Seattle-area guard Ben Ackerley posted that he has committed to Arizona, to play next season as a walk-on.
Officially Committed to The University of Arizona to continue my athletic and academic career as a wildcat!!! ๐ด๐ต #BearDown #Committed pic.twitter.com/G2SYr8xgdJ
— Benjamin Ackerley (@BenjaminAckerl1) June 24, 2021
Averaging 34.7 points and 11.0 rebounds over three games last season, according to MaxPreps (the stats appear incomplete), Ackerley described himself as a "do it all point guard" on his NCSA profile.
The Wildcats now have five walk-ons and 11 scholarship players on their 2021-22 roster. Here's how their roster looks as of now:
Position/Name/Year/Height/Weight/Hometown
G/Benjamin Ackerley*/6-0/165/Kirkland, Wash.
G/Addison Arnold*/6-3/180/Simi Valley, Calif.
G/Adama Bal/Fr./6-6/180/Paris
C/Oumar Ballo/So./7-0/260/Koulikoro, Mali
C/Christian Koloko/Jr./7-0/220/Douala, Cameroon
G/Justin Kier/6-4/190/Grottoes, Virginia.
G/Kerr Kriisa/So./6-2/165/Tartu, Estonia
G/Pelle Larsson/Fr./6-5/216/Nacka, Sweden
F/Jordan Mains*/Jr./6-6/200/Scottsdale
F/Bennedict Mathurin/So./6-6/195/Montreal
C/Will Menaugh*/Fr./6-10/225/Tucson
G/Shane Nowell/Fr./6-5/190/Bellevue, Washington
F/Dalen Terry/So./6-7/190/Phoenix
F/Azoulas Tubelis/So./6-10/240/Vilnius, Lithuania
F/Tautvilas Tubelis/So./6-7/210/Vilnius, Lithuania
G/Grant Weitman*/So./6-3/180/Tucson
*Walk-on
Colorado's Jabari Walker was among the final five cuts for USA Basketball's U19 team, meaning the Pac-12 won't be represented by a returning player but will be by an incoming freshman, UCLA-bound Peyton Watson.
The USA Basketball junior national team committee, of which former UA coach Sean Miller is a member, selected the team of 12 players who will compete in Latvia from July 3-11 for the FIBA U19 World Cup.
The 12 players who made the team:
Patrick Baldwin Jr.ย (Hamilton HS/Sussex, Wis.)
Kennedy Chandlerย (Sunrise Christian/Memphis)
Jonathan Davisย (Wisconsin/La Crosse, Wis.)
Caleb Furstย (Blackhawk Christian School/Fort Wayne, Ind.)
Chet Holmgrenย (Minnehaha Academy/Minneapolis)
Harrisonย Ingramย (St. Markโs School/Dallas)
Jaden Iveyย (Purdue /South Bend, Ind.)
Ryan Kalkbrennerย (Creighton/St. Louis)
Kenneth Lofton Jr.ย (Louisiana Tech/Port Arthur, Texas)
Mike Milesย (TCU/Lancaster, Texas)
Adam Millerย (Louisiana State/Chicago)
Peyton Watsonย (Long Beach Poly HS/Long Beach, Calif.)
The five finalists who didn't make the roster were:
Kendall Brownย (Sunrise Christian Academy /Cottage Grove, Minn.)
Jordanย Hallย (Texas A&M/Wildwood, N.J.)
Trey Pattersonย (Villanova/Somerset, N.J.)
Deivon Smithย (Georgia Tech/Loganville, Ga.)
Jabari Walkerย (Colorado/Los Angeles)
UA's Dalen Terry was among the 26 players invited to try out for the U19 team but was not among the 17 finalists.
Arizona still could have up to four representatives in the U19 World Cup with the Tubelis brothers (Lithuania), Oumar Ballo (Mali) and Benn Mathurin (Canada) -- although Mathurin has been working out with the Canadian Olympic qualifying team.
Not surprisingly, Azuolas Tubelis is expected to start for Lithuania (he's in the first photo of this LTU Basketball workout tweet.) Mathurin is expected to be one of Canada's best U19 players if he is sent down from the senior team, while Ballo has long been a FIBA hero in Mali.
