Ojeleye on IU: “They’re definitely near the top in my mind”

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Semi Ojeleye (Ottawa, Kan.), the No. 33 overall player in the Class of 2013 according to ESPN.com, told Inside The Hall at the NBPA Top 100 Camp that Indiana is “definitely near the top in my mind.”

The small forward lists Indiana, Duke, Arizona, UCLA and Wisconsin as schools pursuing him the hardest.

He said he spoke on Monday with Tom Crean, who is pushing for him to set up an unofficial visit to Bloomington for next week. That conversation with Crean focused more on getting to know each other off the court rather than basketball.

Ojeleye plans on narrowing his list of schools next week. He’ll then set up official visits based on what programs remain.

Among those could be Indiana, a program that has impressed him as of late.

“They’re a storied program,” he said of the Hoosiers. “I’ve seen guys come in, and they are just a totally different player from year to year. Obviously they are doing something good.”

“They’ve been struggling a little bit, but every program struggles from time to time. They are going to get me better if I go there.”

Ojeleye said he doesn’t plan on making a college decision before his high school season next December.

Until then, he’ll continue to play well against some of the best competition in the country. He had 10 points and four assists in his team’s first game on the campus of the University of Virginia.

In the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League with his AAU team, Mokan Elite, Ojeleye is averaging 16.0 points and 5.6 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game.

(Photo credit: NY2LASports.com)

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