Brock Gardner, Josiah Talbert, and Xzavier Barmore have signed their NLI’s.
___________________________________________
The early signing period for men’s basketball begins today and runs through November 18th. Coach McKay and the Flames have 3 early verbals in the class of 2016, and all are expected to sign over the course of the next couple of days.
Brock Gardner, the highest rated recruit of the 3 early commits, is expected to sign today, on his birthday. Gardner committed to Coach McKay while on his official visit during the weekend of the Montana football game in September. He chose Liberty over several offers including Air Force, Central Arkansas, Lehigh, Dartmouth, UC Davis, and Columbia. The 6’7″ wing averaged 25.8 points, 9.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.5 steals last season when he was named conference player of the year for a 2nd time. Gardner is a 3-star rated prospect according to ESPN.
McKay on Gardner: “Brock is a fierce competitor. He is athletic, skilled, and a winner. He has such a vibrant, infectious approach to the game and pursuit of excellence that I am certain he will have a chance to play this game for a long time.”
Josiah Talbert committed to Liberty in June and is expected to have a signing ceremony at his school on Thursday. As a junior, Talbert averaged 11.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 55% from the field and 39% from 3-point range. He will join his brother, Ezra, who is currently a redshirt-freshman at Liberty. Josiah chose the Flames over offers from Central Arkansas and Stephen F. Austin. At 6’8″, he will provide much needed length at forward.
McKay on Talbert: “Josiah is a skilled, strong, versatile forward that could present a difficult matchup for our opposition. I love his passion for his faith, and I think he will have a chance to immediately impact our program. I love the fact that he will get the opportunity to do life with his brother and our family here at Liberty.”
The Flames picked up a commitment from Xzavier Barmore in September. The 6’0″ point guard also had an offer from Winthrop. Barmore is from Seneca, South Carolina where he attends Seneca High School. As a junior, he averaged 27.2 points, 5.4 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.4 steals per game. He also shot 42% from 3 point range (44/106). Barmore is expected to sign on Friday.
McKay on Barmore: “Xzavier has the ability to run a team and take over a game with his ball skills and scoring prowess. He always puts the team’s agenda ahead of his own. Any guard that approaches play like that has a chance to be very successful.”
McKay on the signing class: “When we were at Liberty the first time, we had a class that ended up being highly acclaimed. And although that class achieved much, this is as excited as I have ever been about a recruiting class in their overall fit for our university, their playing ability and their character as a whole.”
