LSU lands hometown five-star Martin

Looking at the recruitment of Jarell Martin, it seemed like there was a good chance he'd eventually end up at LSU. However, the five-star prospect did his hometown school a solid Thursday by ending the wait.

Initially, the 6-foot-9 power forward out of Baton Rouge (La.) Madison Prep had been planning to wait until the spring to make a decision. But early this week he changed course, and Thursday made the call to stay home and play for new coach Johnny Jones.

"Jarell is a real quiet kid, and he just came to me this week and said he was ready," Madison head coach Jeff Jones told Rivals.com. "He told me that he didn't see any need to take a bunch of visits and that he was ready to go ahead and get it done."

By making the call for LSU, Martin has likely chosen the place where he's capable of making the most impact.

With his combination of size and athleticism, Martin is a talent who would likely make an immediate impact anywhere in the country. He rebounds extremely well, scores reliably at the rim and can also step out and face the hoop. But for a program in the midst of a makeover, who better than a hometown kid with major game to be the face of the program?

Not only that, Martin is going to be joining talent with which he will blend in well, particularly four-stars Jordan Mickey and Tim Quarterman. Ranked No. 40 in the country, Mickey is a slightly smaller but similar player to Martin. He can defend the three or the four, and he's a super shot blocker. A product of Georgia, Quarterman is a slick and versatile 6-foot-6 guard who can play any position on the perimeter.

"They've been really good with him and it's a good fit," said Jones. "He fits in well with those other guys. He and Jordan can play together and Quarterman can do a little bit of everything."

In addition to the three ranked high schoolers, LSU holds commitments from a pair of three-star junior college big men, Deng Deng and John Odoh. Depending on how other programs finish out their recruiting classes between now and signing day, the Tigers have a class that will rank somewhere in the top five or 10 classes nationally.

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