It just made perfect sense: a big man playing for a big man.
Vienna's Brett Thompson ended a four-team recruiting battle Tuesday by verbally committing to Saint Louis University and new men's basketball coach Rick Majerus.
The 6-foot-11, 255-pound center averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and eight blocks a game for the Eagles last year as a junior. He is ranked No. 108 in the country by Rivals.com and as the 16th best center in the nation.
He will play for one of the largest coaches on the planet, as Majerus begins a six-year deal with the Billikens this winter. Saint Louis finished 20-13 last season, 8-8 in the Atlantic 10 Conference, and could return four of five starters this season.
Thompson, 17, said Majerus' reputation for developing big men was one of the biggest reasons he chose to join the more than 7,000 undergraduates in the fall of 2008.
"He's known as developing big men, with (Michael) Doleac and (Keith) Van Horn, and with coach (Porter) Moser being there," Thompson said. "When he was recruiting me, when he was still at Illinois State, I came to have a good relationship with him. I was glad to see him go to Saint Louis."
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Thompson, an All-South center for the Eagles, went to SLU Wednesday on an unofficial visit. He was planning on visiting Indiana, Iowa State and Alabama, but saw enough to cancel those trips.
"It kind of took me by surprise," Vienna coach Rick Metcalf said. "That was the original plan from Day 1 (to go on all the visits), but he was happy with his decision, so I'm happy for him. Coach Majerus has a reputation of developing big guys. Porter Moser has been there since Day 1 when he was at Illinois State."
Actually, this isn't a good start, it is an excellent start. Too often the Bills were the also-rans in recruiting battles. Winning these will actually take a little getting used to for most SLU fans. But I will gladly try.
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