Before the Penn men's basketball team starts its 2003-2004 season, it will have already made a major stride for the 2004-2005 season, as the Quakers have received a commitment by recruit David Whitehurst.
Whitehurst, a 6'4", 175-pound combo guard, will come to Penn next year from Lawrenceville Prep in Lawrenceville, N.J.
Penn basketball coach Fran Dunphy cannot discuss recruits until they are formally accepted by the University.
"He's a good passer," Lawrenceville teammate John Chuisano told The Trentonian on Dec. 16, 2002. "He plays great defense. He brings all parts of the game."
Whitehurst could not be reached for comment.
NJHoops.com -- which rates Whitehurst among the top five players in the Class of 2004 in the Garden State -- describes him as an "explosive scorer."
The Tinton Falls, N.J., native played two years of high-school basketball at Monmouth Regional High School -- where he was named to the All-Monmouth County 2001-2002 team -- before transferring to Lawrenceville in 2002.
At Lawrenceville last year, Whitehurst averaged 15.2 points per game and was named MVP of the 30th annual Peddie School Invitational Tournament. The tournament saw Lawrenceville triumph over Penn men's basketball freshman Ibrahim Jaaber's alma mater, Peddie.
In the summer, Whitehurst plays for the Jersey Cyclones, the same AAU team that Jaaber plays on. In the 2002 AAU season, Whitehurst averaged over 22 points per game.
Other schools that were interested in Whitehurst included Rutgers, Vanderbilt, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Old Dominion, Marist and George Washington.
In addition to being a talented basketball player, Whitehurst is was also an All-State Track and Field selection in 2002.
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