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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Friday, April 22, 2005

UH hoops lands 6-10 transfer

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team capped a big recruiting class by securing a commitment from a big man yesterday.

Stephen Verwers, a 6-foot-10, 235-pound power forward, said he will transfer to play for the Rainbow Warriors next season. He played the past two seasons at Colorado State.

"I liked everything about Hawai'i," said Verwers, who visited the UH campus last week. "I think I'll fit in a little better there. The coaches and players really made me feel at home."

Verwers was considered one of the top high school players in Texas in 2003, but he received limited playing time in his two seasons at Colorado State.

Last season as a sophomore, he averaged 1.9 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Verwers started nine games for the Rams early in the season, but his playing time diminished as the season went along.

"I really loved the school and the players there," he said of Colorado State. "But I thought I would get more playing time. There was a disagreement with the coaches."

As an NCAA Division I transfer, Verwers will have to sit out his first year at Hawai'i. He will be a junior during the 2006-07 season, and will have two years of eligibility. He said he is comfortable playing either the power forward or center position.

"That's only going to help me and I think I can get more playing time after I get to know the system," he said.

As a high school senior for the Weatherford Express, Verwers averaged 27 points per game and was recruited by Kansas, Oklahoma State and Texas.

The Express was a team of home-school students from the Weatherford area.

"We played our home games in a small church gym," said his mother, Debbie Verwers. "It was really exciting when all these big schools were coming in to look at him. He wound up choosing Colorado State but things just didn't pan out the way he wanted."

Verwers announced that he wanted to transfer around a month ago. He said he chose Hawai'i over Oklahoma, North Texas and Texas A&M.

"He said he wanted to play closer to home and now he's going out to Hawai'i," his mother said. "It's funny how that worked out, but Hawai'i really seems like the best move for him."

Verwers said UH's Travel Industry Management program was also a key reason behind his decision.

"I'd like to go into resort management or something like that, so it's perfect," he said.

Verwers said he signed a national letter of intent yesterday. However, UH officials did not complete his paper work yesterday, so the UH coaches did not want to comment.

Verwers is the sixth, and final, recruit to sign with Hawai'i for next season.

The others are 6-8 forward Ahmet Tidiane Gueye, 6-6 shooting guard Matt Lojeski, 6-4 point guard Hiram Thompson, 6-1 point guard Dominic Waters and 6-1 point guard John Wilder.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.