Arizona State becomes first high-major school to offer Merrill's Jesperson
posted by Mark Miller at 10/14/2009
By Mark Miller
Wishoops.net Editor After garnering scholarship offers from eight NCAA Division I programs over the past several months, Merrill junior Paul Jesperson received his first offer from a school in a BCS conference Tuesday evening.
Head coach Herb Sendek from Arizona State called Jesperson Tuesday evening and offered the highly skilled and ever-improving 6-foot-7 wing prospect a scholarship.
“We expect this offer to be the first of several, if not many, from high-major schools,” Merrill coach Kurt Soderberg said. “Arizona State thinks Paul’s ceiling is so high. When they saw him in his ball handling and shooting workout this week, they saw what he’s capable of becoming.”
Arizona State joins Colorado State, Loyola of Chicago, North Dakota State, Northern Iowa, San Diego, South Dakota State, UW-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee in offering a scholarship to Jesperson.
Soderberg said coaches from Arizona State, Colorado State, Butler, Iowa State, Minnesota, Northern Iowa, Stanford and Yale, among others, have visited Merrill in recent weeks to watch Jesperson participate in open-gym workouts.
“I feel very good for Paul because he has really worked hard,” Soderberg said. “He gave football this year in order to really concentrate on getting ready for basketball and it has paid off.”
After averaging 10.5 points per game as a freshman at Merrill, Jesperson’s increased his scoring output to 15.8 ppg as a sophomore.
Competing for the Wisconsin Playmakers on the grassroots scene last spring and summer, Jesperson took his game to the next level, especially during the July evaluation period. He had several games of 25-plus points and showed the ability to make three-point bombs from all over the court.
Ranked No. 5 among players in the state in the class of 2011 by Wishoops.net, Jesperson is a returning first-team all-league performer in the Great Northern Conference.
A wing forward with outstanding long-distance shooting skills, Jesperson is a pure shooter who can hit the three-point shot with alarming accuracy. Jesperson won the three-point shooting contest at the Marquette Elite Camp last June. He later proved it was no fluke by going out and consistently nailing three-point shots in July on the grassroots circuit.
In addition to his shooting prowess, Jesperson is a very good rebounder and a player who can bring the ball up the court against pressure.
Wisconsin Lutheran’s Davis takes official visit to Loyola Wisconsin Lutheran senior Flavien Davis took an official visit to Loyola University in Chicago last weekend.
The 6-4 Davis is ranked No. 7 among state seniors by Wishoops.net and is a three-time first-team all-league pick in the Wisconsin Little Ten Conference.
“Flavien really enjoyed the trip to Loyola,” Wisconsin Lutheran coach Ryan Walz said. “They really liked him and he got along with their players well. It was a positive experience for him.”
Though Davis has been to Indiana, Marquette, UW-Green Bay and Wisconsin on unofficial visits in the past, this was his first official visit.
“When you go on an official visit, you spend so much more time and can really see what is going into a program and what it takes to be a Division I athlete,” Walz said.
Quick Hitters … Nick Hallberg has replaced Danny Judd as the head coach at Grantsburg. Judd served as the Pirates’ head coach for eight seasons, leading the program to a 125-56 record during his tenure. Grantsburg finished second in the WIAA Division 3 State Tournament under Judd in 2005 … Shullsburg has hired Mark Lierman as its new varsity basketball coach … The Midwest Minority Officials Association is looking for boys and girls teams from the freshmen and junior varsity levels to participate in the Tip-Off event at Milwaukee North Division Field House on October 31. Teams will play three-to-four games. The event is free to school-based teams. The purpose of the event is to train basketball officials for the 2009-10 season, and to allow teams the opportunity to play competitive games. Interested teams can contact Kenneth Taylor at 414-406-2426 or
tkennyray1@aol.com to register.
Comments 1
On
10/14/2009 11:54:13 AM
luvball wrote:
That is awsome Paul!
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