Letters are in

UCLA Signs Heralded Class of Four on the First Signing Day

UCLA head coach Ben Howland announced today the signing of a heralded class of four student-athletes to National Letters of Intent to attend UCLA in the fall of 2009. Wednesday is the first day of the early signing period that extends until Nov. 19.
The class consists of Tyler Honeycutt, a 6-foot-8-inch, 190-pound guard/forward out of Sylmar, Calif. (Sylmar HS); Brendan Lane, a 6-foot-10-inch, 205-pound forward from Rocklin, Calif. (Rocklin HS); Reeves Nelson, a 6-foot-7-inch, 220-pound forward out of Modesto, Calif. (Modesto Christian HS) and Anthony Stover, a 6-foot-10-inch, 210-pound center from LaCañada, Calif. (Windward HS).
"We are very excited about this recruiting class," Howland said. "I think the four players that we signed help fulfill the needs that we have and as a class, they are all great kids that are going to be great players. They are all outstanding young men."
The class has been rated No. 8 nationally by Scout.com and No. 14 by Rivals.com. Additionally, Honeycutt and Nelson were both on the 2008-09 Best in the West first team while Lane and Stover were on the second team. Honeycutt was fifth in the voting with 299 points and was tied for second with 11 Best Prospect votes (out of 58 ballots). Nelson was 11th in the voting with 202 points.
Honeycutt averaged 16.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game last year at Sylmar High School and is rated the No. 1 small forward in the West and No. 4 nationally by Scout.com. He is also the No. 21 rated overall player by Scout.com and the No. 4 small forward nationally by Rivals.com and No. 6 small forward in the country by ESPN.
"Tyler Honeycutt is a very versatile athlete," Howland said. "He is a good shooter, he's good at scoring off the dribble and is a good passer. He is also an outstanding rebounder and has a lot of potential."
Lane averaged 20.4 points, 11.7 rebounds and 5.2 blocks per game last year at Rocklin High School and is rated the No. 1 power forward in the West by Scout.com. He is also the No. 29 power forward in the country by Scout.com, No. 26 by Rivals.com and No. 32 by ESPN.
"Brendan Lane is a long and very skilled athlete," Howland said. "He has an exciting upside because as he gets bigger and stronger, his game will really improve."
Nelson averaged 26.0 points and 14.0 rebounds per game last year at Modesto Christian High School and is rated the No. 5 power forward in the West by Scout.com. He is also the No. 23 power forward nationally by Rivals.com, No. 27 by ESPN and No. 31 by Scout.com.
"Reeves Nelson is very physical and is a very strong and athletic young man," Howland said. "He's a tough, hard-nosed player who is a good rebounder and he's going to be an outstanding player."
Stover averaged 10.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 7.4 blocks per game last year at Renaissance Academy as a junior and is rated the No. 3 center in the West and the No. 11 center in the country by Scout.com. He is also rated the No. 19 center nationally by Rivals.com.
"Anthony Stover is very long and his upside is that he has a 7-foot-5-inch wingspan," Howland said. "He's an excellent shot blocker and we are excited about his future."