year.
Football: Hokies Land Another Lower Chesapeake Star
One of the top quarterback prospects in the class of 2007 is now off the board and headed to Virginia Tech.
Tyrod Taylor, a 6-1, 200-pound senior at Hampton High School (Va.), joined a recent pipeline from the Lower Chesapeake cities of Hampton and Newport News to Virginia Tech when he announced his intentions to play for the Hokies Saturday.
That pipeline includes former quarterbacks Marcus and Michael Vick (Warwick High School), and current Hokies in running back Elan Lewis (Phoebus), defensive ends Chris Ellis (Bethel) and Steven Friday (Phoebus), linebackers Xavier Adibi (Phoebus), Brenden Hill (Warwick), and Matt Wright (Phoebus), and safety D.J. Parker (Phoebus).
Before We Go: For passionate football fans, the anticipation of the coming season can be excruciating this time of year. For those in need of a "football fix", go find a copy of Dave Campbell's Texas Football. The 368-page annual publication will keep even the most ardent reader busy for weeks. We don't want to blow the cover on too many of Texas Football's great features, but check out the story on small-school sensation Rex McDougald. The Iola High School senior is a 6-3, 295-pound running back who rushed for over 1,500 yards and 21 touchdowns in 2005.
Jason Hickman: jason@maxpreps.com
Interested in becoming a MaxPreps contributor? We are looking for writers to help expand our coverage of high school sports nationwide. Contact Jason Hickman at jason@maxpreps.com.
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