Virginia Tech Hokies add Arizona Big Man
James Johnson and His Virginia Tech Hokies staff continue their strong fall recruiting with the addition of 6-9 260-pound Chandler, AZ Basha big man Maurice Kirby to their fall class according to the Arizona Republic.
“The (Virginia Tech) coaching staff was very upfront in what they needed as far as bigs go,” Kirby said. “They didn’t promise anything and all I wanted was a chance to compete and work hard everyday and that’s what they wanted as well.”
Kirby, a former Arizona State commit, has really worked on getting his body in shape and will be the go to guy for Basha now that Torren Jones and Jaron Hopkins have moved on to other schools. So we expect him to double up on his 7.5 points and 7.8 rebounds numbers from last year for Basha this year.
Kirby was a top fifty prospect prior to adding a lot of weight, but he has cut close to twenty pounds and really concentrated this fall on his overall conditioning. That effort impressed the Hokies coaches so much, that they offered him on a school visit in September. Kirby knows how to use his body to control space on the blocks or the glass. he has always had excellent hands to catch and finish versus contact or snatch the rock off the glass. If he continues to drop some pounds to add quicks and explosion the Hokies will be getting a steal. At the worst they have gotten a solid big man who will add depth upfront as a freshman.
He chose Virginia tech Over offers from Northern Arizona, Brown and Loyola Chicago.
