TCU head coach Jamie Dixon hauled in another recruiting class, as he announced the signing of three four-star players and one of the top players from New Zealand Wednesday for the 2018-19 season.
Kendric Davis, Kaden Archie, Russell Barlow, and Angus McWilliam all signed with TCU and will be freshmen next season for the Horned Frogs.
Before Dixon coached his first game in Fort Worth, TCU had only signed one other four-star recruit: Karviar Shepherd. His first signee was four-star guard Jaylen Fisher, and he signed another four-star player in center Kevin Samuel last year.
Davis, a 5-10 guard, averaged 23.0 points and 7.4 assists per game as a junior at Sam Houston High School. The Houston native is a four-star recruit according to 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals. He was selected to the all-region team and as all-district MVP is sophomore and junior years. Davis is ranked as the No. 4 player in Texas by 247Sports as well as the No. 15 point guard in the nation.
“Kendric is a tough, hard-nosed point guard,” Dixon said. “He possesses good leadership skills and has great vision on the court. He has a tremendous burst of speed with the ability to change pace.”
Tomorrow I’ll be signing at Sam Houston high school at 2pm in the boys gym if y’all know me y’all know I’m out the trenches fr show love tomorrow everybody invited I mean everybody ?‼️ pic.twitter.com/IwHf6vZnpv
— 150 C.E.O (@kdavis5__) November 8, 2017
Two of the signees are a short drive down the highway from TCU. Archie is from Midlothian, Texas and Barlow is from Richardson, Texas.
Archie, rated a four-star recruit by 247Sports and Rivals, averaged 18.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game as a junior last season at Midlothian High School. Archie, a 6-6 forward, was ranked as the No. 3 player in the state of Texas, the No. 16 small forward in the nation and No. 73 nationally by Scout.
“Kaden is a versatile, physical, skilled wing that can play multiple positions,” Dixon said. “He’s very competitive and has the ability to become a great defender.”
Officially a Frog!!!??? #ripgranny #ripJL #ripCK #BCB? pic.twitter.com/r3PQ5RtzIC
— Agent zer0?™ (@KadenArchie) November 8, 2017
Archie said the passion one of his future teammates displayed during the recruiting process won him over.
“As soon as Kendric Davis saw I got the offer from TCU, he’s been on me ever since the summer,” Archie said. “He’s hit me up on Twitter, texting, any social media app that he could use to hit me up he did to try and get me to come to TCU. He’s one of the hardest recruiting players out there, texting me every day, telling me stuff about the school, and it’s one thing to be wanted by the coaching staff and the players already there, but the recruits, that spoke volumes about the program.”
Barlow, a 6-10 center with a 7-foot wingspan, was named to the all-district team as a junior last season at Lloyd V. Berkner High School. He has a four-star ranking by ESPN. He is ranked as the No. 14 center in the country and the No. 14 player in the state of Texas by 247Sports.
“Russell has a big, strong body with very good hands and a soft touch around the basket,” Dixon said. “We expect him to improve due to his strong work ethic.”
Gofrogs pic.twitter.com/eVSm7Mrvyn
— Russell Barlow Jr. (@Bigrussell21) November 8, 2017
The only non-Texan in the class is McWilliam, who is a 6-11 center/forward from Christchurch, New Zealand. As a 17-year old, McWilliam was a member of the New Zealand U-19 National Team this past summer. He averaged 27 points, 22 rebounds, four assists and three blocks per game at Middleton Grange School last season. McWilliam also played for Mainland Eagles Academy from 2014-17.
“We are excited to add a guy who is big and has good skills like Angus,” said Dixon. “He has great basketball talents, but also excels academically.”
Good to be a part of the ?Fam https://t.co/4T64hfyz6D
— Angus McWilliam (@angus_mcwilliam) November 7, 2017
TCU begins its season Nov. 10 with an 8 p.m. tipoff against ULM at Schollmaier Arena.
