Vertrail Vaughn press clippings from signing day

[Harry]

Vaughns plays for Brian Curts at Mesquite High School and as a junior, he averaged 16 points, four rebounds and three assists. He was rated the 25th best player in Texas by Texashoops.com and he earned three stars from Rivals.com. He was rated #58 in the nation at his position by ESPN.com and Colorado and Wichita State were also recruiting him.

"Vertrail reminds me of Jason Miskiri who had a tremendous career here," Larranaga said. "Vertrail is very fast and plays with a lot of energy. He is gifted at getting to the basket off the dribble and has the ability to apply great pressure on the defensive end in our up-tempo style of play."

Read more: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/press-break/2008/11/larranaga_signs_five_for_2009-.html

[GreenBat]

Was DMN newcomer of year in 2007 and 3rd team all area in 2009.

http://highschoolsportsblog.dallasnews.com/2013/03/chris-bosh-lamarcus-aldridge-deron-williams-are-highlights-in-the-last-15-years-of-sportsdays-all-area-teams.html/

[Harry]

This is from a Maryland Sportwrite at the Baltimore Sun:

A quick glance at Vaughns career stats with the Patriots is somewhat underwhelming. The Mesquite, Texas native averaged 5.8 points, appearing in 107 games and starting 33. In Marylands 69-62 win over George Mason last December, Vaughns took a dreaded DNP coachs decision.

So what can we make of Marylands interest in Vaughns? For answers, I caught up this week with Ryan Kish, a 2006 George Mason grad who runs the popular GMUHoops.com blog. Kish said Vaughns who was recruited as a point guard but is definitely a 2 had his best year as a redshirt freshman in 2010-11.

Freshman year, he turned the ball over constantly. But he turned into a really good shooter, especially from 3-point range, Kish said. He was a perfect spot-up shooter.

That season, Vaughns averaged just 4.5 points but shot 49 percent from 3-point range, helping the Patriots to a 27-6 record and the second round of the NCAA tournament. After the season, Jim Larranaga took the Miami job, and former Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt took over the Patriots. Vaughns role changed significantly.

He started every single game [as a sophomore], and you could tell he wasnt the same player, Kish said. Teams focused on him he cant really create his own shot. He can shoot 3-pointers [and hes] also a pretty good defender. But hes not a point guard.

Vaughns scored 8.8 points per game during the 2011-12 season, but shot 35.6 percent from 3-point range, starting all 33 games. When Hewitt got more of his players to Fairfax last season, Vaughns returned to a bench role, putting up 5.0 points per game and shooting 33.8 percent from beyond the arc.

Even though Vaughns was passed by freshmen in Masons lineup last year, he remained a team captain and one of the leaders in the locker room. Kish said he was initially surprised that Maryland was interested in Vaughns, but now thinks he could fill a Logan Aronhalt-type role for the Terps.

[if a team] just needs him to be a sniper, he could do well at that, Kish said. Hes a veteran [and] hes a very smart player.

Vaughns will have to decide whether he wants to play a starring role for a mid-major team like North Texas which is just an hour away from his hometown or be a supporting player for a high-major team like Maryland that hopes to compete for an NCAA tournament berth.

With four scholarships available, there doesnt appear to be much of a downside for the Terps in adding someone like Vaughns a good locker room guy whos played in the tournament and would have a defined role off the bench.

Read more: http://touch.baltimoresun.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-75658961/

[GrandGreen]

Thanks Harry, that is encouraging.