Dawson commits to Michigan State
By Kyle Neddenriep
indy.com
Posted: August 5, 2010
Branden Dawson of Gary Wallace -- considered a major target for Purdue -- committed to Michigan State and coach Tom Izzo on Wednesday. The 6-6 Dawson is ranked as the No. 25 player nationally in the 2011 class by Rivals.com.
Dawson confirmed his commitment via text message, writing, "Yes, that's where I will be."
His travel basketball coordinator, James Dye, said it came down to Michigan State, Purdue and Marquette, but a strong push from Izzo in July put the Spartans over the top.
"I think he wanted to be close to home so his mom and family could come see him play," Dye said of Dawson, who also was considering Georgetown, Indiana and UCLA. "But Michigan State did a really good job of recruiting him in July and Izzo did a heck of a job recruiting him. He was at every one of our games. That says something when the head coach is there."
Dawson averaged 23.1 points, 14.7 rebounds, 4.8 steals and 3.1 blocked shots as a junior at Gary Wallace, helping his team to the Class 3A state championship game. There it lost to Washington and 6-11 Cody Zeller, who cut his list to Butler, Indiana and North Carolina on Wednesday.
Many Purdue fans had envisioned Dawson as another Glenn Robinson type, a Gary product who became an All-American with the Boilermakers. Dye said the makeup of Michigan State's roster, compared to Purdue, might have made a difference.
"I know he didn't want to be the primary rebounder and play the low post, and he thought that he fit better with Michigan State," Dye said. "He looked over the rosters and who was going to be coming in and thought he could play his game the best at Michigan State."
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