Fleming picks Iowa

IOWA CITY - Andrew Fleming considers himself a basketball student as well as a top-notch player. So when he filtered scholarship offers from Florida, UNLV, Vanderbilt and Iowa, he examined how he would fit in their systems.

Monday, the shooting guard announced that he found his perfect fit in Iowa City. Fleming committed to Iowa, becoming the Hawkeyes' second men's basketball recruit for the class of 2015.

'I've studied the different teams, I've studied their rosters, I've studied how they play. I've taken lots of notes on different situations and the plays that the teams run,” Fleming said. 'I basically analyzed every single one of those teams' systems, and I think Iowa was the perfect fit.

'Coach (Fran McCaffery) is awesome as a person and a coach. Overall it was the fit. I think if I keep working my butt off, I'll be going to Iowa with an opportunity to play gigantic minutes my freshman year, if I can keep on getting better. That's basically the main thing, and it's also the Big Ten.”

Fleming, a 6-foot-5 junior from Nashville, Tenn., averaged 18.9 points and 4.6 rebounds last season while leading Ensworth (Tenn.) to its fourth straight state championship. But Fleming wants to reach his potential while in high school. He will transfer to renowned Oak Hill Academy in Virginia next year and compete alongside the nation's best boys' basketball players.

'I'm going in there with the mindset to get really, really good and to get bigger and get stronger and get ready for the Big Ten,” Fleming said. 'I want to go to Iowa and be a big factor in games, and I want to know how a college practice is run. That coach is the best in high school basketball and it's a historic program and the best program in the country. It's going to do tons of things for me.”

Fleming took an unofficial visit last week to Iowa City and raved about the team, the coaches, practice facility and the campus life. He called his visit 'amazing.”

'I guess the best way to put it is what's not to like about it?” he asked.

Fleming was Division II-AA Mr. Basketball last year as a junior. He's versatile enough to play three positions but primarily will work at shooting guard and wing. Current sophomore point guard Anthony Clemmons showed him around campus. Fleming played pickup with several players, and competed alongside sophomore point guard Mike Gesell.

'I played really well in the pickup games, and I think that gained me a lot of respect from the guys,” Fleming said. 'They were texting Coach McCaffery and Coach (Sherman) Dillard within minutes of the pickup game saying, ‘We've got to get this kid.' It felt really good that they showed this much love. They're great.

'(McCaffery) thinks that I'm a big-time high school player, and I can play multiple positions for him. He loves that I can score in a variety of ways by either putting the ball on the floor or putting the ball on the floor and getting to the cup and scoring. Putting the ball on the floor and pulling up for midrange or creating for others in the lane. Also creating for myself and my own shot and catching and shooting 3s.”

Iowa now has two commits for the Class 2015. Brandon Hutton, a 6-foot-6 forward from Chicago's De La Salle High School, committed to Iowa in March. The Hawkeyes still have three scholarships available, including two for this upcoming season. McCaffery previously told The Gazette he'd have no problem holding over both scholarships to the class of 2015.

Dubuque Wahlert sophomore forward Cordell Pemsl committed to Iowa two weeks ago. He's a 2016 recruit.

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