Monday, September 16, 2013

Terry Larrier 'On the Fence' Between UConn, VCU

Sounds like Terry Larrier, the 6-foot-7 small forward out of the Bronx, is legitimately torn between UConn and VCU.

"I think he's on the fence," said Jeremy Pridgen, who coaches and trains Larrier's AAU team, Team SCAN. "If he could give half of himself to one, half of himself to the other, he'd do it."

But Pridgen added: "I think he pretty much knows what he wants to do. It's more of a situation of, 'How am I gonna call this one coach and tell him I'm not coming?' He's gonna fit in great, wherever he goes."

Larrier's decision could come over the next few days. If he lands in Storrs, Kevin Ollie is getting a good one that could offset some of the misses (Abdul Malik Abu, Quentin Snider, Paul White) the Huskies have had over the past couple of weeks.

"He's one of the best kids we've had in the program," Pridgen said. "He's come so far in a very short amount of time. He's worked hard, grown a few inches, and has come far. And he's got so much further to go.

"He's got a lot of talent. He's hungry, too. When you put those two things together, he can actually do it."

Pridgen compares Larrier to DeAndre Daniels, except "Terry is a much better shooter." He noted that VCU head coach Shaka Smart has been "on him from minute-one. He's been on him really hard."

However, Pridgen added, "UConn is creeping up on him."

Larrier visited Storrs a few weeks ago.

"That meeting went well," Pridgen said. "He loves Rudy Gay. He sees himself fitting in there really well ... He looks at UConn's wings like him -- long and lanky -- and who made it to the next level. And he likes Coach Ollie. He thinks he's going to have it rockin' like when (Jim) Calhoun was there."

Now, it's just a matter of making a very tough decision.

"He loves Kevin, he loves Shaka," Pridgen reported. "He loved Billy (Donovan, Florida's coach), too, but he hasn't really been on him like the other two."

Whatever the decision, one thing is certain: UConn definitely has a fan in the Team SCAN ranks in Pridgen. And that could help in the future with a kid like Thomas Bryant, a 6-9 Class of 2015 power forward, or even (way down the road) Tremont Waters, a Class of 2017 point guard who played for Team SCAN and is now at South Kent School ... and who happens to hail from New Haven.

"When they start winning this year, all the (Class of) 2015 kids are gonna be like, '(Ollie) really lets those guards play,'" Pridgen said. "Once he puts one of his own guys in the league, when they see the kind of year Shabazz (Napier) and Ryan (Boatright) are gonna have, they're going to be very intrigued about going there. UConn is gonna do very well."



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