Iowa freshman basketball player and Rochelle native Ben Rand will transfer to NIU next season.

Rand, a 6-foot-6 shooting guard, left Iowa fearing he wouldn’t get enough playing time. He played in 19 games this season at Iowa with a career-high five points.

As a senior at Rochelle, Rand averaged 22 points and nine rebounds while finishing No. 1 in career points and rebounds as a Hub.

NIU was the first school to offer him a scholarship before he decided on the Hawkeyes.

“It came to a decision of being in the Big Ten or being happy for the next four years,” Rand said.

Rand’s brother, Jamie, is a junior at NIU, and their father, Mike, is an alumnus.

“Northern was a little too close for him coming out of high school,” Ben’s mom, Cindy said. “He was afraid that I would be dropping by: ‘Here, Ben, here’s some cookies.’ And to be honest he’s loved it at Iowa, but he wants to play.”

Rand will be on scholarship next year but will not play until the 2005-’06 season because of NCAA transfer rules.

“We always try to end on a positive relationship with recruits because you never know what the future may bring,” said NIU coach Rob Judson, who is not allowed to comment on transfers until they enroll in classes.

Rand announced March 26 he would leave Iowa and called Judson on March 30 to tell him he’d come to NIU.

One more spot to fill?

Rand will take up a scholarship that is not open yet.

The men’s team will lose four players to graduation and has signed four high school players.

Two players may not play with NIU next year. NIU sophomore Rome Sanders was charged with domestic battery March 19. The NIU Judicial Office is handling Sanders’ situation.

NIU signee Cyrus Tate of Homewood-Flossmoor High School may not qualify academically and would go either to a prep school or junior college, releasing him of his binding letter of intent to NIU.

H-F coach Roy Condotti said he is not giving up on Tate to qualify academically and doesn’t want to sell him short.

Other transfers to NIU?

Loyola’s 6-foot-2 freshman combo guard Andre Knox is another unhappy college player who would like to transfer.

The Huskies showed interest in Knox when he was at Chicago’s Whitney Young High School. He averaged 15 points and shot 44 percent from the three-point line as a senior teamed with four other Division I players.

NIU reportedly is a possible destination for Knox, who averaged 1.4 points at Loyola this season. He also started three games for the Ramblers, who finished with a 9-20 overall record.

“Especially in our area, there are so many players, and there are so many schools that come in to recruit,” Judson said. “So many guys turned out to not be happy where they went. You always want to maintain a good relationship.”

Other Illinois natives looking to transfer are Purdue freshman Melvin Buckley (6-foot-7, guard); Illinois State sophomore Chris Burras (6-foot-6, small forward); and West Virginia freshman Jerrah Young (6-foot-7, power forward). NIU showed them previous interest coming out of high school.

Buckley, from Thornwood High School, told the Chicago Tribune he will attend an ACC school next season.

Burras is an alumnus of Chicago Leo, the same high school incoming freshman Frank Clair and assistant coach Donald Whiteside came from.

Young, formerly of St. Rita High School, is good friends and former teammates with Toledo point guard Rashay Russell.

Women’s recruit gets POY

The NIU women’s basketball team, which will graduate four players this season, has signed two players and will sign two more Thursday.

The Huskies already signed Hillcrest’s 6-foot-1 forward Nikita Odom and Bushnell-Prairie City’s 6-foot guard-forward Whitney Lowe.

Lowe was named the Peoria Journal Star’s 2004 Class A Player of the Year on March 30.

Lowe averaged 24.8 points this year, tops among players from the 78 schools in the Journal Star-circulation area. She also averaged 11.6 rebounds and 3.4 blocks.

“I think Whitney’s high school is very small [214 students],” NIU coach Carol Hammerle said. “She’s very complete, and her strengths are to take the ball to the basket and will be a strong rebounder for us.

“Nikita is huge in the mix,” added Hammerle, who said Odom is viewed as one of the four best power forwards in the state.

The Huskies will lose seniors Lindsay Secrest, Monique Davis, Jennifer Youngblood and Stephanie Smith.

H.S. shootout comes to NIU

A top high school boys’ shootout will be moved to NIU’s Convocation Center on Jan. 15 2005 after seven years at Rockford’s MetroCentre.

The ‘High School Hoops Showdown’ will begin at 6:15 p.m. with back-to-back games.

Game 1 pits local high school teams Rockford Jefferson against Rochelle. Game 2 will have West Aurora face Homewood-Flossmoor.