Laurie Willing To Walk-On

Spencer Laurie, a sharp-shooting 6-1, 160 pound point/combo guard from Kickapoo H.S. in Springfield, Mo., told us he committed to Missouri this afternoon. "I had just been thinking about it, I always wanted to go to Missouri," Laurie. "I got excited about it. And that's where I wanted to be."

has a pair of official visits planned this fall.

Laurie told Rivalshoops.com that he will visit Minnesota from Sept. 13-15, SW Missouri State on Sept. 20-22nd and then trip to Missouri from Oct. 3-5. He also considered Arizona and NC State at one point during his recruiting process.

"I have a good relationship with the staff and I am excited about being able to play for a coach like Quin Snyder," Laurie said.

Laurie has some family ties to Missouri. His dad, Barry played basketball there. "I always been a Missouri fan," Laurie. "Brian Grawer was one of my favorite players. The fact that my dad played at Missouri was nice but wasn't a big factor in my decision."

Missouri is heavily involved with a number of top prospects in 2003 including Luol Deng, Olu Famutimi, and Linas Kleiza. Missouri has two more scholarships left, not including Laurie's commitment. Laurie said he would be willing to walk on next year if Missouri needed him to.

"If they want to get two more guys in the program that would help them, then I will walk on," Laurie said. "We all decided whatever's best for the program is what I will do."

Laurie impressed Rivalshoops.com this past summer with his shooting stroke and leadership skills while playing for the Springfield Heat traveling team. The team features several of his Kickapoo high school teammates as well as other top players from the Show Me State. "Hopefully I can step in and do what I need to do to help the team to win," Laurie said. "I think the staff was looking at me as a combo type guard because I move well without the ball and shoot it. Plus, I can handle it too."

Last season at Kickapoo, Laurie averaged 20 points, three rebounds, seven assists and five steals per game. He said he has a 3.0 GPA, but fell just short of a qualifying ACT score on his first attempt. He's signed up for the test again in October.

Kickapoo will tackle a taxing schedule this winter, including appearances at the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis and the Bass Pro Shop Tournament in Springfield.

-- Mike Sullivan contributed to this story.