Prospect Spotlight: Tyrese Eugene
Tyrese Eugene, 6’0 2018 PG, comes into his senior year at Ironwood High School as a starter the past two years. Despite the potential to be a 3 year starter and participation on Team Bayless, Eugene has managed to be relatively unknown to many. Ironwood came out of nowhere last year and made it to the elite 8 due to strong play from Eugene and a number of other skilled players. However, in order for Ironwood to continue to be successful, Eugene will need to play an even bigger role.
Tyrese Eugene High School
As mentioned earlier, Eugene will most likely enter his 3rd year as a starter. Eugene has been apart of a program that has largely changed its identity. As a freshman, Eugene participated on a freshman team that won only two games. Further, as a sophomore, he entered a starting role on the varsity level. The team went 9-17 despite making it to their sectional semi-final.
When asked what his high school experience has been like, he did not shy away. He mentioned that it was “rough” at times. However, he is grateful and has “loved” the opportunity to be a “big part of setting the culture for the future Ironwood basketball players”.
As a junior, Eugene and Ironwood made a huge leap in arguably the toughest region in 5A. The team finished the season with a 17-10 record and many notable wins. Despite his consistent and solid play, Eugene did not receive much attention due to the well-balanced attack of Ironwood. Star point guard Cody Carmichael, who broke the all-time assists record and the single season steals record, will leave for his LDS mission. In addition, Geoff Hibbitt continues his career at Arizona Christian University. A couple of their other notable 2017 prospects are hopeful to tryout at a local junior college and continue their playing careers.
Needless to say, there appears to be a lot of unknowns for a group that returns to the 5A Metro region. With that said, Eugene has been consistent throughout the process. He has been the team’s best on ball defender, a key contributor on the glass, a solid ball handler, and a knock down shooter. Despite being best at slashing, he took on more of a shooting role. This was due in large part to the solid guard play of Carmichael.
Eugene knows the task ahead of him. He remarked that his goal for this year is to “make my teammates better in any possible way”. One of the things that he mentioned that he can do to make his teammates better is to be “competitive” at all times. Further, he acknowledged the importance of him “being a leader at all times” and demonstrating his “leadership by example”. His favorite experience at Ironwood has been making the state tournament. In addition, he enjoyed winning the first state tournament game for Ironwood in 11 years. However, he does not feel as though his work is done in post-season play.
As Eugene enters his final year as an Eagle, he remarked that he has put in a lot of work. In particular, he has worked relentlessly to improve his “shooting and finishing”. In order for Ironwood to continue to have success, Eugene will need to continue to improve and play a huge role for this team.
Tyrese Eugene College Interest
At this point, Eugene noted that he does not have any college offers. However, he has received strong interest from Arizona Christian University, Ottawa University, and Lincoln Trails Community College.
As far as what he is looking for in a college program, he noted he is looking for “a team that has a good coaching staff”. Further, he wants to be apart of a program where the coaches “care about more than basketball”. He wants to ensure that wherever he goes next, he has a coaching staff that is going to “invest into me as a player and a person”.
Eugene recently participated at the Arizona Christian Elite Camp. While at the camp, he performed well and drew the attention of the coaching staff. In addition, he was worked out in front of a assistant and head coaches for a number of other programs.
Tyrese Eugene College Projection
Eugene is a mid to high NAIA or NCAA Division II prospect. His physical style of play has made him attractive at this level. He is extremely strong and gets into the paint at will. Further, he is ready to play due to his ability to guard. He is strong and quick enough to keep guards in front at the next level.