May 4, 2006
Tempe, Ariz. - The Arizona State men's basketball program has signed Fairfax (Calif.) High School standout Jerren Shipp in the spring signing period, head coach Herb Sendek has announced.
"Jerren had an outstanding senior season for nationally-ranked Fairfax High School where he played for legendary coach Harvey Kitani," notes Sendek, who was hired on April 3. "Jerren is a fine gentleman and has excellent basketball potential. His versatility, skill package and winning ways distinguish him as a young player well-suited for our style of play. Certainly, we are excited to have Jerren join our Sun Devil family."
Shipp led Fairfax, coached by Harvey Kitani, to a 24-3 overall record this past season and a 10-0 mark in league play. He averaged 18.5 points per game and was named a first-team CalHiSports.com Division I selection and also earned first-team Los Angeles All-City honors as Fairfax posted a 15-game winning streak. In the postseason, he led top-seeded Fairfax to the Championship Division semifinals and had 26 points in a loss to Westchester. He earned MVP honors of the 21st annual Iolani Classic in Honolulu in December as Fairfax beat top-ranked Rockville Montrose Christian (Md.) in the championship game, led by Shipp's 17 points and six rebounds. He also played in the 2006 Nike Extravganza XI at the Anaheim Convention Center and had 21 points as Fairfax topped Norcross (Ga.) 72-56.
He averaged 11.7 points in his junior season (2004-05) including games of 29 and 28 points vs. Hamilton and 21 points vs. Roosevelt. Shipp is the brother of current UCLA Bruin Josh Shipp and former Cal standout Joe Shipp (1999-2003).
Arizona State is expected to return its top seven scorers next season, led by senior guard Kevin Kruger, who set a school record by averaging 39.0 minutes per game (second in the nation) and led the team in scoring at 15.0 points per game. He was the only Pac-10 player to rank in the top-10 in eight categories. Also returning will be swingman Bryson Krueger (12.3 ppg.) and Pac-10 All-Freshman selection Jeff Pendergraph. The 6-10 Pendergraph averaged 10.9 points (second-best by a Pac-10 freshmen) and 6.1 rebounds (third-best) and averaged 14.7 points and 8.0 boards in the final nine games.
George Odufuwa (Kimball High School/Dallas, Texas) and Christian Polk (Deer Valley High School/Glendale, Ariz.). both signed in the fall and also are expected to join the Sun Devil program next season.
The 43-year old Sendek, who is 253-158 (.647) in his 13 seasons as a head coach and was 191-132 (.591) at North Carolina State in 10 seasons, was the Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year in 2003-04 and has taken his team to the postseason a dozen times. While competing in arguably the nation's most intense college basketball conference against some of the nation's most storied traditions, he posted five 20-win seasons, including the past three. He also was named the Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year in 1994-95 after leading Miami (Ohio) to a 23-7 record, including a first-round NCAA Tournament win over 15th-ranked Arizona. After taking over a program that had not been to the postseason in six years, he led NC State to postseason appearances in nine of 10 seasons. Only Duke won more than NC State's 53 ACC games in the past five seasons, and NC State is one of only eight teams to win a NCAA Tournament game in each of its past three seasons. Sendek enters his 14th season as a head coach as the second-youngest in the Pac-10, behind only first-year Washington State head coach Tony Bennett (36).