Second Memphis prep player commits to Southeast

~ southeast gets a verbal commitment from another highly regarded prep player

The Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team has received a second verbal commitment from a highly regarded Memphis, Tenn., prep player.

Nino Johnson, a 6-foot-8, 225-pound senior power forward at White Station High School, said he told Southeast coach Dickey Nutt on Monday that he would accept the Redhawks' scholarship offer.

Verbal commitments are non-binding. Johnson said he plans to make it official during the NCAA's weeklong early signing period which begins Nov. 10.

"I'm very excited," Johnson said. "I visited [Oct. 23] and liked it a lot. I love coach Nutt. He's a real man."

Johnson averaged about 10 points and seven rebounds as a junior last year for perennial national power White Station, which was 28-9 and the Tennessee Class AAA state runner-up. That squad featured guard Joe Jackson, among the nation's top recruits.

ESPN's college basketball recruiting website ranks Johnson as the nation's No. 17 high school power forward. It rates him as a four-star recruit on a five-star scale.

Johnson said among other schools that offered him scholarships were Auburn, Cincinnati, Charlotte, DePaul, Georgia Tech, Mississippi, Missouri State and Murray State.

Rivals.com listed Auburn, Charlotte, Mississippi, Missouri State, Murray State and North Texas among the schools that offered Johnson scholarships.

Johnson said he thinks the Redhawks -- 7-23 and ninth in the 10-team Ohio Valley Conference during Nutt's first season last year -- are an emerging program that he wants to be a part of.

"He's trying to turn the program around, trying to get the right players to do it," Johnson said. "It's a big challenge. I think we can do it. I think I can make a big impact at that level."

Various recruiting websites have lauded Johnson's athleticism. Rivals.com called him "a high level athlete and physical specimen."

Committing to Southeast over the weekend was 6-3, 190-pound shooting guard Telvin Wilkerson from Melrose High School in Memphis.

Melrose, among the top-rated prep teams in the nation after going 36-4 and winning Tennessee's Class AAA state title last year, features three top-100 national prospects.

Wilkerson said he received scholarship offers from the likes of Missouri, Iowa State, Nebraska and Penn State.

Rivals.com listed Arkansas, Iowa State and Northern Illinois as schools offering Wilkerson scholarships.

Wilkerson's Melrose squad beat Johnson's White Station club 75-70 in last year's state championship game. Both players are rated three-star recruits on a five-star scale by Rivals.com.

Johnson played at Melrose before transferring to White Station following his sophomore season. He said he and Wilkerson are good friends.

"That's who came in with me at Melrose. We turned that program around," Johnson said. "He's like my brother."

Nutt is prohibited by NCAA regulations from commenting on prospective recuits until they sign.