Miami recruit 'had really good feel' about coaches, campus

Brian Sullivan will be a senior this year at Upper Arlington.

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By By Pete Conrad, Staff Writer 4:05 PM Tuesday, August 10, 2010

OXFORD — Brian Sullivan isn’t the kind of athlete who radiates danger, but according to Upper Arlington High School boys basketball coach Tim Casey, looks can be deceiving.

“He kind of looks like a choir-boy type guy,” Casey said, “but he doesn’t really have a weakness to his game. He can drive, he’s got good athletic skills. He can do a lot of different things. He’s a multi-dimensional player.”

The 6-foot, 170-pound senior point guard/shooting guard at Upper Arlington has committed verbally to Miami University and intends to join the RedHawks for the 2011-12 season.

Sullivan said he chose Miami because “obviously it’s a good academic school and that’s a priority for me” and he said he had “a really good feel” for the coaches and the campus.

Another priority for Sullivan, who thinks of himself more as a point guard, is running the team on the floor.

“I’m a high-IQ basketball player,” he said. “I pride myself on making the right plays.”

Casey talked about some of Sullivan’s other attributes.

“First and foremost,” Casey said, “he has a tremendous work ethic. He has a passion for the game and unbelievable energy. And he’s going to continue to get better.”

But there also are those physical skills Casey talked about.

“Over the years I’ve really worked on my ball handling,” Sullivan said, “and I’ve gotten a lot better at taking the ball to the rim, and also pulling up and shooting from mid-range.

“Just being able to see the floor and giving the ball up to my teammates is the best thing I can do,” he added. “When players have to guard me as a shooter, it leaves more room for me to attack.”

Sullivan was named as Upper Arlington’s team captain last season as a junior. He averaged 18 points per game for the Golden Bears, who finished 21-1 after losing to Dublin Coffman 50-48 in the Division I district semifinals.

In an earlier match-up against Coffman, however, Sullivan scored a career-high 35 points and drilled seven 3-point baskets in a 64-58 victory.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.