Basketball

Texas JUCO to visit ISU

By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com Publisher Iowa State is in the middle of an all-Big 12 recruiting battle for a Texas junior college shooting guard.

That man is Matt Pressey out of Navarro Junior College, in Corsicana, Tex.

Pressey is currently considering offers from Iowa State, Missouri, Texas A&M and Nebraska.

There’s more to that list though. Pressey has some significant connections to Missouri, the school that he will officially visit this weekend. Pressey’s younger brother, Phil Pressey, is a 2010 Tiger signee under head coach Mike Anderson.

“He’ll be there this upcoming fall. I have known the head coach there for a long time,” Pressey said. “It is kind of a family connection thing.”

So that tidbit obviously isn’t a positive sign for an Iowa State program that is hoping to sign the 6-foot-2 sophomore. But Pressey assured CycloneFanatic.com that his options are still wide open at this point.

“It isn’t the main thing for me. I wouldn’t mind playing with him though. So if I do end up going there, it is a cherry on top sort of thing. It’d be something extra,” Pressey said. “To play against him or with him, I would love it either way.”

Pressey hasn’t officially set a visit date to Iowa State but says he plans on doing so later this week. The spring recruiting dead period ends on Thursday at noon.

“I have to take visits before I really start to narrow it down,” Pressey said.

Iowa State’s current roster situation is the most intriguing thing for Pressey. He sees a great opportunity to be a focal point of Greg McDermott’s 2011 Cyclone team.

“The biggest thing that I think about them is that they have basically what I need. That is a need for me. That makes me more interested,” Pressey said. “At the same time, they play in a good conference and they have a chance to win. Those are my biggest things, playing time and having a chance to win.”

“I have gotten to know the head coach very well. He came down to visit so I have a good feel for him and what he is like, what he likes to do.”

Pressey led Navarro in scoring last season, averaging 17 points a game.

@cyclonefanatic