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SG Lenzelle Smith (Hapoel Eilat - Israel)

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Smith, Nixon and Cooper commit

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Zion-Benton star Lenzelle Smith driving to the basket against Richards center Shaun Pratl in the 2007 Class 4A state title game.
(Matt Marton/SouthtownStar)




September 22, 2008 BY MICHAEL O'BRIEN - SUN-TIMES NEWS GROUP

It was a busy weekend on the recruiting front, with Zion-Benton's Lenzelle Smith and Seton's Tony Nixon and DJ Cooper all giving oral commitments.
Smith, widely considered the third best player in the class of 2010, is expected to make an oral commitment to Ohio State at a press conference Monday afternoon.
Smith chose the Buckeyes over Illinois, Notre Dame, DePaul, Northwestern, Indiana, Virginia and Boston College.
"It shows what a great recruiter [Ohio State coach] Thad Matta is," recruiting analyst Roy Schmidt said. "They stayed on him all summer."
Illinois was heavily involved with Smith early on, but the Illini already have a slew of talented 2009 and 2010 players committed.
Smith, a 6-3 guard, led Zion-Benton to a second place finish in the Class 4A state tournament last season. The Zee-Bees are expected to be one of the top five teams in the area in the upcoming season.
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There seems to be a lot of confusion on what position Lenzelle is best suited for in college. I read somewhere that he could be an undersized PF/4, based on his rebounding and 220 lbs going into his h.s. JR year I guess. Many say he's a SF/3 or list him that way in h.s. Others seem to think he plays best at PG and projects there in college.

Very curious about where the coaching staff actually projects him to help out on their squad once he gets there.
 
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Z-B star excited to join Ohio State family

September 23, 2008

By DARREN DAY [email protected]
ZION -- Ohio State University has had 13 All-Americans in the sport of men's basketball.
The Buckeyes have also had 44 All-Big Ten players and have won 17 conference championships.


Zion-Benton High School junior, Lenzelle Smith, holds a press conference as he orally commits to play basketball for Ohio State University. His father, Reverend Lenzelle Smith, applauds his decision.
(Thomas Delany, Jr./News-Sun)

Zion-Benton High hoops star Lenzelle Smith gets a congratulatory hug from his great-grandmother, Frances Payne, after Lenzelle announced Monday he's going to play college basketball at Ohio State.


Those were all important numbers for Zion-Benton High junior Lenzelle Smith, but they were not the main reasons the talented Zee-Bee made a verbal agreement on Monday to attend the school in Columbus.
"The coaching staff and the school made me feel like I was part of their family," said Smith, a 6-foot-3 guard who can do it all on the basketball court.
"That's important to me."
Ohio State won a hotly-contested recruiting war against more than 30 other schools -- including Illinois, Indiana, Boston College, Stanford, Georgetown and Virginia -- for the services of Smith, who burst into the spotlight last March while helping the Zee-Bees march to the IHSA Class 4A state-championship game.
"Ohio State is a place where I can continue my education, and grow as a basketball player and as a man," said Smith.
Smith announced his decision on Monday in a packed conference room at Zion-Benton High in front of family, friends, teammates, coaches and the school's administration.
"Everyone is very proud of Lenzelle," said athletic director Lonnie Bible. "Not just for his basketball talents, but also for the work he has done academically, which has made it possible for him to announce his college choice so soon."
Smith, one of the top students in his class at Zion-Benton, won't be able to make it official until November of next year during an NCAA official signing period, but his current prep coach isn't surprised about his selection.
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Chicago Trib

Lenzelle Smith commits to Ohio State

Lenzelle Smith, a 6-foot-3-inch guard-forward who helped lead Zion-Benton to runner-up in Class 4A last season, made an oral commitment Monday to Ohio State.
Smith is rated the No. 3 junior in the state behind 6-7 Jereme Richmond of Waukegan and 6-4 Crandall Head of Rich South. Both have committed to Illinois.
The Illini were also in hot pursuit of Smith, hoping to nab the top three prospects in the class of 2010. But a strong connection with coach Thad Matta enabled the Buckeyes to land Smith ahead of the Illini, Kentucky, Indiana, Virginia and Marquette.
Smith headlines a Zee-Bees program that includes 6-7 Markus Yarbrough, guard Ronald Steward and 6-2 Quintrell Love that will be ranked among the top four teams heading into this season.
Smith joins an Ohio State program that already includes former St. Joseph All-Stater Evan Turner and ex-Von Steuben star Jeremie Simmons. The addition of Smith to an already loaded junior class has some experts predicting Ohio State could have the nation?s top recruiting class for 2010.
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Dispatch

Sibert one day, Smith the next

I just got off the phone with the mother of 6-foot-3 guard Lenzelle Smith of Zion, Ill., and she confirmed that her son had a news conference this afternoon at his high school, Zion-Benton, to announce his commitment to Ohio State.
Smith is the second 2010 guard to commit to the Buckeyes in as many days. Jordan Sibert of Cincinnati Princeton committed to coach Thad Matta at the OSU football game Saturday. Smith called Matta on Sunday to make his commitment, said his mother, Teshela.
I am expecting a call from Lenzelle shortly and will have a story on him in The Dispatch on Tuesday. A story on Sibert?s commitment was in the newspaper today.
Meanwhile, here is Scouts Inc.'s Reggie Rankin's take on Smith, whom Rankin evaluated at the Reebok camp in Philadelphia this summer:
Continue reading "Sibert one day, Smith the next" ?
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Dispatch
Ohio State men's basketball
'Unorthodox' guard commits to class of 2010

Tuesday, September 23, 2008 3:36 AM
By Bob Baptist


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Lenzelle Smith does not know Jared Sullinger, DeShaun Thomas, Jordan Sibert or Cameron Wright personally. Not yet, anyway. He knows of them, though, and the fact that they already are committed to join the Ohio State men's basketball program in 2010 "had something to do with" the Zion, Ill., guard's decision to join them, he said.
"When I took my unofficial visit (in August), stepping on the campus, I just knew Ohio State was the best school I could accomplish my personal goals at and win a national championship for my class," Smith said yesterday after announcing his commitment.
He is rated the No. 2 prospect in his class in Illinois by ChicagoHoops.com and No. 97 nationally by Rivals.com, which calls him an "unorthodox guard" because of his 6-foot-3, 205-pound frame, 6-9 wingspan and an affinity for physical play. He has been compared to former Illinois guard Sergio McClain.
Smith, who said he has a 4.1 grade-point average, said he chose Ohio State over Stanford, Virginia, Boston College, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Illinois and Marquette, among others.
When Smith called coach Thad Matta with the news Sunday, he became the second 2010 guard in as many days to throw in with the Buckeyes. Jordan Sibert of Cincinnati Princeton committed Saturday during Ohio State's football game against Troy in Ohio Stadium. As Sibert did, Smith raised his stock in July during the camp and AAU tournament season.
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