Long Time Coming
South Kent School's post-graduate center Nolan Long has sacrificed a lot to pursue playing division I basketball and now he is closer than ever.
A 2012 graduate of Waterford High School in Connecticut, Long led the Lancers to the CIAC Class M state championship while averaging over 14 points and 11 rebounds per game. He was named Most Outstanding Player of the state championship game and also to the All-State team.
Despite his size and obvious talent, Long was rarely recruited for basketball during his high school days, primarily because most people assumed he would pursue baseball, where his talent as a pitcher was widely recognized and indisputable.
Long initially committed to the University of Rhode Island to play baseball out of high school and also had the opportunity to sign with the San Francisco Giants, who drafted him in the 38th round of last summer's Major League Baseball draft.
Instead, Long chose to attend the South Kent School where he is playing both sports. That decision is now paying off as he has landed recent offers from Sacred Heart and Rider while also attracting attention from Central Connecticut, James Madison, UNC wilmington, and Hofstra among others.
He's hoping to find a school that will allow him to pursue both of his passions next year.
"He wants to do both," South Kent head coach Kelvin Jefferson said. "He really loves baseball [too]."
"Now that he gets a chance to play basketball every day he's getting much better. He's really improved from day one in the fall."
Those improvements were easily recognizable in Wednesday's game against AAA rival Northfield Mount Hermon. Long finished with 19 points on 9-10 shooting from the floor while pulling down 8 rebounds.
Just another example of a player who is now hitting his stride and getting well deserved recruitment as a result.
Nolan Long