Kansas State's Pullen was close to choosing UD

By Doug Harris, Staff Writer 12:11 AM Monday, November 23, 2009

SAN JUAN — Jacob Pullen had close relationships with Dayton coach Brian Gregory and assistant Billy Schmidt, and built friendships with current Flyers Chris Wright and Devin Searcy.

But the junior guard ultimately chose Kansas State during the recruiting process, and he tormented the program he had seriously considered joining, racking up 26 points, five rebounds and four assists in an 83-75 win for third place in the Puerto Rico Tip-off Classic Sunday.

After starring as a junior at Proviso East High School in Maywood, Ill., Pullen was on the verge of committing to UD, but he ultimately was lured to K-State for the chance to play with coach Bob Huggins and super-recruit Michael Beasley.

Ironically, Huggins took the West Virginia job before Pullen arrived, and Beasley was gone after just one season.

“Brian Gregory and Billy Schmidt are some of the best coaches I know,” Pullen said. “When it came down to it, it had nothing to do with the Atlantic 10 or Big 12 (competition). Me and Chris had been talking for a while. We were good friends at that point. I just felt me going to K-State with that recruiting class would give me the best opportunity for success.

“I told Chris after that game, there were days when I thought about it and went, ‘Damn, why did I go to (KSU), why didn’t I go to Dayton?’ But I just told him it was a decision I made, and I have to make the best of it.”

Pullen carved up the Flyers with drives and 3-pointers, and defenders were nearly helpless in keeping him in front of them.

“That’s why I spent two years recruiting him,” Gregory said. “He’s a helluva player.”

Pullen came into the game averaging a team-high 14 points.

“I’m happy at Kansas State, putting the team on my shoulders and trying to lead us to success,” he said.

Top 25 in jeopardy

The Flyers knocked off 21st-ranked Georgia Tech in the first round but finished 1-2 in the event and probably will drop out of the Top 25.

Single-digit losses to high-caliber programs like K-State and Villanova may have been acceptable in the recent past, but the Flyers’ standards have become higher than that.

“Against Kansas State and Villanova, you don’t play very well and you’re still in the game, but that’s not good enough any more,” Gregory said. “We need to do better, and our guys need to embrace that challenge, and I think they will.”

Dribbles

• Villanova won the tournament with a 79-67 win over Mississippi in the finals. Indiana went 0-3 in the tourney, George Mason and Boston University 1-2 and Georgia Tech and K-State 2-1.

• Marcus Johnson made his first 3-pointer of the season late in the first half after missing his first 12. He finished 6-of-13 from the field.

• UD’s Rob Lowery, who suffered a serious knee injury more than nine months ago, dressed for the game but wasn’t cleared for action.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2125 or dharris@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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Good game Dayton...K-State will be cheering for you the rest of the way. Maybe we can even have a rematch in the tourney.

Go Cats!

KSUfan
3:06 PM, 11/23/2009

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Well, Jacob, we could have used you in Flyer red yesterday. That said, it is a long season, and the Flyers were shown weaknesses that need to be addressed to make it a successful one. It is only mid-November.

Old Flyer
8:47 AM, 11/23/2009

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