The Wolfpacker

34 ■ THE WOLFPACKER ■ BASKETBALL RECRUITING ISSUE BY JACEY ZEMBAL N C State signee Abdul-Malik Abu will be arriving with a purpose. The Boston native wants to con- tribute immediately and help the Wolfpack program build off its three straight NCAA Tournament appearances. The chiseled 6-8, 230-pound power for- ward at Meriden (N.H.) Kimball Union Academy was the last verbal commitment of the three NC State signees, joining Mocks- ville, N.C., natives Caleb Martin and Cody Martin. "It's good that my AAU career is over and high school is done. I'm ready for this col- lege situation," said Abu, 18, who plans to wear No. 0. "I'm ready to come in and make it my own. I feel the sense of the impact that I could make. "I could have stayed near home if I wanted to sit and watch games. That's not me, and I'll be working harder than anyone else." Abu's recruitment reflected head coach Mark Gottfried and assistant coach Orlando Early's ability to evaluate and strike quickly on a prospect. NC State was able to watch Abu play with the Expressions Elite travel- ing team during the April 2013 evaluation period and offered him immediately. Abu collected at least 20 scholarship of- fers during the process, but NC State contin- ued to recruit him hard during the following July evaluation period and started to rise toward the top of his list last August. Abu narrowed his finalists down to NC State, Florida, UConn and Providence, before selecting the Wolfpack in front of friends and family Sept. 5 at the Reggie Lewis Center in the Boston area. Abu noted that his four college choices all reached the NCAA Tournament, and UConn defeated Florida in the Final Four semifinals before the Huskies went on to win the national title. Watching his other schools do well has helped motivate Abu to try to achieve the same lofty heights with NC State. "I know I could have gone to those schools, but I want to make the best of my situation at NC State and go from there," Abu said. "I saw a lot of their games and saw a lot of youth coming up [at NCSU]. With everyone that is coming back, we'll be more mature and close out the games that we could have won. "Coach Gottfried just says to come in ready and be in the best shape of my life." Abu made sure to watch the 74-59 win over Xavier March 18 in the play-in game of the NCAA Tournament, and then the heartbreaking 83-80 overtime loss to Saint Louis to end the season March 20. "That one hurt — I was rooting for them READY TO PERFORM Power Forward Abdul-Malik Abu Is Poised To Make An Instant Impact Abu, a 6-8, 230-pound power forward, is ranked as the No. 32 senior in the country by ESPN. PHOTO COURTESY NIKE GLOBAL 34-35.Adbul-Malik Abu.indd 34 4/29/14 12:01 PM

• Cover