Per Duke Sports Information
Kennard & Jeter Sign with Duke
Blue Devils Land Top Two-Man Class
Wednesday, Nov. 12
DURHAM, N.C. — Head coach Mike Krzyzewski announced Duke’s 2015 recruiting class Wednesday, which features two five-start recruits in Chase Jeter, a 6-10 center from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nev., and Luke Kennard, a 6-5 guard from Franklin High School in Franklin, Ohio. Duke’s recruiting class is ranked No. 9 overall by ESPN.com and is the top two-man class in the nation.
“We are excited about Luke and Chase joining our program,” said Krzyzewski. “Both of them are terrific young men as well as extremely talented players. They will fit well into our team as well as the Duke community.”
Kennard and Jeter rank among the nation’s top 30 recruits, according to the Recruiting Service Consensus Index (RSCI), which combines the ranking efforts of several national recruiting experts. Jeter garnered the No. 8 spot on the RSCI list, while Kennard appears at No. 21. The third-highest ranked center on the list, Jeter also received a top-10 ranking by nearly all major ranking systems, including ESPN (No. 9), Scout (No. 9) and Rivals (No. 8). Kennard garnered a top-25 ranking by numerous agencies as well, including Scout (No. 23), Rivals (No. 24) and 247 Sports (No. 21). Kennard also sits at No. 4 on the RSCI list of wing guards.
This past summer, Kennard, alongside future teammates and current Duke freshmen Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow, helped guide the USA Men’s U18 National Team to a 2014 FIBA Americas Championship title. In addition to scoring a tournament-best 30 points against Uruguay in the USA’s opening-round game, Kennard’s 13.8 points per game ranked second on the team. A 2014 Gatorade Ohio Boys Basketball Player of the Year honoree, Kennard averaged 41.0 points and 10.4 rebounds per game as a junior, while leading Franklin High School to the Division II sectional final. He was also named to MaxPreps 2013-14 Junior All-America first team a year ago.
“I like everything about Luke Kennard,” said Krzyzewski. “I like him as a young man, love his family, love his town. There’s not a thing I don’t like about him, and then he’s a great player. He defies one position because he can handle it and be a point guard. He can play the wing. He’s a natural athlete and competitor. Although he scores a lot, he’s an amazing passer, and he’s an easy guy to play with. I’m not sure most people would say that a 40-point a game scorer would be easy to play with, but he is.”
Jeter joined Kennard, Jones and Winslow this summer in winning the 2014 FIBA Americas Championship title as a member of the USA Men’s U18 National Team, contributing 6.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game throughout the tournament. In his junior season at Bishop Gorman, Jeter averaged 14.7 points and 10.6 rebounds per game in leading the Gaels to their third straight Nevada Division I state championship. He was named to MaxPreps 2013-14 Boys Basketball Junior All-America third team and was a 2014 all-state and all-conference first-team selection.
“Chase is a natural athlete that runs well, catches well and he’s a really good talker,” said Krzyzewski. “He sees the game and he’s a student of the game. He works like crazy to improve and he keeps growing. He’s over 6-10, maybe 6-11 now, and will be able to play both the four and the five. He’s an easy guy to play with and has a good energy level.”
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