Brian Bowen II, a 6-7, 195-pound combo guard/forward who won a national championship last season at La Lumiere School in La Porte, Ind., has signed a financial aid agreement to continue his basketball playing career at the University of Louisville. He has enrolled at UofL and plans to be on campus for the current summer session.
“We are extremely excited to have Brian with us,” said UofL Men’s Basketball Coach Rick Pitino. “He’s extremely versatile and can play almost four positions. He’s an outstanding scorer, a terrific passer and someone who just really knows how to play the game. This gives us a deep, talented team and we look forward to playing another exciting schedule.”
Bowen, whose nickname is “Tugs,” averaged 20.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and three assists while shooting 59 percent from the field as a senior last season in helping La Lumiere to a 29-1 record, the championship of the Dick’s Sporting Goods National Tournament and a No. 1 ranking in the USA Today High School Expert rankings.
A native of Saginaw, Mich., Bowen had 15 points and seven rebounds against Montverde Academy in the national tournament championship game after scoring 19 points in the semifinals against Findlay Prep. He was named the MVP of the tournament.
A McDonald’s All-American, Bowen is ranked No. 13 nationally in the ESPN 100, No. 18 by Scout.com, 18th by 247Sports.com composite and is 20th by Rivals.com.
Bowen was the Most Valuable Player of the East team for the 2017 Jordan Brand Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y. after scoring 26 points while connecting on 10-of-13 shots from the field, including 6-of-7 three-pointers. He was the Gatorade Boys Basketball Player of the Year in Indiana and a finalist for the Naismith national player of the year.
Bowen played at Arthur Hill High School in Saginaw, Mich., before transferring following his sophomore year in 2015 when he averaged 20.1 points, 13.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.2 blocked shots while earning all-state honors. He helped Arthur Hill to a 24-4 record and a runner-up finish in the 2015 Michigan Class A state championship, totaling 21 points and 11 rebounds in the title game. He averaged 15 points and 14 rebounds as a freshman.
Before choosing to attend UofL, Bowen had earlier considered Michigan State, Arizona, Creighton, Texas, NC State and DePaul.
Bowen is the sixth new addition to the Cardinals’ roster for next season, joining Jordan Nwora (pronounced WOR-uh; silent N), a 6-8, 215-pound forward from Buffalo, N.Y., who played last season at Vermont Academy in Saxtons River, Vt.; Darius Perry, a 6-2, 170-pound guard from Powder Springs, Ga. and Wheeler High School in Marietta, Ga.; Lance Thomas, a 6-8, 210-pound forward from Norcross (Ga.) High School; Malik Williams, a 6-11, 215-pound forward/center from Snider High School in Ft. Wayne, Ind.; and Steven Enoch, a 6-10, 250-pound forward from Norwalk, Conn., who has played the last two seasons at the University of Connecticut and will sit out the 2017-18 season.
by Kenny Klein
