Collins Talks About His Decision

Brett Collins had a diverse list of schools among his final four college choices. But in the end, he said that playing time was the biggest factor in his selection of St. Mary's College in California.

Collins picked St. Mary's after visiting the West Coast Conference school last weekend (Sept. 20-22). Previously, he had taken trips to Kent State (Aug. 30-Sept. 1), Arizona State (Sept. 6-8) and Utah (Sept. 13-15).

"I liked all of the coaches and players at every place, but St. Mary's just felt like the right fit," Collins said. "I liked the campus a lot, because it's not in a big city, but it's close to one. I also think I will have a chance to get playing time there right away."

Utah was considered one of the early favorites to land Collins, and the Utes were probably the first high profile program to tender him a scholarship offer. Collins said that Utah's addition of Justin Hawkins this fall, plus the presence of other wing players in the program, gave him pause about the Mountain West program.

Arizona State offered Collins after a strong summer with Art Dye's Arizona Stars program, while Kent State had offered him prior to the summer evaluation period. The Sun Devils are rebuilding in the PAC 10 under Head Coach Rob Evans, while Kent State is coming off an elite eight appearance at the NCAA Tournament.

"A lot of people were surprised with my decision, but I think that St. Mary's is going to do pretty well this year," Collins said. "They are rebuilding like Arizona State, they are just not in as strong a conference as ASU, although both Gonzaga and Pepperdine [of the Big West] are both good programs."