HawkeyeReport.com - A good day for Iowa Basketball

November 11, 2009

Tom Kakert
Publisher

Wednesday morning will be a big day in the lives of Ben Brust, Zach McCabe, Cody Larson, and Roy Marble Jr. It will be the culmination of hundreds of hours of hard work in the gym, putting up thousands of shots, long days on the road playing AAU basketball, all in the name of getting the chance to play the game they love at the highest level in college.

Today is first day that Class of 2010 basketball recruits can put pen to paper and officially sign their Letter of Intent for a college program and Brust, McCabe, Larson, and Marble will formally become Iowa Hawkeyes.

"It hasn't really hit me yet," said Larson. "I have been committed for so long that I haven't really grasped it yet. It's going to be a very good feeling."

Of the four commits, Larson has been on board with the Hawkeyes the longest, making his verbal commitment last fall. The 6-foot-9 power forward plans to sign in the morning in front of the local media in Sioux Falls, SD.

Marble, the son of Iowa's all time leading scorer, was the next to commit, doing so in early July right before the evaluation period got underway. He plans to sign his letter in the Southfield High School library with family and friends surrounding him.

"It's a big day and it seems like I am recommitting again. This sort of makes it official," he said.

Brust, who is from Mundelein, IL, a suburb of Chicago, will be signing at his high school at approximately 9:20 a.m. during his home room. With family and teammates in attendance, he will sign with the Hawkeyes while proudly wearing an Iowa sweatshirt.

"I said the day that I committed to Iowa that I just wanted to get there now," said the 6-foot-2 combo guard. "It is a great opportunity to not only play in the Big Ten, but to play for the University of Iowa."

Brust's comment ring true with all four players. They all would love to be in Iowa City right now getting their college careers underway.

McCabe was the last piece of the puzzle for Coach Todd Lickliter and his staff. The 6-foot-7 forward raised his stock this summer when he played the best basketball of his life. That led quite a few Iowa fans to start to worry if he would be a Hawkeye.

But, by the middle of July, the Sioux City prep was ready to fulfill his dream of putting on an Iowa Basketball uniform.

"It is very satisfying because I have worked hard for this, to play Division One basketball and to get the chance to play at Iowa, where I always wanted to go is great," McCabe said.

He plans on signing at Sioux City Heelan High School on Wednesday morning at a ceremony attended by the local media.

While these four future Hawkeyes are fulfilling a dream of playing college basketball, what they didn't know is that they would quickly develop the bond of friendship almost immediately.

Recruiting is always an inexact science and while a coach can see and judge individual talent, it's almost always a waiting game to see if each class fits together on and off the court. For this quartet, they clicked right out of the gate.

"We were only together for about two days and I think we got along great together. It is going to be a fun four years together," Larson said.

He says that the four have kept in touch with each other via Facebook and he also kept close tabs on McCabe during the football season where he played quarterback for Heelan leading them to the state quarterfinals, losing this past Friday to Harlan High School.

McCabe and Larson are already mapping out their plans to be roommates when they arrive in Iowa City next summer.

For Marble, this bond went beyond basketball. When he and Larson were rooming together at Iowa's Elite Camp, they spent the evening at the hotel talking about life outside of basketball and they discovered that they enjoyed the same music, television shows, and movies.

"It is a cool group," Marble said. "We have similar interests beyond basketball, which is unique. It was easy for us to develop a good friendship."

From Brust's perspective, this group has a special feel to it on and off the court. When they were on their official visit, Brust, who is a regular shoe-a-holic when he travels, forgot to pack a pair of sneakers for the trip to Iowa City. Enter Marble to the rescue, who had an extra pair of sneakers. As luck would have it, they have the same shoe size.

"With Cody, Zach, and Roy, I couldn't ask for better guys to be with. I saw them all play this summer and they are great players and fun to be with them. I am excited to spend the next four years with them," Bust said.

But, it is basketball that binds them together as they sign with the Hawkeyes. All four are certified gym rats who can't wait for the summer of 2011 when the new practice facility for the Hawkeyes opens its doors for the first time.

According to McCabe, their goal isn't just to come to Iowa to play basketball. Their goal is to win basketball games and put the Iowa Basketball program back on the map.

"We all have the same mindset on why we wanted to go to Iowa," McCabe said. "We talked about our goals and we have a mindset that we want to do some damage and bring Iowa Basketball back."

Where these four young men take Iowa Basketball starting next year is yet to be determined, but one thing is for certain, having them officially sign today means it's a good day for the future of the Hawkeye program.

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