Chol to pick between Arizona, Kansas, UNC

One of the nation's top uncommitted players will end his recruitment during a press conference at 12:45 p.m. Thursday.

Angelo Chol, a 6-foot-9, 210-pound shot-blocking machine from Hoover (San Diego, Calif.), will decide between Arizona, Kansas and North Carolina tomorrow according to Cardinal head coach Ollie Goulston. He is No. 35 in MaxPreps.com's 2011 Top 100.

Following a weekend visit to Washington, Chol eliminated the Huskies and Alabama from consideration.

A native of Sudan, Chol is averaging 24.1 points, 14.9 rebounds and 8.0 blocked shots per game this season. He posted an incredible line of 40 points, 19 rebounds and 15 blocked shots in a December win over Southwest (El Centro) and is just 10 points shy of 2,000 for his career.

"And he's doing that against double- and triple-teams every night," Goulston said. "He's our only senior, one of our only proven scorers and he has really taken off with this game. He's still fighting that label of being raw, but I just don't see that when I watch him."

Chol's ability to swat shots put him on the radar as a freshman at Hoover. That year he erased 231 attempts, added a single-season national record 337 more as a sophomore and 286 as a junior.

Thursday's announcement will be the latest chapter in Chol's long and fascinating journey from war-torn Sudan to Egypt to the United States, where he was introduced to the game of basketball and developed into one of the top prospects in the country.

"I started working with Angelo in the seventh grade, and he was so far away then," Goulston said. "I thought he had a chance to be pretty good, but I would be lying if I told you I thought he would have the opportunities that he does."

New interest for Aniefiok

Another African-born senior is seeing his recruitment pick up steam under head coach Rob Fulford at Huntington Prep (Huntington, W.Va.).

Maurice Aniefiok, a 6-5, 210-pound wing who is "built like a linebacker," according to Fulford, is translating a fine season into interest from several major conference programs. He already has offers from Duquesne and Mississippi, but Indiana and Southern California are now taking a hard look. West Virginia was also in pursuit, but that interest dissolved as the Mountaineers shifted their attention toward landing a point guard.

Huntington Prep is 19-3 this season against a schedule that includes teams from 11 states and the District of Columbia.

The Express' roster is even more diverse than its schedule with three other players born on the African continent in addition to Aniefiok, as well as four Canadians. Toronto native Negus Webster-Chan, a 6-7 junior small forward, is committed to Louisville.

Commitments

* High-flying Milton (Ga.) junior Shaquille Johnson is headed to Auburn. The 6-4 wing is playing a supporting role for the Eagles this season, but expect him to develop into a star next year. Johnson stole the show at the City of Palms Classic slam dunk contest in December.

Johnson is the fifth player on the Milton roster to sign or make a verbal commitment to a Division I program. Seniors Shannon Scott (Ohio State), Julian Royal (Georgia Tech), Dai-Jon Parker (Vanderbilt) and Jordan Loyd (Furman) signed in November. Fellow junior Evan Nolte, a 6-8 3-point specialist, is a Top 100 talent in the 2012 class with offers from all over the ACC, SEC and Big 10.

* Indiana and Purdue continue to rake in commitments from players years away from being able to sign. Matt Painter and the Boilermakers made the latest strike Monday with a pledge from St. Charles East (St. Charles, Ill.) sophomore Kendall Stephens.

Stephens, a 6-4, 165-pound guard, is the son of former Purdue standout Everette Stephens, who played two years in the NBA with Indiana and Milwaukee in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Kendall is averaging 16.5 points per game for St. Charles East, 10-10 on the season following a loss to Elgin last Friday.

The Hoosiers and Boilermakers have commitments from a combined 13 non-seniors, highlighted by Indiana pledges Trey Lyles and James Blackmon – just freshmen.

* North Carolina State received a commitment from Croatian junior Josip Mikulic of North Broward Prep (Coconut Creek, Fla.). He will be challenged to even become the most famous Croatian athlete in the United States named Josip Mikulic, however. That honor would go to a recent Chicago Fire (MLS) signee of the same name.

The North Carolina State-bound Mikulic is 6-10 and between 205 and 230 pounds depending on the source. He joins Tyler Lewis of Forsyth Country Day (Lewisville, N.C.) in the Pack's 2012 recruiting class.