UNLV gains commitments from pair of forwards

Two months ago, Deshawn Mitchell was attracting little interest from college basketball recruiters. The first big-name school to court him got him, and UNLV coach Lon Kruger could not be happier.

Kruger received letters of intent from two players Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period, and said he felt “very good” about the quality of a class that won’t be found high in any national rankings.

The Rebels signed Mitchell, a 6-foot-6-inch small forward from Monmouth Academy in Howell, N.J., and 6-8, 225-pound power forward Darris Santee from Midland (Texas) College.

Mitchell is a late bloomer who was getting calls from several major programs just before he orally committed to UNLV on Oct. 29.

“Deshawn has really kind of exploded onto the scene nationally, if you will. In the past couple months, everything has come together for him,” Kruger said. “He is an extremely good athlete with a great deal of flexibility in his ability to score both inside and out.”

Mitchell will be a freshman in 2008. He attended Oak Hill Academy in Virginia the past two years and averaged 24 points and 10 rebounds per game last season for Oak Hill’s “B” team.

Santee is a sophomore at Midland College, where he is averaging 10.8 points and 6.2 rebounds through five games. He averaged 4.2 points per game as a freshman backup for a Midland team that finished 29-8 and won the NJCAA national championship.

“He can step out and knock down mid-range jumpers, and he’s a skilled athlete on the interior,” Kruger said of Santee, who attended Marshall High School near Houston.

The Rebels’ coaching staff recruited Santee in high school. Assistant coach Lew Hill was the first to see Mitchell play this fall.

All Star Sports recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons ranks UNLV’s two-player class fifth in the Mountain West Conference. Gibbons ranks New Mexico, which has five commitments, at the top. The Lobos are followed by Utah, Air Force and Texas Christian.

Kruger can add one player to his class, but he said that might not happen until the spring. A scholarship opened when junior center Emmanuel Adeife was dismissed from the team Saturday.

Justin Hawkins, a 6-3 junior guard from Woodland Hills (Calif.) Taft High School, committed to UNLV in early October and is the first member of the 2009 recruiting class.