Findlay junior Lopez commits to Rebels

Several major college basketball programs were courting Carlos Lopez, a 6-foot-10-inch junior at Findlay College Prep. Lopez considered his options and made an oral commitment to UNLV on Tuesday.

Lopez becomes the second member the Rebels’ 2009 recruiting class, joining 6-3 junior guard Justin Hawkins from Woodland Hills (Calif.) Taft.

“You’ve got some big-time programs that are very much interested in Carlos,” Findlay Prep assistant coach Todd Simon said. “This will be a little bit of a heartbreaker for some of those schools when they see this news.”

Simon said Lopez was recruited by Florida, Gonzaga, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh and Texas, among others.

Lopez, from Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, averaged 8.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 28 games for Findlay Prep in Henderson. Findlay Prep finished the season 32-1, losing to Hargrave Military (Va.) in the National Prep Championships title game in early March.

In January, UNLV got an oral commitment from Findlay Prep’s Brice Massamba, a 6-10, 250-pound senior from Sweden.

While Massamba was out with a knee injury in December, Lopez stepped into the lineup and averaged 16 points over a six-game stretch. Lopez earned Most Valuable Player honors at the Lexington Christian Classic.

Simon said the 200-pound Lopez is a “very skilled” player with solid ball-handling and shooting abilities. Simon compared Lopez’s playing style to that of Los Angeles Lakers forward Pau Gasol.

“Carlos is just scratching the surface. His potential is off the charts,” said Simon, a UNLV graduate assistant on coach Lon Kruger’s staff from 2004 to 2006. “He’s a Coach Kruger kid with his work ethic. He’s a good kid and a good student.”