Where Are They Now: Class of 2014 (Part I)
(Photo credit: CU Independent)
Earlier this month, we began a series taking a look at how some of Colorado’s top past prep hoops stars are faring in their college careers.
We kicked off with the 2015 class, which featured a handful of prospects who made big impacts as freshmen last season.
The 2014 class is continuing to make some noise of its own. Let’s take a closer look at how some of its standouts are faring as they head into their third (already??) college seasons:
Dominique Collier. Then: Denver East. Now: Junior at Colorado.
Collier took a big step last year after an up-and-down freshman season, starting 33-of-34 for a Buffs team that made the NCAA Tournament. Collier averaged 7.5 points per game and showed the ability to take over the game in stretches. While he’s still working to find consistent confidence at the position, Collier’s growth last year provides hope that he can be one of the conference’s top point guards in 2016-17.
Ronnie Harrell Jr. Then: Denver East. Now: Redshirt sophomore at Creighton.
The other part of the Angels’ electric, championship-winning backcourt in 2014, Harrell, who has blossomed to 6-7 played in 29 games as a redshirt freshman last season, averaging 3.2 points per game. He scored a season-high 14 points in a victory over North Texas in December, and he closed the season strong with at least six points in three of his last five games. Given that momentum, and his year of experience at the major-college level, expect Harrell to play a bigger role for Creighton this season.
Ghassan Nehme. Then: Cheyenne Mountain. Now: Sophomore at Fairleigh Dickinson.
Nehme, who averaged 27.1 points per game as a senior at Cheyenne Mountain, spent a year after high school at a prep school in New Jersey. As a freshman at FDU last season, the 6-3 guard averaged 4.1 points per game and 1.6 points per game on a team that made the NCAA Tournament. He got a taste of college basketball’s biggest stage and picked up two assists in nine minutes of the team’s first-four loss to Florida Gulf Coast. Nehme should have an increased role in the FDU backcourt this season.
J.D. Paige. Then: Rangeview. Now: Redshirt sophomore at Colorado State.
After spending his first year in college as a redshirt, Paige had some nice moments for the Rams in 2015-16. He averaged 4.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He had 10 points and two blocks in the Rams’ opening-round win in the Mountain West tournament. The 6-3 guard found multiple ways to affect the game off the bench. Whether it was scoring or distributing or coming up with timely defensive stops, Paige showed he could make a big impact at the Division I level. It will be fun to see what he can do going into his sophomore season.
Chase Foster. Then: Valor Christian. Now: Junior at University of San Francisco.
First and foremost, Foster earned All-West Coast Conference academic honors during his sophomore season with the Dons. On the court, he made a big jump from a freshman season in which he was seldom used. Foster, who averaged 20 points per game as a senior at Valor Christian, started the first nine games of the season for the Dons last year, and the 6-5 forward averaged 4.4 points and 1.7 rebounds. He was fourth on the team with 27 3-pointers.