Wally Ellenson, a 6-foot-5, 195-pound rising senior wing from Rice Lake (Wis.) High, has committed to Minnesota, giving Gopher head coach Tubby Smith his first commitment for the Class of 2012. Ellenson, who is one of the top players in the Midwest in the Class of 2012, shined this summer as a member of Minnesota Pump N Run AAU program this summer. GopherHole.com caught with Ellenson this afternoon to learn the latest on his decision.
Ellenson visited the campus Saturday with his family after receiving a recent scholarship offer from the Gophers. He also made an unofficial visit to Minnesota in October of 2009 and attended the Gophers’ homecoming game versus Purdue and Minnesota-Iowa basketball game in 2010 and Minnesota-Ohio State game this past season.
Ellenson helped lead Rice Lake to a 16-8 mark, losing to River Falls 46-36 in the playoffs. He averaged 21.2 points per game and scored 40 points in a 84-72 loss to Roseville in the East Metro Showcase and 36 versus Superior in a 82-70 loss. Ellenson had 25 points in a 66-63 win over St. Cloud Apollo in the Border Battle as he hit the game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer in the win over Apollo.
Ellenson led Rice Lake to a 13-11 mark as he averaged a team-best 14.8 points per game for the Warriors as a sophomore. They lost to Baldwin-Woodville 65-64 in overtime in the second round of the WIAA playoffs. He is a two-time Big Rivers Conference first-team all-conference pick.
Ellenson transferred to Rice Lake from Eau Claire Memorial, where he averaged 10.1 points per game as a freshman for the Old Abes, who finished 6-15. He was named honorable mention All-Big Rivers Conference.
Ellenson helped lead the Playground Warriors 15-and-under AAU team to runner-up finishes at the Hoosier Shootout and Kentucky Hoopfest last summer, but he switched to the Minnesota Pump N Run program this season.
His younger brother, Ellwood, a 6-foot-7 rising junior, averaged 6.8 points per game and his rising ninth grader brother, Henry, is already dunking the basketball and some say he might be the best of the three. He received calls from schools such as Purdue, Minnesota, Colorado State and Nebraska.
His father, John, played college basketball at Marquette and Wisconsin.
Ellenson is also a standout high jumper who won the Wisconsin state championship with a 6-foot-6 jump. He broke his father’s previous school record and had a jump of 6-foot-11 earlier this season. Ellenson finished seventh in the WIAA Track & Field State Championship at 6-foot-4 as a freshman and second at 6-foot-6 last season. Ellenson finished with a jump of 6-foot-8 in the Big Rivers Conference Championship as a sophomore.
Ellenson also had scholarship offers from St. Louis, Milwaukee, Oklahoma State, Utah, Nebraska, Green Bay, Detroit, Loyola, Duquesne, Northern Illinois, Illinois-Chicago, North Dakota State, Cal Poly, Dayton, Washington, Drake, Pepperdine, Holy Cross and West Virginia.
GopherHole.com caught with Ellenson this afternoon to learn the latest on his decision.
GH: What all did you get to see on your visit Saturday?
WE: The visit went great. We got to go around and see the football camp, their stadium, the School of Engineering and Business and got to know the coaches.
GH: What made you decide to commit today?
WE: It was great talking to Tubby. I have been down to the program. Knowing that it is so close that all my friends and family can make it to the games was also great to know.
GH: Have you talked to the other schools that were recruiting you at all to notify them that you are going to be a Golden Gopher?
WE: I haven’t, but I’m sure that my AAU coaches will let them know pretty soon.
GH: If I had told you Friday that you would be committing three days later would you have been surprised by that?
WE: Yes. I took the visit and it went a lot better than I thought it would. It was good.
GH: Was there any frustration that you felt that you hadn’t heard from Minnesota as much as other schools until recently?
WE: A little bit. We were wondering where they were at, what they were thinking, but as soon as they offered and we talked to them, I felt really good about it.
GH: Do you feel like a weight off your shoulders already having just made the announcement?
WE: Yes, a little bit. It is great. It’s great to be a Gopher.
GH: Did you like the recruiting process or did it get a little bit old and tiring after awhile?
WE: It was a good experience. It was nice to talk to a lot of coaches. After awhile, it got a little heavy, but otherwise,. It was a lot of fun.
GH: What types of things after you going to be working on leading up to the season to continue to improve yourself as a player?
WE: Just keep working on my shot. Making the range father out and dribbling and passing.