After committing to Mississippi State men’s basketball earlier this year, three-star prospect Alden Applewhite officially signed his National Letter of Intent to play with the Bulldogs on Wednesday on the first day of the spring signing period.
“We’re excited to welcome Alden to our Mississippi State basketball family,” Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said in a news release. “He has an excellent skill level for a player with his size. He’s a very good shooter. The thing that I was most excited about in his recruitment, in terms of what he can bring to our program, is his ability to space the floor and shoot 3s. Alden is a very intelligent player. His Dad is a coach so he’s been around the game his whole life. He’s got a great feel for the game and possesses a high basketball IQ.”
Applewhite, a 6-foot-7 forward from Memphis, played high school ball at Arizona Compass Prep School along with Houston and Lausanne High Schools in Memphis. Primarily known for his 3-point shooting, Applewhite averaged 10.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game with Arizona Compass Prep School last season. The incoming freshman picked MSU over offers from Clemson, Iowa State, St. John’s and Wake Forest.
“Alden is an extremely versatile player that can play multiple positions,” said Arizona Compass head coach Ed Gibson. “He’s a high IQ kid with elite passing ability that can shoot from deep. He was a huge part of our success with his leadership skills, and his willingness to play and guard multiple positions. I have no doubt that Alden will be successful at Mississippi State. He’s truly built for the SEC in my opinion.”
There are family ties to MSU within the Applewhite family. Alden’s brother, Andre, played for MSU in the 2013-2014 season under Rick Ray.
Applewhite becomes the second incoming freshman to sign with the Bulldogs, joining three-star prospect KeyShawn Murphy. The Bulldogs are expecting recent commit Camryn Carter to sign his National Letter of Intent shortly to bolster that number to three. MSU, coming off a season that ended with an NIT championship loss, is also expected to a few pieces in the transfer portal considering the losses of Deivon Smith and Keondre Montgomery and the potential loss of D.J. Stewart should he decide to stay in the NBA draft.
Hodge is the former sports editor for The Dispatch.
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