Annen Likes MAC Program
When he was an assistant coach at Boston College, Tim O'Shea snuck into the state of Minnesota and plucked out shooting guard Troy Bell four years ago.
Now the head coach at Ohio University, O'Shea is back once again in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, and this time, one of his top targets is 6-6 forward Matt Annen.
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Annen, a capable 220 pound forward from Elk River H.S. in Elk River, Minn., told Rivalshoops.com on Tuesday night that Ohio University leads four other schools in the battle to secure an oral commitment.
Annen visited OU from Sept. 7-9, where he had a chance to see current Bobcat freshmen and former Howard Pulley Panther players Jeff Halbert and Steven King. Annen played with Howard Pulley's top team this past spring and summer.
"It's a great campus with great coaches, plus I liked the players and the atmosphere," he said. "It was really nice and I liked it a lot."
In addition to Ohio U, Annen's list includes Wisconsin Green Bay, James Madison, Drake University and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Annen has in-home visits set up with JMU (Sept. 25), Drake (Sept. 24) and Cal Poly SLO (Sept. 11).
Annen expects to host both UWGB and Ohio U for in-homes this month, but has yet to set up dates for those two programs. He did get a chance to swing by Green Bay for an unofficial visit on Aug. 31.
A scrapper who does a good job on the glass, Annen also has the ability to step away and knock down jumpers reliably out to midrange. He's one of those glue types of players who does a lot of little things to help his team win games.
Annen averaged 17 points and 11 rebounds per game last season at Elk River. He said he has a 3.5 GPA and scored a 19 on the ACT.
We will keep you posted on his recruitment until he reaches a decision this fall, so stay tuned.