White back on the board

Decensae White, 6-foot-6 senior wing forward from Serra High School in San Mateo (Calif.), has reopened his recruitment. One of the more versatile wings in Northern California gave a verbal commitment to Loyola Marymount back in September but now says he wants to truly experience the recruiting process.

"My dad was against me signing early in the first place," said White. "After I visited LMU, I never had a chance to visit any other schools or really see what else was out there. Now I will be able to."

White said LMU is still one of the top schools on his list and he may eventually sign with them. But he said he wants to hear from other schools such as Texas Tech, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Boston College, Memphis, Virginia Tech, Maryland and UCLA.

"When I committed to LMU, a lot of schools stopped staying in contact with me," said White. "I want to see how high I can go in the recruiting process."

Last year, White was the catalyst for Serra, as his play helped to lead the Padres to their first NorCal Regional Championship and the school's first appearance in the state title game, where they lost to Westchester of Los Angeles, the #2 ranked team in the country according to the USA Today, 66-45.

Despite the loss, White's play was solid with a game high 17 points and six rebounds and he garnered the respect of the Westchester players who came up to him and shook his hand after the game. Over the summer, White participated in the Pangos All American Camp, the Kansas Mid-American Camp and the Full Court Press All West Camp, where he played in the Top 60 All-Star Game.

He was also a member of the Bay Area Hoosiers Club team, which competed in various tournaments on the west coast and around the country during the summer. White was hampered by a bad knee which was reflected in his less than stellar play.

Since the summer, White has had time to rest and strengthen his knee. He has grown an inch and he has added some additional strength and weight, which his father, David White, feels will help his son as a basketball player.

"Decensae is not the same ball player he was last year," said White. "He has gotten bigger and he has gotten better. I just want him to have fun his senior year and develop further as a basketball player."

Player development is something that is very important to the elder White in looking at schools for his son to attend. White was a former football player at San Francisco State University, who was able to develop as a football player and play professional football in the now defunct USFL and briefly in the NFL.

"This season, he is going to really have to work harder on the court," continued David White. "He is going to have to look to further his progress as an athlete."

Decensae will have a target on his back as the leader of a team favored to win the tough West Catholic Athletic League and hoping to defend the section and regional titles. But being a target has not affected White. In fact, it has motivated him and his teammates to work harder.

"We have a very good fundamental team," said White. "We have a tough preseason schedule that will get us ready for the regular season. We will compete and play hard this year."