Thursday, April 18, 1996
By Scott Yamaguchi,
Melissa Anderson
and Robert Stevens
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
With former UCLA assistant coach Lorenzo Romar accepting
Pepperdine’s head coaching position at the end of the 1995-96
season, critics of the Bruin program became ultra-skeptical about
any future success head coach Jim Harrick would have in luring top
high school players to Westwood.
On the contrary, Harrick’s current staff of assistants is very
much in the thick of the recruiting wars, at least with regard to
two of the finest preps in the nation, and one of the best players
out of it.
The Bruins may very well strike gold with a pair of blue chips
from St. John’s Prospect Hall in Frederick, Mass. At the top of the
list is Nate James, a 6-foot-5-inch McDonald’s All-American who was
a freshman at St. John’s when UCLA point guard Cameron Dollar was a
senior there.
James is a forward who scored 21 points and was the MVP at the
Capitol Classic in Washington D.C. at the close of his senior
season. He visited Westwood last weekend and has narrowed his
choices to UCLA and Duke, which he will visit the weekend of April
27.
While James is in Durham, high school teammate Rico Hines, a
6-foot-4-inch guard, will reportedly be in Westwood on his official
recruiting visit.
UCLA’s third prospect is Oded Kattash, a 6-foot-4-inch Israeli
who can play either guard position. Harrick was in Israel last
weekend to visit with Kattash, who has reportedly narrowed his
choices down to UCLA and Connecticut.
* * *
Junior forward omm’A Givens requested last week that he be
released from his scholarship at UCLA in order to transfer to
Pepperdine next fall.
Athletic Director Peter Dalis refused to grant Givens’ request,
though he may be given permission to transfer to a school other
than Pepperdine.
* * *
Former Bruin guard Michael Holten, who served as an assistant
coach at Oregon State last season, will take the place of Steve
Lavin as the No. 2 assistant coach. Lavin was promoted to the top
assistant spot when Romar left for Pepperdine.
The third assistant position  vacated when Greg White was
hired on by Marshall to assume its head coaching duties  has
not yet been filled.