Tyger Campbell off to UCLA

Paul SteenoFebruary 6, 20182 Comments

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Tyger has taken official visits to Purdue and DePaul this year. (Photo courtesy of Max Preps)

DePaul shot their shot, it rattled around the rim a few times, hung at the front of the rim for an excruciating moment, but ultimately fell harmlessly to the floor.

The Tyger Campbell recruitment saga is over, and the four-star point guard from La Lumiere School in La Porte, Indiana. announced on Twitter on Tuesday morning the he has chosen UCLA as his college destination over DePaul, Purdue, and Maryland. Campbell is rated as the 13th-best point guard and the 72nd-best player in the country in the class of 2018 according to 247Sports.com. Campbell originally targeted Thursday as his decision day but decided he needed a few extra days to mull his decision.

Campbell, who reclassified to the class of 2018, committed to the Blue Demons in early May. However, in early September, he reopened his recruitment. Throughout the recruiting process, DePaul was one of his most likely landing spots, with ”Crystal Ball” projections on 247Sports.com giving the Blue Demons a 75 percent chance of landing Campbell.

DePaul has significant connections to the 6-foot point guard.. Five former La Lumiere graduates, Marin Maric, Brandon Cyrus, Pantelis Xidias, Jalen Coleman-Lands and James Anderson, are currently on DePaul’s roster. Blue Demon freshmen Jaylen Butz and Justin Roberts played with Campbell on the Spiece Indy Heat in AAU ball. Blue Demon assistant coach Shane Heirman was the head coach at La Lumiere for the first two seasons of Campbell’s career and the two have a strong connection.

The Blue Demons have three point guards on their roster for next season. The elder statesman Devin Gage was the starter at the beginning of the season before sustaining a season-ending ruptured Achilles tendon in early December. Roberts has a high ceiling, but hasn’t had a consistent role this season. With the season winding down, it’s becoming increasingly likely that new arrival Flynn Cameron uses his redshirt year this season, and sees his first game action next season.

It’s a tough day for a Blue Demon team that was on the brink of signing this program-changing recruit.