A pair of highly decorated Southern California players have signed national letters-of-intent to play men’s basketball at the University of Portland, head coach Michael Holton announced.

Eugene Jeter, a 5-10 point guard from Gardena, Calif., and Donald Wilson, a 6-4 swingman from Los Angeles, will join the Pilots next season as freshmen. Portland’s full class of four student-athletes - which includes fall junior college signees Dustin Geddis (6-7, So, F, Phoenix College) and Andreas Gahlmann (6-9, Fr, C, Fullerton College) - follows Holton’s first recruiting class last spring, which was ranked as the top class in the West Coast Conference.

“We have worked hard in the area of recruiting, resulting in a class of student-athletes which collectively embrace the values that we are building our program on,” said Holton. “Athletically, this class accentuates our ability to play the up-tempo style that has become Pilot basketball.”

EUGENE JETER III (5-10, G, Gardena, CA/Serra HS): Jeter averaged 23.3 points, 10.1 assists and 3.4 steals per game as a senior at Serra High School, and capped his career by being named Del Rey League MVP, first-team CIF-Southern Section (twice), second-team all-state by Cal-Hi Sports (all divisions), Division IV first-team all-state by Cal-Hi Sports, and first-team Dream Team by the Long Beach Press-Telegram newspaper.

Jeter led Serra to a 26-5 overall record and league championship, and scored a game-high 24 points with seven rebounds and five assists in an 84-75 loss to Verbum Dei in the CIF-Southern Section Division IV championship game. He had 31 points, nine assists, five steals and seven rebounds in the semifinals.

Coach Holton on Jeter: “We are extremely excited about Eugene’s decision to join our basketball program. He has distinguished himself as one of the top guards on the West Coast. His athletic ability and leadership skills will have a significant impact on our basketball program.”

DONALD WILSON (6-4, G/F, Los Angeles/Dorsey HS): Wilson averaged 19.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.2 steals per game as a senior at Dorsey High School, leading Dorsey to the Coliseum League title, including a pair of wins over legendary Crenshaw. Dorsey lost to Fairfax in the Los Angeles city semifinals.

Wilson was league co-MVP as a senior, two-time first-team all-Los Angeles City, first-team all-Central City, and was the #62 ranked prep player in the nation by ESPN.com. He was also the #12 off-guard in the nation by ESPN.com. An all-state track athlete, as a junior, Wilson was the Los Angeles city triple jump champion (48’8”), and high jumped 6-6. Wilson is also Student Body President at Dorsey High School.

Coach Holton on Wilson: “Donald has established himself as one of the premiere athletes in high school basketball. The level of competition he has faced during his high school career has prepared him for success at the Division I level. Donald’s athleticism and defensive energy will be a great addition to our program.”

Portland’s fall signees - 6-9 post Andreas Gahlmann, and 6-7 forward Dustin Geddis - had outstanding 2001-02 seasons.

Geddis averaged 17.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.6 steals per game as a sophomore at Phoenix College, finishing second in the nation in NJCAA Division II rebounding. A two-time all-Region selection, Geddis led his team in rebounding, assists and steals, finished second in scoring, and hit 51 3-pointers.

Gahlmann averaged 6.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game for Fullerton College, shooting 62% from the field - third in the conference. In league games, Gahlmann led the circuit at 73%, and increased his scoring to 7.5 points per game.

2001-02 UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND MEN’S BASKETBALL SIGNEES
Name	Pos	Ht	Wt	Hometown/Previous school
Eugene Jeter III	G	5-10	160	Gardena, California/SerraHS
Donald Wilson	G	6-4	200	Los Angeles, California/Dorsey HS
*Andreas Gahlmann	C	6-9	225	Zurich, Switzerland/Kantonschule Limmatetal/Fullerton College
*Dustin Geddis	F	6-7	200	Phoenix, Arizona/Cactus HS/Phoenix College	
*-previously announced signing