A-Sun school lands Sparks

Josh Sparks, a 6-foot-7, 185-pound forward from Savannah (Ga.) Christian, wanted to stay close to home when it came down to it.

Sparks verbally committed to Jacksonville on Tuesday. He visited the Atlantic Sun program last month and also considered Colgate, Holy Cross and Lafayette. Sparks said he had to decided between academics or proximity.

"I went on a lot of visits to a lot of Patriot League schools and I went to JU. The Patriot League schools all have great academics but JU is close to home. When I went there, I fell in love with the players and coach [Cliff] Warren and coach [Trevor] Quinn. It's not too far from home, too. I want my parents to come and see me play.

"My parents have been supportive all AAU season. They went to all of the tournaments across the nation. It was crazy. My dad had to miss 20 days of work in a row just to go to the tournaments…So I wanted to be close to home so they could watch me."

Sparks said he likes the opportunity that JU provides him on the hardwood. He said he hopes to learn early and contribute when the moment is right.

"He wants me to play the four when I get there. They have a really good four that is there right now named Lehmon Colbert," Sparks said. "He said he wants me to come in and play a little bit my freshman year. He said he hopes I can make a little bit of an impact my freshman year and then a lot my sophomore year."