Archibong ready to play for Penn

Koko Archibong is one of four Quakers recruits to already commit to Penn. Although the Penn men's basketball team's season ended less than two weeks ago, hopes are already high for next year. The hype surrounding the incoming freshman class has planted visions of a Quaker dynasty in the minds of Penn fans. The Class of 2003 -- touted as one of the best Penn recruiting classes in 20 years -- is certainly one of the largest in recent memory. Four recruits have already been accepted to the University through the early decision process and have reserved their places in next year's class. Two others have verbally committed to the Quakers and their status will become official in a few weeks. The four admitted and officially committed recruits are: Koko Archibong, a 6'7" swingman from Pasadena, Calif.; Andrew Coates, a 6'8" power forward from Seattle; David Klatsky, a 5'11" point guard from Holmdel, N.J.; and Ugonna Onyekwe, a 6'8" power forward from Nigeria currently attending Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy. Also expected to matriculate next fall are guards Duane King from Kentucky and Harold Bailey from Connecticut. The Quakers coaching staff is prohibited from commenting on these players until they officially commit to Penn. "We didn't work any harder this year recruiting than we did last year," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "Last year, Dan Solomito was the only freshman we got. This year, we have four, five, possibly six coming in." While Dunphy did not approach recruiting any differently this year, the Quakers have reaped numerous rewards from the interest their prospects showed in Penn. "Koko Archibong recruited us as much as we recruited him," Dunphy said. "That's the deal in this game. You've got to have a sense of what this is about. He had it, he's coming and we're grateful for that." Archibong, who led the Polytechnic School with 16.7 points per game this season, recently had the chance to scout the Quakers in person for the first time. He was in the stands at Key Arena in Seattle for Penn's first-round loss to Florida in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to that, he had only seen tapes of Penn games. Standing among the roughly two dozen Penn students outside Key Arena prior to the game, Archibong was impressed with the passion of the fans, many of whom were covered in red and blue body paint. "This is pretty phat," Archibong said when asked what he thought about the students who had made the trip to Seattle during spring break. Once inside the arena, Archibong -- who had traveled up the coast from his Southern California home -- eagerly participated in chants of "Let's go Quakers!" While Archibong will be one of the recipients of those cheers next year, it remains to be seen just how much playing time he will see as a freshman. Dunphy does not put much pressure on freshmen to perform immediately but acknowledges that each will have a chance to get minutes next year. "All of them have an opportunity to get significant time next year," Dunphy said. "What's significant? Is it 25 to 30 minutes? Probably not. Is it 10 to 20 minutes? Yes. Is it different for one guy than another guy? Yes. Does it depend on the guys we have coming back? Yes." Archibong could be Penn's future starting small forward but he will have a hard time getting minutes at the three spot next year. Frank Brown will be returning for a fifth year and Solomito may be ready to see more time next season. Dunphy said that Solomito could be a very important part of the rotation if he can get into top physical shape -- which he never accomplished this season. Shooting guard Matt Langel, at 6'5", could also possibly see time at small forward. This may not leave much time for the California kid who led Polytechnic to a 27-0 record before it fell to Santa Clara, 75-52, in the CIF Southern Section Division V-AA Championships and then lost again in the first round of the state playoffs. Archibong, however, believes he can add a feature that is currently absent from the Penn lineup. "I'm more of a slashing type of player and it doesn't seem like a lot of the [Penn] players do that," Archibong said. "I think that I can add some motion to the offense and open up things for the shooters outside and for Geoff [Owens] inside." Now that his high school career is over, Archibong is hard at work preparing for next season with the Quakers. Observers have rated Archibong as an extremely athletic player who still needs to refine his overall game. "He is a pretty good defender. He is a great defensive rebounder, and he has a pretty good mid-range jumper," said Polytechnic coach Brad Hall, who believes Archibong needs to get stronger to make an impact as a Division I player. "He is really focused on preparing for next year," Hall added. "He is getting bigger everyday." Currently, Archibong works on his game five days a week and lifts three times per week. He plans on starting his running program in the near future. Archibong's conditioning will be essential if he is to make a successful leap from the small school division -- in which Polytechnic plays -- to competitive Division I basketball. While playing against these small schools, Archibong dominated. He was named the Panthers' team MVP and Player of the Year for his area. Archibong has also honed his skills in Los Angeles summer leagues against many future Division I players. Archibong realizes that college basketball will be a major adjustment, but he is eager to help the Quakers. "I hope I can bring something to the team that can help, but there are a lot of great players on the team," Archibong said. "I'm glad I'll be a part of it." Penn guard Michael Jordan knows that Archibong is excited about joining the team. Jordan hosted Archibong on his recruiting trip and kept in touch with him via e-mail during the season. Jordan and Solomito also went out to dinner with Archibong in Seattle. "I've never seen him play," Jordan said. "But he seemed like a real nice guy and a good person." The Quakers faithful only hope that Archibong turns nasty once the Ivy season rolls around.