RECRUITING: Findlay Prep’s Williams-Goss commits to Washington
Most elite college basketball recruits don’t have Harvard on their final list of suitors, nor do they sound excited about the chance of a double major in college.
But Findlay Prep junior point guard Nigel Williams-Goss is cerebral on and off the court. That might explain why Williams-Goss, who made an oral commitment to Washington on Wednesday, wrote an articulate explanation of his decision for the National Recruiting Spotlight website.
Williams-Goss said later Wednesday that his lengthy relationship with Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar proved key.
“That was huge, just being that the relationship between point guard and head coach is so important,” Williams-Goss said. “For them to be recruiting me since my eighth-grade year, for them to watch me develop as a player and person, it was a huge sign for me.”
Williams-Goss picked the Huskies over scholarship offers from UNLV, UCLA and Oklahoma. Harvard also was a close runner-up to Washington, although Ivy League schools do not offer athletic scholarships.
Williams-Goss originally committed to UNLV as a sophomore in December 2010 but revoked his commitment after coach Lon Kruger left the Rebels for Oklahoma in April 2011.
The 6-foot-4-inch Williams-Goss is ranked the nation’s No. 39 overall prospect in the 2013 class by Rivals.com.
Williams-Goss is a sound floor leader and lock-down defender. As a junior, he helped the Pilots (32-1) win their third National High School Invitational title in the past four seasons.
Findlay Prep finished ranked No. 2 in the nation by USA Today, behind only Virginia-based Oak Hill Academy (44-0).
Williams-Goss said English is among his favorite subjects, and he’s considering studying journalism, psychology and communications at Washington.
“I also talked to some of the academic people about doing a double major,” he said.
Williams-Goss’ approach with school is no different than in basketball.
“I definitely want to work on my strength. The college game is so physical,” he said. “I want to work on my jump shot. That’s a process that never stops.”
NOTE — The Senior All-Star Game in boys basketball has been postponed from Saturday to 6 p.m. June 9 at Tarkanian Basketball Academy.
The event pits top seniors from the Sunrise Region against the Sunset.