MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Isaiah Cottrell is a young man on his own island these days, well, sort of.
The 6-foot-9, 4-star forward decided to make the move this summer to play his senior season at Huntington Prep — located a half-mile from Marshall University’s campus — to play out his senior season.
On Friday, Cottrell plans to sign his national letter of intent to play basketball at West Virginia.
“There are some times when I show up to games in West Virginia gear and I get a few stares my way,” Cottrell said. “There’s a lot of hate for the Mountaineers here. There’s some love, too. The people here have been really supportive of me, which I appreciate.”
Cottrell will be part of the Mountaineers’ 2020 recruiting class that includes Wildwood, N.J. prospect Taj Thweatt and junior-college point guard Kedrian Johnson.
Johnson and Thweatt both signed Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period.
“We are really excited to have Taj join the West Virginia family,” West Virginia coach Bob Huggins said. “He brings much-needed athleticism and has the ability to play multiple positions on the front line.”
Letters of intent must also have a parent’s signature, so WVU is not expecting Johnson’s letter to arrive until later Thursday.
Cottrell, who played three years at Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas, said his move back to West Virginia happened quickly, but it was a move to help him better prepare him for taking the next step in college.
“It’s an adjustment for me in the sense that I’m on a team with six or seven other Division I recruits,” Cottrell said. “That played a part in the decision, because it helps me to learn to how to build a role instead of just being the star player. Moving up to college, you’re not going to be the guy your first year. I didn’t want to get lost or be humbled when I got to college. It helps being around other talented guys. They help you get better in practice.”
While Cottrell was born in Jacksonville, Fla., his mother is from Parkersburg and they lived in that area not long after Cottrell was born.
He still has grandparents and an aunt and uncle in Belpre, Ohio, located just across the Ohio River from Parkersburg and Cottrell said it was a good thing to be close to family.
“It doesn’t hurt to be closer to WVU, either,” Cottrell said. “I know I can go and see coach Huggins whenever I can. I’m closer to my future teammates, too. That meant a lot to me.”
Those future teammates could open up a world of sizable potential for the Mountaineers, who are playing this season with highly-recruited sophomore center Derek Culver and freshman center Oscar Tshiebwe.
“You never know what’s going to happen, but we would certainly be a very big team if everyone comes back,” Cottrell said. “I would love for Oscar to come back for another year, just to be able to play next to someone with his size and speed. Derek is already one of the best rebounders in the Big 12 and he’s so strong and talented. Those are two big guys and obviously I would love to be able to play next to both of them next season.”
The WVU women’s team added three to its 2020 recruiting class, including 6-4 forward JeAnna Cunningham from Brentwood, N.Y., who was ranked the 13th-best high school post player in the nation by ESPN.
Cunningham averaged 12.6 points and 14.2 rebounds as a high school junior at St. Francis Prep.
“JeAnna is an athletic, long forward that will be really successful in our fast break,” WVU women’s coach Mike Carey said. “She runs the floor well and is an elite rebounder, great shot blocker and can shoot the jump shot. JeAnna will impact the game on both ends of the floor.”
Carey also signed 3-star guards Giana “Gigi” Hernandez-Boulden, out of Trenton (N.J.) Catholic Academy and Taziah Jenks, from Mercy Academy in Louisville, Ky.
“Gigi, JeAnna, and Taziah will be great additions to our program,” Carey said. “We addressed the needs that we wanted to fill with this class. We are excited about not only signing these great players but also adding three incredible families to our program.”
WVU MEN’S BASKETBALL 2020 SIGNING CLASS
* Isaiah Cottrell, Huntington Prep. A 6-foot-9, 4-star forward who averaged 15.2 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.3 blocks per game as a junior for Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas). Is ranked No. 82 overall in the 2020 class by ESPN. Cottrell is expected to sign Friday.
* Taj Thweatt, Wildwood (N.J.) Catholic. A 6-7 forward and a 3-star recruit, according to Rivals.com, He averaged 20.2 points and 10.7 rebounds per game as a junior.
* Kedrian Johnson, a 6-3 point guard from Dallas, who is a sophomore at Temple (Texas) College. He is averaging 20.0 points and 6.0 rebounds through four games this season. Is a 3-star recruit, according to Rivals.com. He signed Wednesday, but letter isn’t expected to arrive at WVU until today.
WVU WOMEN’S BASKETBALL 2020 CLASS
* JeAnna Cunningham, St. Francis (N.Y.) Prep. A 6-foot-4, 3-star forward who averaged 12.6 points and 14.2 rebounds per game as a junior. Is ranked the No. 13 post player by ESPN.
* Giana Hernandez-Boulden, Trenton (N.J.) Catholic Academy. A 5-11 guard and a 3-star recruit, according to ESPN. She averaged 11.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game as a junior.
* Taziah Jenks, Mercy Academy (Louisville, Ky.). A 6-1 guard from Louisville, who is a 3-star recruit, according to ESPN. She averaged 18.0 points and 8.4 rebounds as a junior.
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