White commits to Texas Tech

When Decensae White from Serra High School in San Mateo (Calif.), reopened his basketball recruitment after decommitting to Loyola Marymount University, he knew he could play at a higher level. The 6-foot-6 senior wing forward was proved right when he was offered a scholarship by Texas Tech University head Coach Bobby Knight, which he accepted on Friday night. ending his recruitment.

"I got a call from Coach Knight and he offered me a scholarship to play at Texas Tech and I accepted," said White. "Coach Knight told me that the program would be a good fit for me and I believe it will be."

White, one of the more versatile players in Northern California, saw his recruitment pick up after decommitting from Loyola Maramount University just before the start of the 2005-06 basketball season. White said he liked what Coach Rodney Tention was trying to do at LMU, but he believed he did not think his recruitment all the way through.

"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."

Schools that began to show serious interest included UCLA, Washington and Providence.

"I am glad that I reopened up my recruitment to get another look at schools," said White. "I was able to prove to people that I could play a high level of basketball and learn from the best coach in college basketball history."

Texas Tech assistant coaches, who were in attendance at several of White's games, came away impressed with his play. Robert Jones, the head coach of the Bay Area Hoosiers club team that White played for, believes White will have a chance to be an impact player in the Big 12.

"This will be a good opportunity for Decensae to showcase his talent," said Jones. "He will be playing in a system that accommodates his style of play and he will learn from one of the best coaches of all time."

In committing to Texas Tech, White will be joining another Bay Area standout, Dior Lowhorn, who is one of the top freshmen in the Big 12. This season, the Red Raiders ae 11-9 and 3-3 in Big 12 play in Knight's fifth season as the school's head coach. He is currently the third winningest coach in college history with 865 wins, 14 short of Dean Smith's 879. Knight's coaching record was an allure for White and his parents.

"For me, this is an opportunity for Decensae to learn from one of the best coaches around," said Dave White, Decensae's father. "Coach Knight is serious about basketball and academics and there are not that many distractions out there, which is a good thing. Plus he will have a friend on the team, which is a plus."

The elder White said Knight told him Texas Tech will use his versatility to play anywhere from shooting guard to the power forward position. Due to NCAA regulations, the coaching staff at Texas Tech cannot talk about a recruit until he signs a letter of intent, which White says he will do in April.

"I am ecstatic about going to play for one of the greatest coaches in college basketball," continued White. "It is a realization of a dream that I have been working on since I started playing basketball."

Last year, White was the catalyst for the Padres. Serra won their first NorCal regional championship and made its first appearance in the California state championship game, where Serra lost to Westchester from Los Angeles, the #2 ranked team in the country according to the USA Today, 66-45.

This season, Serra is 12-8 overall and 4-5 in league play. White, the team's point guard, is averaging 21 points and 12 rebounds per game and he has had to carry the Padres on both ends of the court for most of the season.

"We are in all of the games we have played, but we are making some mistakes down the stretch," said White. "We need to tighten it up a bit, but I believe we will correct what is wrong, and finish strong the rest of the season and in the playoffs."