Iolani's Low signs with WSU

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Iolani's Derrick Low and father, Ken, had reason to smile after Derrick signed with Washington State. Cathy Chong • Iolani School

Low, a 6-foot-1 point guard, signed his letter yesterday morning in Iolani headmaster Val Iwashita's office and faxed it to the Bennetts. He gave them a verbal commitment on Aug. 5, but yesterday was the first day he was allowed to sign. NCAA coaches are not allowed to comment on recruits until they receive the signed letter.

"We've been looking forward to talking about Derrick for a long time," Tony Bennett told The Advertiser yesterday in a phone interview from WSU's campus in Pullman. "There was no question he was our guy from the beginning, and we made that clear to him throughout (the process). We were so drawn to him as a player and a person, and he fits right into our system. We'll be losing our senior point guard, Marcus Moore, so Derrick will have a tremendous opportunity to start as a freshman and run our show."

Low, who turned down scholarship offers from Gonzaga, Utah and Hawai'i, earlier had received strong interest from such powers as Kansas, North Carolina State and Pittsburgh. He is one of four players signed by Washington State, and the only guard. Dick Bennett was not available for comment yesterday.

Low is a three-time Interscholastic League of Honolulu Player of the Year and a two-time Advertiser State Player of the Year. On March 2, then-Kansas coach Roy Williams called Low and spoke to him for more than 30 minutes to congratulate him on leading Iolani to a second straight state championship the night before.

Dick Bennett took over WSU's program shortly thereafter, and soon he and son Tony began their steady courtship of Low.

"Another (assistant) coach told us there was this great point guard in Hawai'i, and that we gotta take a shot at him," Tony Bennett said. "We could see from the highlight tapes that he was an excellent player, and once we made contact with him it was a great first impression. Sometimes things just click between a player and coaches, and that's what happened. We built a rapport, there was a comfort level. He is very humble, yet very hungry to get better. You could see just the way he was brought up, all the people who had a hand in developing this young man did a great job."

The Bennetts maintained contact, and although some schools' interest waned after the prestigious summer camps in Indianapolis and Las Vegas, WSU never wavered.

"In our eyes, his stock went up," Tony Bennett said. "Derrick had to play (shooting) guard in Indianapolis, and that camp does not have the most unselfish players who would get him the ball. But we were impressed at how he kept his composure and didn't get greedy. And in the last game at Las Vegas, he scored 40 points and dominated. I'm glad there were not a lot of other coaches who saw that game."

Low committed shortly afterward without having visited Pullman. But he took his visit in September and felt reassured about his decision.

"I really liked it," Low said yesterday. "It's isolated, but I think that might be best for me. It's a small town, but everything revolves around the school. I got to meet the whole team, and they're really cool guys. They all look forward to playing for Coach Bennett, and I do, too."

The feeling is mutual. In early July, Tony Bennett flew into Honolulu for a six-hour stay, just to watch Low play in an NCAA Summer League game.

"At that point, we had already told him, 'You are our priority,' " Bennett said. "But we did not want to leave any stone unturned with him, because we think of him as a cornerstone. All those schools that offered him (scholarships) are good schools, so we're glad we got him."

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456.