Mean green happy to land Dennis

[MeanGreen61]

Mean Green happy to land Dennis

North Richland Hills native picks UNT to be closer to home

08:43 AM CDT on Monday, July 24, 2006

By Brett Vito / Staff Writer

North Texas already had a jump on the competition earlier this summer when Collin Dennis decided to transfer from South Florida.

UNT was close to Dennis’ home in Richland, he knew some of the players on the Mean Green’s roster and, perhaps most important of all, UNT head coach Johnny Jones and his staff weren’t exactly strangers.

UNT recruited Dennis out of high school and landed a player they have coveted for years last week when the 6-2 combo guard committed to play for the Mean Green beginning in the 2007-08 season.

Dennis will have two years of eligibility remaining with the Mean Green after he sits out the upcoming season.

“I met with the coaches at North Texas and really liked them,” Dennis said. “The program is going in the right direction and UNT is close to home.”

Dennis will join Oklahoma State transfer Roderick Flemings in the Mean Green’s 2007 recruiting class and could provide versatility in UNT’s backcourt. Dennis played both guard slots in high school and his first two years at USF.

Dennis averaged 4.4 points and 2.0 assists per game as a sophomore with the Bulls while playing in the Big East, arguably the toughest conference in college basketball.

The addition of Dennis could help soften the blow UNT will take after Kendrick Davis and Calvin Watson complete their careers. Both are expected to start for the Mean Green as seniors in the upcoming season.

“[Dennis’] ball-handling skills, ability to shoot from the outside as well as get to the basket on the offensive end and ability to defend quicker opponents will make him a very valuable addition to our team,” Jones said.

Those skills were what made Dennis a priority in recruiting for the Mean Green after he earned second team all-state honors as a senior at Richland in the 2003-04 season. Dennis averaged 24 points per game as a junior and 23 as a senior when he led Richland to the Region I-4A semifinals.

Dennis started every game of his high school career, beginning when he played with the varsity team as a freshman.

“I would have put Collin up against anyone when he came out of high school,” Richland coach Richard Bacon said. “He has played a lot of basketball at a high level.”

As a senior, Dennis scored 15 points in a span of two minutes to lead Richland back from an 11-point deficit in a game against Azle and also hit 18 of 21 free throws in a win over North Crowley in the playoffs.

Dennis’ performance helped him land a scholarship from USF, where he was developing into an impact player before he tired of living so far from home. Dennis scored 25 points against UAB and 21 against UTA as a freshman.

“After a while I was not happy,” Dennis said. “It was really hard to leave South Florida, but I wanted to go somewhere close to home.”

TCU, Houston and New Orleans all showed interest in Dennis after he announced that he was leaving USF, but none offered a situation as advantageous at UNT. Dennis played against UNT guard Michael Sturns and with incoming junior college transfer Ben Bell on a summer league team.

“It worked out for everyone,” Bacon said. “Collin wanted to get closer to home after wanting to get as far away as he could after high school. It’s always good to be around people you are comfortable with. He can drive 30 minutes from UNT and be home. That’s different than talking to someone over the phone.”

Dennis will join a growing group of transfers at UNT, which should have several key contributors from other colleges in the coming years.

Flemings, Arizona State transfer Keith Wooden, Bell and fellow junior college transfers Curtis Muse and Jonathan Jackson are all expected to be contributors when Dennis plays his first season with the Mean Green in 2007-08.

“We can be really good with the guys we have coming in,” Dennis said. “We just need to work together and continue to improve.”