The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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BASKETBALL RECRUITING anyone." Capital Christian was slated to play its next game March 18. CLASS OF 2015: LUKE KENNARD VISITS DUKE Michigan remains in the hunt for class of 2015 five-star prospect Luke Kennard of Franklin (Ohio) High, but it appears the Wolverines are facing an uphill battle. Kennard had report- edly been leaning toward Kentucky, but a recent trip to Duke went ex- tremely well, DevilsIllustrated.com reported, and might have put the Blue Devils in front. The 6-5 Kennard, Rivals.com's No. 16 player nationally, helped Franklin reach 20 wins for the second time in school history by averaging 40.4 points, 10.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals in a 20-4 campaign. He also hit 42 percent of his three-point attempts and 85 percent of his free throws. "It was just an awesome visit," Ken- nard's father, Mark, reported of the Duke trip. "It exceeded our expecta- tions, obviously. It was just a really great visit all around, and we really enjoyed the intimate feeling of the Duke campus, program and area." Kennard sat right behind the bench during Duke's win over North Car- olina March 8. He and his parents spent time with Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski on the trip and continued to cultivate a relationship. The Kennards already have a strong bond with the Michigan coaching staff, having been on cam- pus at least three times. U-M might have to get him to visit once more to remain in the hunt, though — and currently, Ohio State is the only other visit on Kennard's itinerary. He plans to visit the school in April. North Carolina and Louisville are the others still on his short list. Ex- pect this one to come down to Duke and Kentucky, though, unless some- thing changes. CLASS OF 2015 NOTES • Michigan continues to scout Ver- sailles, Ohio, shooting guard Kyle Ahrens. Rivals.com's No. 145 junior in the country broke his leg in De- cember, but is recovering. The 6-4 Ahrens visited Michigan in February. "They're really high on my list," he said. "I'm still hearing from a lot of the Big Ten schools, some of the Big East and Dayton. A lot of schools are still showing a lot of interest. "Coach [John] Beilein came to watch me and told me before I was hurt that he liked what he saw. Af- ter the game he said he can't wait to watch me when I come back." Ahrens will join his King James AAU squad for the spring season and expects to have recovered from his broken tibia and fibula by then. Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Dayton, Butler, Xavier and Vanderbilt are the schools highest on his current list. He's seen Dayton, MSU, OSU, Xavier and Butler in addition to U-M. • Point guard offeree Jalen Brunson enjoyed an incredible February, aver- aging 28.9 points in the month alone, but he outdid himself in a playoff win March 11. Brunson, Rivals.com's