April 28, 2008
LAS VEGAS - The UNLV men's basketball program received a signed national letter of intent from Brice Massamba to enroll at UNLV and play for the Runnin' Rebels starting with the 2008-09 season, head coach Lon Kruger announced Monday.
"We are very happy to have Brice join our program," Kruger said. "His size, maturity and leadership will fit in perfectly with our team. He really makes progress every week and will continue to do that during his career as a Rebel."
Massamba, a 6-foot-10-inch 255-pound forward/center, is from Sodertalje, Sweden, and has attended Findlay College Prep at the Henderson International School in Henderson, Nev., the past two years. He helped the team to a 32-1 record this past season as the Pilots lost in the prep school national championship game. Massamba averaged 6.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game and started all 26 games he played in, shooting 65.9 percent from the field.
Massamba played for the Swedish Senior Men's National Team in the 2006 Euro Cup qualifying games and averaged 18 ppg, 10 rpg and four assists per game at Gelstaviken in Sodertalje. He will enter UNLV as a freshman.
"I am very excited about playing for UNLV over the next four years," said Massamba. "UNLV has a great basketball tradition and I really like Coach Kruger and his coaching style. He communicates very well with the players and with my size and feel for the game, I really believe that I am a great fit for his system."
"Knowing Coach Kruger's system, Brice is a perfect fit," said Mike Peck, head coach at Findlay Prep. "He is a very unselfish player with a high basketball IQ and I think we have only seen a sliver of what he is capable of. I think we are going to see an unbelievable talent in Brice."
Massamba joins Oscar Bellfield, a 6-foot-2-inch, 175-pound guard for Los Angeles' Westchester High School, who signed with UNLV on April 16, DeShawn Mitchell, a 6-foot-5-inch, 205-pound forward from Monmouth Academy in Howell, N.J., and Darris Santee, a 6-foot-8-inch, 225-pound forward from Midland (Texas) College, who both signed with the program in November, as UNLV's signings for the 2008-09 season. Also part of the class is Beas Hamga, a 7-foot, 225-pound center who redshirted last year and will be a freshman this coming season, as well as Tre'Von Willis, a 6-foot-4-inch, 195-pound guard, who transferred from Memphis and also redshirted at UNLV during the 2007-08 year. Willis will be a sophomore in 2008-09.
Bellfield was ranked as a top-100 player (among high school seniors) in the country according to Clark Francis, who writes for Hoop Scoop and Basketball Times. Santee is a top-40 prospect according to JucoJunction and Rivals. Hamga was ranked the No. 5 center in the country in 2007 by Rivals and was a five-star recruit behind UCLA's Kevin Love and three others. Hamga was also the No. 26 overall prospect, while Willis was the No. 12 prospect in California in 2007 by Rivals.
UNLV finished the 2007-08 season with an overall record of 27-8 and lost to eventual national champion Kansas in the NCAA Tournament's second round. The appearance in the NCAA Tournament was the second straight for the Runnin' Rebels, who advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2007. UNLV finished second in the Mountain West Conference this past season with a 12-4 mark and won the conference tournament championship for the second straight year.
UNLV will only lose two players from last season's team - seniors Curtis Terry and Corey Bailey. The Runnin' Rebels will have four seniors on the 2008-09 roster in Wink Adams, Joe Darger, René Rougeau and Mareceo Rutledge.
- Additionally, registration is ongoing for this summer's UNLV Runnin' Rebel Basketball Camps.
Day Camps will be offered from June 16-18 and August 4-6. Both camps will have three sessions. The first will be from 9 a.m. - noon (ages 8-10), the second will be from 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. (ages 11-13) and the third will be from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. (ages 14-18).
The UNLV Runnin' Rebel Basketball Camp is a fun and challenging learning resource for every player. Players of all levels will improve their skills through intense and detailed instruction on the proper execution of offensive skills and fundamentals. Players will receive individualized training from UNLV coaches, staff, players and high school and college coaches. Each camper will participate in individual contests and team competition as well as receive a camp T-shirt and ball.
The cost of each camp is $150 per session. June 14 is the registration cutoff for Camp 1, while Camp 2 needs to be registered for by August 2. For more information and to register online, visit the camp website, which can be accessed from the men's basketball page at UNLVRebels.com or directly at UNLVBasketballCamp.com. For more information, please call the UNLV men's basketball office at 702-895-3295.
