Marcus Arnold, a 6-foot-8, 225-pound post player, signed a national letter of intent Monday morning to continue his education and basketball career at Illinois State.
Arnold, a native of Chicago, averaged 23 points, 12 rebounds and three blocked shots for Morgan Park High School. Head coach Tom Richardson is excited about adding the physical big-man to the Redbird roster.
Marcus is just a great kid and he has the size that we were looking for, Richardson said. We think that he will be a player that will have an inside presence for us. His natural ability to rebound and block shots will be a nice addition to our team.
Arnold, who ranks as the No. 16 senior prospect in the state of Illinois by www.highschoolelite.com, was named all-conference, all-city and all-area honorable mention his senior season. Morgan Park finished third in the conference and advanced to the third round of the City Championship.
As a junior, Arnold averaged 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocks as Morgan Park won the City Championship at the United Center and placed third in the IHSA Class AA State Tournament. He was also being recruited by Southern Illinois, Memphis, Tulane, Miami (Fla.), Bowling Green and Ball State.
Arnold joins AAU teammate Chris Burras from Leo High School, and early-period signee Dana Ford, of Egyptian High School. Arnolds uncle, Kenny, played basketball at Iowa and will be inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame on Saturday at Illinois State.
