Gaines Heads To SEC

Sundiata Gaines, the rugged 6-foot-1 195 pound combo guard from Archbishop Molloy High School in Briarwood, New York, has verbally committed to play at the University of Georgia, Rivalshoops.com has confirmed.

Gaines was also considering Pittsburgh and South Carolina. Pittsburgh had recently secured a commitment from Mount Vernon(NY) shooting guard Keith Benjamin.

New Georgia coach Dennis Felton's teams at Western Kentucky carved out a reputation for themselves with their defensive tenacity and smothering "D". In Gaines, Felton gets a burly guard who can set the tone defensively, using his blend of strength and quickness, as well as a knack for anticipating his opponent's next move, to lock-up opposing guards. A tenacious on-the-ball defender, Gaines is physically well-equipped to handle the rigors of SEC play. "Yatta" is good for plenty of tips and deflections, and shouldn't have too much trouble matching up with bigger guards with his combination of strength and athleticism.

Gaines scored a lot his points in high school on the inside, using his strong frame to angle in for buckets on a team that lacked a true post presence for legendary coach Jack Curran. This summer playing with the New York Gauchos, however, he showed that he could knock down the outside jumper- an aspect of his game that has come under scrutiny- as well as score from mid-range. Gaines was instrumental in The Gauchos' title run at the Peach Jam this past July.

Expect Gaines to have the biggest impact at the next level at the defensive end of the floor. However, his toughness, which has been well-established, and scoring tools, which are probably a bit of an understated part of his game, should ultimately translate into a well-rounded high major player.

Gaines was coached at Molloy by a legendary teacher in coach Jack Curran. Among Molloy's more recent graduates who have gone on to play major Division I hoops are Penn State guard Marlon Smith, Boston College power forward Uka Agbai and Richmond guard Reggie Brown.

-- Mike Sullivan contributed to this report