Aldridge to Mason

Ron Bailey, Publisher

KIMA (DC) standout is headed to the CAA

September 24, 2009– Just within less than 12 hours, Jonathan Aldridge, a 6'9", 225 pound forward from KIMA (DC) decided the Colonial Athletic Conference will be his college league. And his parents will not have to travel far to see the long armed, skilled frontcourt man play.

"He committed to (George) Mason last night" said Levet Brown, KIMA's coach.

Jonathan Aldridge (33), here in Mid Atlantic Select silks, an organization he competed for this summer.

Previously, Aldridge had received interest from "Georgetown, Siena, Drexel, Temple and St. Johns" in addition ot the Patriots, per Brown. Drexel, Temple, and Siena reportedly had tendered scholarship offers, with Georgetown likely planning to do so soon.

Why orally commit to George Mason?

"He really liked Coach L (Larranaga) and Coach Eric (Konkol). And when he went on his visit, they were just number one for him. They've been recruiting him as a junior. They present the most opportunity".

Having shown him recruiting 'love' over time was key, while roster moves at other schools like Temple and the lack of a scholarship in hand from others may have also influenced the decision.

Conventional wisdom suggests a big man like Aldridge, one that can shoot, block shots, is long and has a high upside, wait until later in the fall or maybe even the spring to commit thereby ensuring more looks and scholarship opportunities. It's not uncommon for big men who wait to be deluged with offers, as players with height and ability are always at a premium and around the spring signing period coaches know if scholarships will be available for offering.

"That’s questionable. It could go either way" said Brown of that waiting strategy. "You could have a poor season and nobody would want you.

"Why wait, when you loved Mason so much?. That was the deciding thing".

Brown then indicated "We wanted him to take another visit to compare. He just decided last night to commit".