Men's Basketball 11/10/2023 3:05:00 PM

Jeremiah "Bear" Cherry, James Evans & Pape N'Diaye All Sign With The Runnin' Rebels

UNLV men's basketball's 2024 recruiting class ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West and 37th nationally by Rivals.com.

LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV men's basketball program has received signed commitments from Jeremiah "Bear" Cherry, James Evans and Pape N'Diaye (Pronounced: POP EN-jie) to join the Runnin' Rebels for the 2024-25 season, head coach Kevin Kruger announced.

The 2024 recruiting class for the Runnin' Rebels is currently ranked No. 1 in the Mountain West and 37th nationally in the 2024 Team Rankings on Rivals.com.

Cherry is a 6-foot-11-inch center from San Diego, who attends New Mexico Junior College. He averaged 11 points and seven rebounds last season as a freshman at the school. Regarded as one of the best junior college big men in the country, he attended St. Mary's Catholic High School.

"Bear is a big physical post player that will fit in with how we want to play on both ends of the court," Kruger said. "He has the ability to score around the rim and continues to improve. He comes from a well-respected national junior college program and we are excited that has chosen to join the Runnin' Rebel Family."

Cherry, who will be a junior at UNLV when he arrives, comes from a basketball family as both of his parents played in college and his older brother, Taeshon, also played in college (Arizona State and Grand Canyon) and currently plays professionally overseas. Cherry chose UNLV over Florida State, Mississippi State, Boise State and Utah State.

Evans is a 6-foot-6-inch wing from Wichita, Kansas, and attends West Ranch High School in Stevenson Ranch, California. He is ranked as one of the top 150 players in the class of 2024 by 247 Sports.

"James is a good, young high school basketball player that has continued to get better every time we see him," Kruger said. "He has tremendous size and athleticism that will provide elite versatility at the wing position for us. We are excited to have him as a part of the Runnin' Rebel program."

Evans, who will be a freshman at UNLV in 2024-25, plays for Paul George Elite on the Nike EYBL Circuit as well. He chose the Runnin' Rebel program over Washington and Utah State.

N'Diaye is a 7-foot forward from the Ivory Coast, who attends Trinity International in Las Vegas. He is ranked as the 97th best player in the class of 2024 by 247 Sports and is considered one of the best shot blockers in the country.

"Pape has extraordinary length and skill," Kruger said. "He has a very high ceiling and is just scratching the surface on what he can become. We are excited to be able to add another local Las Vegas prospect to the Runnin' Rebels."

N'Diaye will be a freshman at UNLV in the fall of 2024. He chose the Runnin' Rebels over Kansas, Miami, New Mexico and Colorado State.

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