Hollowell decides to take talents to IU

IU’s already highly touted class of 2012 just got even better.

Lawrence Central (Indianapolis) junior Jeremy Hollowell, the No. 39 overall player according to Rivals.com (and No. 23-recruit on Scout.com), decided Thursday afternoon at his high school that he wanted to become a Hoosier. 

“This past week I was thinking about it pretty hard, and I went with my gut feeling,” said Hollowell, who chose IU over Purdue, Ohio State and Cincinnati. “In Indiana, I see something pretty amazing, and I wanted to make sure I was a part of that.”

The small forward became the fifth high school junior to commit to IU in recent months. He joined five-star recruits Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell and forward Hanner Perea, as well as four-star guard Ron Patterson and three-star center Peter Jurkin. 

Evan Daniels, a National Recruiting Analyst for Scout.com, said IU currently has the No. 1 recruiting class for 2012.

“No question, at this stage in the game, there really isn’t another school close,” Daniels said. “Hats off to (IU coach Tom Crean). This is a terrific class. They may not have had the results on the court yet, but if he keeps doing what he is doing off the court, they are certainly going to come.”

By gaining Hollowell’s commitment, Crean added one of the most versatile wing players in the nation. 

Listed at 6-foot-6, Hollowell has the ability to play the shooting guard, small forward or power forward spots on the floor. He demonstrated this while averaging 18.9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game for the Bears, who went 15-10 this season.

J.R. Shelt, Hollowell’s coach at Lawrence Central, said versatility is what will enable him to be successful in the Big Ten.

“Jeremy can go to Princeton and play. He’s a basketball player,” Shelt said. “Whatever coach Crean needs him to do, he can do. He’s a kid that at 6-foot-7, 6-foot-8 that can handle the ball, shoot the three, can post up and defend.”

Hollowell said a large part of his decision was based on the relationships he has with other IU recruits. 

He and Ferrell have known each other since elementary school and played on an AAU team together during that time. Hollowell became close with Patterson while on the same AAU team a couple of years ago and has competed multiple times against both Perea and Jurkin.

“I think we can do something special,” Hollowell said. “We all don’t really play the same position, so we’ll come together and work as a team.”

Ferrell said he was excited when he heard the news of Hollowell’s commitment and could not wait to join his future teammates in Bloomington.

“We’re going in there with a lot of high expectations that we’ll work toward,” Ferrell said. “We’re going there to win.”