In his first year at Penn, Glen Miller visibly upped the program’s recruiting aim from where it had been under Fran Dunphy. Though he ultimately lost out to Stanford for big prize Josh Owens, Miller did bring a number of excellent recruits who project very well at the Ivy League level. Several of them could get major minutes right away as an inexperienced and young Quaker team looks to rebuild after graduating three important veterans this past spring.
G/F Tyler Bernardini – 6-6, 205 lbs. (Carlsbad, CA – Francis W. Parker School)
Bernardini was the only Ivy League recruit in HoopScoop’s Top 400, coming in at 325th, and widely is considered the top freshman in the league this season. He was rated two stars by Scout.com and given a 70 rating and ranked 134th among small forwards by Scouts, Inc. He committed to the Quakers in October, turning down Columbia, Yale, and San Diego State, as well as late interest from California and Northwestern. A dead-eye shooter with excellent feel for the game, Bernardini has been compared to a more athletic version of Jeff Schiffner. He should figure prominently in Miller’s wing rotation as a freshman, possibly even as a starter, and looks to be an early favorite for the league’s Rookie of the Year award.
SG Remy Cofield – 6-4, 205 lbs. (Newton, MA – Roxbury Latin School)
Cofield was the final piece of the Quakers’ recruiting puzzle, picking Penn in December over Columbia, Binghamton, and New Hampshire after receiving early interest from Massachusetts. The Roxbury Latin grad was rated two stars by Scout.com and was the second highest ranked Ivy recruit according to HoopScoop (433rd), while Scouts, Inc. rated him a 75 — the best among Penn’s 2007 recruiting class. He has very good size for a shooting guard, though reportedly his shooting form needs some work. Despite a bottleneck on the wing for Penn, Cofield could be in the mix this season.
PF Jack Eggleston – 6-8, 215 lbs. (Noblesville, IN – St. Thomas Aquinas HS)
Eggleston was recruited initially by the previous staff, and seemed to disappear from Penn’s radar after the coaching change. However, Miller and his assistants re-established contact with the Indiana native enrolled at St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida, and he ended up at Penn after officially visiting American and Lafayette. HoopScoop ranked him 879th in the Class of 2007 and Scouts, Inc. rated him a 70, while Rivals.com and Scout.com Hoopscoop rated him two and one stars, respectively. More skilled than many of the high school scouting reports suggested, an unsettled frontcourt could mean an opportunity for playing time for Eggleston at the four.
PG Harrison Gaines – 6-1, 175 lbs. (Victorville, CA – Serrano HS)
Gaines made a big splash when he committed to Penn over a number of Mountain West, WAC, and Big West programs, as well as some interest from Stanford, USC, and and Washington during his junior year at Serrano High School in California. However, HoopScoop didn’t seem particularly impressed, ranking him just 977th, while Scouts.com rated him a mere 70 and Rivals.com and Scout.com gave him two stars. Gaines has reminded many who have seen him of former Ivy League Player of the Year Jason Forte. He has excellent quickness, though several scouting reports have questioned his strength and decision-making, and like Forte entering college, he needs to work on his shot. Still, with no experienced pure point guard on the roster, Gaines may end up starting at the point, and could be another strong Ivy Rookie of the Year candidate for the Quakers.
SF Dan Monckton – 6-6, 205 lbs. (Glenview, IL – Glenbrook South HS)
Monckton is another two-star recruit according to Scout.com, choosing Penn over offers from Brown, Princeton, and Eastern Illinois. HoopScoop ranked him 896th, while Scouts, Inc. gave him a 73, albeit as a power forward. Monckton missed the first two months of the basketball season after breaking his collarbone on the football field in November. An exceptional leaper, Mockton may find himself in between forward positions in the college game.
PF Conor Turley – 6-7, 220 lbs. (La Canada, CA – Campbell Hall School)
Turley originally committed to Miller at Brown in 2005, but switched to Penn after spending the last two years in Chicago serving as a missionary for the Church of Latter Day Saints. He starred on a Campbell Hall team that went 32-0 in 2004-05 and won the California Division IV state title that spring. Turley figures to play at power forward collegiately, but he’ll need to add some muscle to do so, and after two years away from organized basketball, there may be some rust to shake off.
