Rick Pitino adds two bigs to Iona's recruiting class | Zagsblog
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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Friday / March 29.
  • Rick Pitino adds two bigs to Iona’s recruiting class

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    By ADAM ZAGORIA

    Rick Pitino continues to fill out his roster for his first season as head coach at Iona.

    Pitino added his fourth and fifth commits in the 2020 class Wednesday with the additions of 7-foot-1 Osborn Shema and 6-9 Johan Crafoord.

    Shema, a native of Rwanda, averaged 10.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.9 blocks last season at New Mexico Military Institute. He has three years of eligibility.

    Rutgers, Central Florida, Florida State, Western Kentucky and New Mexico were also involved for Shema.

    “He’s going to bring a very unique skillset for a big,” New Mexico coach Sean Schooley said. “He’s very, very skilled. He’s got a tremendous IQ for the game and a natural IQ. He gets it and is a very skill passer. His ability to run the floor from rim to rim, I haven’t seen it in a long, long time in a big like that.

    “He’s going to bring problems to people because he’s really not a low-post five. He’s very disruptive because he can shoot over you outside. He jumps extremely well, he led our conference in blocked shots. He has tremendous timing. He’s going to bring a lot of good things for Iona basketball.”

    Crafoord is a native of Sweden who played with at Shema at Gloveprep Christian Academy (FL) and also for the NY Rens AAU program. He averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds at Gloveprep.

    “Rick Pitino is a lifetime dream to have as a coach,” Gloveprep coach Frank Glover said.

    They join guards Tahlik Chavez, Ryan Myers and Berrick JeanLouis in Iona’s 2020 class.

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    Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle. A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.

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