Recruiting Report: Kyle Wagner (2016)
NAIA schools Briar Cliff and Morningside both offered IKM-Manning small forward Kyle Wagner over the holiday break – those were his first two offers.
The 6-foot-4 small forward wasted no time making his decision, and last night he committed to be a Morningside Mustang.
Excited to announce that I will be playing basketball at Morningside college next fall looking forward to the opportunity #rollstangz🐴🐴
— Kyle Wagner (@K_Wagner30) January 7, 2016
Other schools Wagner was considering were Division III programs Buena Vista, and Central.
Wagner has been one of the top players in 1A for three seasons now, and he referenced another small school standout – from Iowa’s 2015 class – when weighing pros and cons of NAIA vs. D3.
“NAIA can give basketball scholarships and D3 can’t, so that’s definitely a pro. And the GPAC has had some really good players recently commit, I remember Erich Erdman (Forest City) committed to Briar Cliff last year, so the talent level is really high.”
Wagner has been putting up huge numbers for the Wolves since his sophomore season, this year is no exception. He’s averaging 23.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists through seven games this season.
“I think my mid-range game and my ability to get to the hoop has gotten a lot better, that’s gotten better the stronger I’ve gotten. And the my rebounding has improved, and making the extra pass. And if I have to I think I have the ability to take people one-on-one a little better,” said the 6-foot-4 wing.
Versatility has always been a specialty of Wagner’s, and he constantly is continuing to diversity his game.
“If I have to play the point guard I’ll play the point guard, if I have to play the wing I’ll play the wing, just whatever my dad needs me to do,” said the senior.
“I definitely need to be more of a leader this season, we’ve had good senior leadership in the past and now it’s my time to step up and take a hold of things. I just need to know my role and just try and figure out ways to help our team win, whether that’s rebounding, assisting, or scoring.”