ISU men's basketball signs big trio of recruits with international flavor
Nov. 15—A trio of forwards — ranging from 6-foot-7 to 6-8 and 6-11 — have officially signed national letters of intent to play with the Indiana State men's basketball team, according to a news release from ISU on Wednesday.
The recruiting class comes with an international flavor too.
ISU coach Josh Schertz's program announced the signings of 6-7 Michigan forward Merritt Alderink, 6-8 Iceland forward Robert "Sean" Birmingham, and 6-11 Canadian forward Christian Nitu as his first signees of the 2023-24 school year.
The NCAA official signing period for prospective college athletes to sign letters of commitment began Nov. 8.
Nitu, as a Canadian, participated in the NBA's Basketball Without Borders Global Camp, which has featured current NBA-standouts such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Joel Embiid. Nitu also competed for Team Canada in the Under-17 World Cup and was on the Biosteel All-Canadian Team.
"Christian is one of the most unique players I have ever seen, his combination of size, skill and mobility is incredibly rare," Schertz said. "On top of that he's a ferocious competitor who is obsessed with the game of basketball, so he's a perfect for our Indiana State basketball culture.
"Christian has a level of versatility on both ends of the floor that will provide us with incredible flexibility as we see him as someone who can play with another big or operate as a standalone big himself. He's a special talent with huge ambitions and a work ethic to match, and I can't wait to partner with him to help him reach his ceiling."
Alderink hails from Zeeland West High School in Michigan. Alderink was the 2023 Holland Sentinel Basketball Player of the Year and named as one of the 2023 Division 1 Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan's Best.
In the 2022-23 season, Alderink averaged 19.3 points per game and 7.1 rebounds per game. He holds his school's single-game points record with 42.
"Merritt is a perfect fit for us both systematically and culturally," Schertz said in the ISU news release. "He has great size, toughness, physicality, and an extremely high motor that all great competitors possess. He can score the ball in a variety of ways in the halfcourt and brings a toughness and maturity far beyond his years to our program. He's an exceptional student and young man that our fans will love to watch compete."
Birmingham, originally from Njardvik, Iceland, attends Concord Academy in North Carolina. In 2023 he became a member of the AAU squad Team Curry. In his junior year at Cannon School — the second-ranked private school in the state — Birmingham averaged 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game. He also was named to the all-conference team.
Birmingham was a member of the prestigious basketball academy in Vitoria, Spain — Baskonia — from 2020 to 2022.
"Sean is an elite shooter with great size but he's much more than just a shooter," Schertz said. "Sean has great feel which allows him to be a playmaker for others, coupled with a high basketball IQ that drives self-awareness allowing him to do what he does best all the time while bringing out the very best in his teammates. Sean is also a fantastic student and as high character and mature a young man as I have recruited. We are thrilled he's a Sycamore."
