Teague steps in line at UK

A year ago Marquis Teague was on the verge of committing to Louisville, but then in-state rival Kentucky hired John Calipari and everything changed.

At a Thursday afternoon press conference Teague, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound point guard from Indianapolis (Ind.) Pike High School, announced his intention to play at Kentucky.

The No. 2-ranked player overall and No. 1-ranked point guard in the 2011 class, Teague will jump in line with the elite point guards who have played for Calipari over the last several years.

But the decision didn't come easy for Teague considering his dad, Shawn, played for Louisville's Rick Pitino at Boston College.

"My dad played for Pitino so he was kind of rooting for Louisville. But he also liked Kentucky a lot," Teague told Jeff Rabjohns of the Indianapolis Star. "When I told him I was going there, he was happy with that decision. He's behind me 100 percent.

"It took him a while to get used to it because he has a great relationship with Pitino and they have a lot of history behind them, but when coach Cal came into the picture he gave him a chance to explain himself and recruit me. He said it was whatever I felt best with."

Teague said his brother, Jeff, who is a rookie with the Atlanta Hawks also helped him through the process.

"He knows what it takes to get to the next level or just get better as a player period," Teague said. "He guided me through my whole career, basically. My dad and my brothers. My brother's opinion means the world to me. When he told me to go to Kentucky, I took that into strong consideration."

Kentucky, who recently received a commitment from Mike Gilchrist, now has commitments from the top two prospects in the 2011 class. Kentucky is also strongly in play for the No. 3-ranked prospect in the class Quincy Miller.

Teague, who averaged 16 points and five assists per game during the high school season, was also listing Cincinnati, Indiana and Purdue along with Kentucky and Louisville.

Marquis Teague scouting report:

A smooth ball handler with a feel for changing gears, Teague is the type of point guard who gets the ball to whatever spot on the court he desires. When he gets in the lane, he is explosive in traffic and is a proficient finisher with either hand. While he is a big time scoring threat, Teague is also a high level distributor.