Bartons Batista Pulls Trigger on Decision
J.P. Batista became a hot commodity this winter, but the strong 6-8, 265 pound power forward/center from Barton County C.C. in Kansas took just a pair of official visits this spring.
Batista visited Illinois State from March 26-28 and Gonzaga from Apr. 8-10.
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It appears that his second trip did the trick, as Batista will sign with Gonzaga University tomorrow, according to Barton Asst. Coach Jaden Uken.
Uken said that Hawaii, Nebraska, Minnesota, Oregon and Kansas had also expressed serious interest in Batista. In fact, Batista took an unofficial visit to Kansas back in February and watched a Jayhawk home game.
With Gonzaga losing senior frontcourt players Cory Violette and Richard Fox, Batista found the Bulldogs' lure difficult to resist.
"He felt comfortable there and he likes the coaching staff," Uken said. "It's a good place, a good program and they are winning -- they're recognized nationally and get a lot of exposure."
A native of Pernambuco, Brazil, Batista enjoyed a terrific sophomore campaign at Barton County.
He averaged 20.2 points and 9.2 rebounds, shooting 62 percent from the floor and 77 percent from the foul line.
Batista earned second team All-American honors, leading the Cougars to within one victory of an NJCAA Tournament appearance. Barton finished 25-9 overall and lost to Coffeyville last month in the Region VI Final.
Batista appeared in the NJCAA Tournament as a freshman in 2002-2003 when he played at Western Nebraska. He averaged 13.6 points and six rebounds per game at WNCC that season.
Assuming he gets cleared by the NCAA, Batista will have two years of athletic eligibility at Gonzaga. In recent years, the NCAA has paid close attention to foreign born players and their possible links to professional and club teams overseas.
"They think he will be a key inside guy for them," Uken said. "They should have one of the better frontcourts in the country with him and Turiaf."