The Wolfpacker

96 ■ THE WOLFPACKER ■ BASKETBALL RECRUITING five minutes. I said, 'Let me get my boy Den- nis,'" recalled Alkins. "I brought him up and they put him on. "He was telling me he was going to com- mit to NC State, and he actually did it. At first, I thought he'd go to Kentucky or Duke. He told me to come join him." NC State head coach Mark Gottfried and assistant coach Rob Moxley have been ac- tively recruiting Alkins ever since offering him a scholarship on June 20, 2014. "Coach Gottfried is a cool guy," Alkins said. "He is a guy with a lot of energy. I see him as being as one of those guys that knows what he is doing and is animated." NC State, North Carolina, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, St. John's and UNLV are on his list, and he'd like to take all five official visits between now and late April. "As soon as I get my result [from the SAT], I will take official visits everywhere," Alkins said. "My commitment is going to be late in the spring, real late. I want to see where col- lege coaches go and which players are going to the NBA or not." Udoka Azubuike Surprisingly Waits Until Spring This fall, Azubuike completed every step of the recruiting process but picking a school. The 6-11, 260-pound native of Nigeria has been a coveted recruit ever since his freshman year in the U.S. Azubuike prefers to play in the paint, and NC State started to recruit him hard last July. The Wolf- pack was able to entertain Azubuike Oct. 2-4 on an official visit. He eventually also visited Florida State and North Carolina, to go along with a previous trip to Kansas. Azubuike decided to wait until the spring signing period to make his decision. With NC State losing Adebayo to Ken- tucky, the Wolfpack will turn up the heat on Azubuike even more this winter. Azubuike enjoyed his first time seeing NC State and getting to know the various coaches and individuals on the academic side. "It was great," Azubuike said. "I had never seen it before. It's different, but nice. Coach Gottfried said they really, really want me. "I enjoyed the practice, and it was the first day. They said that they give the ball to the big men. The coaches talked about how they run their offense." Smith also has been a key reason why NC State is under consideration for Azu- buike. "I played against Dennis during the sum- mer," Azubuike said. "We walked in and we saw Rawle, so it was exciting. It was great. "They want to try and win a national championship. If I come, it's going to be a big deal. I think it could be Final Four and trying to win a national championship." Azubuike played against Smith's team prior to when the No. 1 point guard in the class tore his ACL at adidas Nations. "We just like how each other plays," Azubuike said. "We like each others game." Finding a college that will help him im- prove his all-around skills is crucial to his continued development. "The NC State coaches said they'd make sure I'd get the ball," Azubuike said. "They'd run the offense through some of the bigs. They want me to move around and get my game better; improve my fun- damentals." ■ Scotia Construction, Inc. Commerical Contractors since 1972 Hal C. Stevens, PE NCSU Class of '78 956 W. Chatham St. • Cary, NC 27511 Office: (919) 467-0293 Proud Supporter of NC State Athletics for over 40 years Jacksonville (Fla.) Potter's House center Udoka Azubuike, the nation's No. 27 overall prospect according to Rivals.com, will likely choose between NC State, Kansas, Florida State and North Carolina in the spring. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Visit TheWolfpacker.com for regular reports on NC State basketball recruiting plus videos of Wolfpack commitments and targets.

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