The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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JANUARY 2019 THE WOLVERINE 55 BASKETBALL RECRUITING said. "He said, 'We have a kid that loves Michigan. Could you take a look at him?' "It took me two or three weeks to even get back to him, then I didn't get back to him again [because of the Final Four run]. There was so much going on. "Finally I think I called the dad. He said we'd like to come to your practice camp. They flew across the country, came to the camp and Cole raised some eyebrows." Beilein promised to send assistant DeAndre Haynes out to see him if he played well. And he did. "We kept liking him more and more every day. Pretty soon I started looking around, and I wasn't the only high major coach in the stands," Beilein said. "You can see he has a re- ally high ceiling." Wilson, meanwhile, figures to vie immediately for Matthews' minutes at small forward. "Jalen is going to be very, very good. He has played again the best everywhere, while Cole is just do- ing that now," Beilein said. "When I decided on Cole is when he was playing against the Howard Pulley team. For the first time, he scored 18 of the first 20 points for his team against an EYBL team. Jalen does that every day. "One was undiscovered, one was well known, and both are going to be terrific college players." TWO FINAL FOURS HAVE OPENED DOORS Most knowledgeable Michigan fans knew Beilein was the right guy for the program long ago. It took time, though, to convince some others. It was the same on the recruiting trail, Beilein recently discussed how doors that have been opened since U-M's national championship game run last year. "Our second trip to the Final Four was really helpful as far as it wasn't just a fluke, wasn't something that just happened. That's helped a lot," he said. "We all know that that is great, but they've still got to stay yes. "We're still going to take the kids that really fit Michigan. They might not be as highly rated, but four years later they may be more highly rated. We're still going to try to find our guys. "I do think there's knowledge out there right now that if you like Mich- igan, you probably not going to be able to wait until the spring of your senior year and still go there un- less something falls through. That's where a lot of the highly rated guys are. I don't want to come up empty with that. Then we'd be in a tough situation." Michigan's gotten one 2020 pledge already, and he's off to a good start. Zeb Jackson (6-3, Rivals.com's No. 71 junior nationally) of Toledo (Ohio) Maumee Valley Country Day scored 27 points in a season-opening win over Belpre Dec. 1 and followed up with 24 points to lead Maumee Val- ley to a 77-67 win over Wellington Dec. 2. There are two other offers out as of now, and U-M is in solid posi- tion for both. One — College Park (Ga.) Woodward Academy big man Walker Kessler (7-0, 235, Rivals.com's No. 9 junior nationally) — said he was blown away by his Michigan trip this fall. He visited for the Penn State game and got the red carpet treatment from Beilein, who took the time to show him around himself. The same was true for Butler (Pa.) Area Senior guard Ethan Morton (Ri- vals.com No. 55 talent in the junior class). Morton, who averaged 24.6 points per game last season, visited Michigan Oct. 20. Some thought Morton would be off the table since Jackson commit- ted and the two play the same posi- tion, but both can play a number of positions. "I still talk to them pretty often," Morton said of the Michigan coaches. "They're definitely still a great option with how they play and their system. They see me as a multi-positional guy." Morton has visited Indiana, Mar- quette, Northwestern, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Purdue and Stanford over the past few months, and those are among the schools (with U-M) he said are recruiting him the hardest. He hasn't thought about making any other visits this winter since his fall was so busy and because his own games will be starting soon. He has been watching the Wolver- ines closely, and he's been impressed. "They've had a great start. The de- fense is very impressive, and when they shoot it well, they are special," he said, elaborating on comments he made after his fall visit. "The track record coach Beilein has with that program taking them to two national championship games and having all the success is impres- sive. Everything they do is really good." M i c h i g a n ' s s u c c e s s h a s a l s o opened a door with Australian four- star Jayden Stone (6-3, 170, No. 49 prospect nationally in the junior class) of Birmingham (Ala.) Sacred Heart Catholic. The standout shoot- ing guard said recently he is hearing the most from Vanderbilt, Auburn, Creighton, Iowa State and Tennes- see, but he likes the Wolverines and is thinking about a visit. "They keep in contact," he said. "Growing up, you always hear about the Michigans and the Dukes. It is al- ways nice to hear from them because you always want to be at the top. "I am just being patient. If they come, they come, but if not, you just have to go to the right school and prove them wrong. Coming from Australia, you have to have a chip on your shoulder and go at people and be in attack mode, always." ❏ On The Web For regular reports on Michigan basketball recruiting plus videos of U-M commitments and targets visit TheWolverine.com. Butler (Pa.) Area Senior guard Ethan Morton, the No. 55 overall player in the country per Rivals.com, visited U-M Oct. 20. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM