REDLANDS, Calif. – Eric Bridgeland, Head Men's Basketball Coach at the University of Redlands announced his 2022-23 recruiting class Wednesday, which includes nine newcomers, broken up by six transfers, two of which are graduate students and three first-years.
In this year's class Bridgeland brought in a class that provides depth, length, athleticism, three-point shooting, and seasoned leadership.
Depth
"We needed to balance our classes on the roster so out of our nine newcomers we have three first-years, two sophomores, two juniors, and two grad transfers."
Length & Athleticism
"Six of our nine newcomers are over 6'5" and mostly long. In our style of play, length is huge. Additionally three of our players can play both inside and out, being physical down low, while creating on the perimeter."
Three-Point Shooting
"Five of our incoming players are deadly from deep. In an up and down style of game players get open looks so having this depth in this area is a must."
Seasoned Leaders
"Our program prides itself on breeding leadership and accentuating this skill. Whenever a program can add young men who are doing great things, you jump on the opportunity. We have several seasoned players in this group and combined with the leadership we return, our program will continue growing."
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Let's take a look at his incoming class and what he had to say about their addition to the program.
Chozen Amadi (Dallas, TX)
Porterville College | Sophomore | 6'2" | 10.0 PPG | 47% 3-Pt Shooting | 80% FT Shooting
"Chozen was front and center with Porterville's 20-8 season (the best in over a decade). While it's obvious by his percentages that he can fill it up, his real talent is his leadership. Chozen does it all; he goes about his business with intent and a purposefulness to be great and to get things done. You put him into any group and he is going to raise it to a higher level. As a coaching staff, just knowing you have him 'on your side' brings a calmness that our group is going to do great things. His drive and leadership will be instrumental to our program's continued growth to national relevance."
Khyree Armstead (Mountlake Terrace, WA)
Edmonds College | Junior | 6'5" | 15.0 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 4.0 APG | 2.0 SPG | 1.0 BPG
"Khyree's stat line would suggest he redefines activeness and that is true. He will impact the game in so many ways. He scores. He rebounds. He can create. He's active with his hands. Not sure there is a better prospect on both sides of the ball for us than him. Expect tips, steals, blocks (highlight reel stuff) and explosive offense that have been seldom seen at our level. Khyree is a man – reminds me of Romeo Mays but with electric plays both inside and on the perimeter. We will do our best to keep him on or around the ball at all times whether on offense or defense as to best utilize him."
Cameron Brown (Bakersfield, CA)
Independence High School | First Year | 6'6" | 19.0 PPG | 7.0 RPG | 3 APG
"Cam is a 6'6" creating guard. He comes from an amazing family who are all ballers, so Cam expects to be successful in reaching his goals as a player, person, student, and leader. In game play, he has a feel for what his teams needs in the moment and has the ability to deliver just about on every level. Unbelievably humble and selfless, Cam goes about his work to improve rather than to impress outsiders and his quiet confidence is off the charts for a young man his age. Can't begin to express how happy our staff is to be around him and be able to work with him to move him to levels where he may just get paid to play the game for a long time…"
Lucas Gordon (San Marcos, CA)
San Marcos High School | First Year | 6'8" | 9.0 PPG | 6.0 RPG | 40% 3-PT Shooting
"Lucas and the University of Redlands was a match made in heaven. We value mobility, versatility, and athleticism along with elite three-point shooting and that is Lucas Gordon. Lucas was a 5'10" guard as a freshman at San Marcos then sprouted to 6'8" by the time he graduated. Blessed with the natural instincts of a guard along with the length and the shot blocking ability of a forward, Lucas will fit into our system like one of those round pegs in a round hole. Lucas was the rock of a strong San Marcos program that exudes a championship culture. Not only can he shoot it (40% from downtown), he is also quick, lethal, and will be welcomed with open arms this fall."
Cal Hansen (Seattle, WA)
University of Puget Sound | Graduate Student | 6'5" | 14.0 PPG | 8.0 RPG | 53% FG Shooting | NCAA Division III All-West Region (2021)
"What can you say? Cal's a stud. He can definitely score but more importantly can rebound at a high level and create for others. Extremely skilled and if he gets 'half a step' thru any offensive action, it will undoubtedly result in a great offensive opportunity for us. As mentioned, Cal uses his 6'5" 225 lb. frame to carve out and rebound. It would not be out of the realm of possibility to see several triple-doubles out of him before it's all said and done. It was a necessity in our recruiting to land one more grad transfer at the forward position that was rock-solid giving our young guys time to develop and Cal was it."
Nate Johnson (Seattle, WA)
Bellevue College | Sophomore | 6'8" | 9.0 PPG | 7.0 RPG | 40% 3-PT Shooting
"Mature, solid, has three years of eligibility, a Division II scholarship student-athlete out of high school, Nate is game-ready for our style of play. Nate's proven ability to shoot the three and his ability to 1-2 bounce it, he will be utilized both on the interior and perimeter. If he's got a guard on him, he slides into the post – if a post is covering him, he attacks him from the perimeter. Whether facing up or backing down, Nate will be a headache (with a capital 'H') for Bulldog opponents from the get-go. Huge addition for our program."
Elo Oti (Los Angeles, CA)
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps | Graduate Student | 6'2" | 40.6% FG Shooting | 83.3% FT Shooting
"Elo is the younger brother of Tochi Oti, who played for our staff at Whitman. Elo spent his undergrad at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. The maturity, shooting, defense, and a great teammate are all qualities Elo will add to our group. In our style of play, he will definitely be a 'two-way' player as he can impact the game with both his blanket defensive abilities or from deep with his silky-smooth three-point shot."
Jakob Poulton (Boise, ID)
Walla Walla College | Junior | 6'1" | 1,200 Career Points | 186 Made Three's | 330 Career Assists
"Simply put, Jake's a beast. Only a select few make the 90/50/40 club (90% from the line, 50% from two point range, and 40% from downtown) and Jake is one of them. Jake is an opposing team's nightmare. He is quick with space and can score at all three levels (rim, midrange, from deep) – PERIOD. Furthermore, Jake is a master using the on-ball screen to set his teammates up. Not sure there is a more complete offensive player out there at our level than Jake. Jake's talents will be showcased immediately in our up and down style of play."
Seydi Thiombane (Wilmington, CA)
Rolling Hills Prep | First Year | 6'5" | 13.0 PPG | 6.0 RPG
"The Rolling Hills Prep program is well known for its togetherness and defensive prowess. Seydi is a product of this environment. He is essentially a long spider out there wreaking havoc. We can put him anywhere out there and he will add tremendous value defensively. In the world of potential and projected 'ceilings,' Seydi may be at the top of the list. With as much individual development as our program is known for, Seydi could blow-up offensively in a year or two, so keep a look out."