2015 Arizona PG Evelyn commits to Nebraska

After what has been a tumultuous month for Nebraska basketball since the end of the 2014-15 season, the Huskers finally got some good news on Tuesday morning.

Following an official visit to Lincoln this past weekend, 2015 Hillcrest (Ariz.) Academy point guard Bakari Evelyn decided to wrap up his recruiting process and verbally commit to NU. The announcement comes just one day befor the start of the spring signing period, when Evelyn plans to sign his Letter of Intent.

"When I visited Nebraska, it was a good feel when I was on campus, and just the environment was real nice," Evelyn told HuskerOnline.com. "The coaching staff was really supportive, and it just felt like the right place for me."

What really stood out for the 6-foot-3, 176-pound native of Detroit was the family atmosphere not only within Nebraska's locker room, but around the Husker fan base and community.

"Really, just the players," Evelyn said. "Meeting the guys and hanging out with them, seeing how close they were and how much of a team they really were. Then like the fans - we went to the baseball game there and there were a lot of people that came out to support the baseball team. I just feel like the fan support there throughout the whole year, it's a community behind Nebraska. It was really nice, and it made it easy for me to decide to go there."

Evelyn will have traveled an unusual path to get to Nebraska. After winning three straight Michigan Class D state championships at Southfield Christian from his freshman to junior year, the all-state selection decided he needed a fresh start and transferred to Gilbert (Ariz.) Christian Academy for his senior year. Along with a clean slate on the court, Evelyn also wanted to move closer to his grandfather, who passed away recently.

However, due to issues with his transfer - which he said were never clearly explained to him - the Arizona Interscholastic Association him ineligible to play for Gilbert Christian. Evelyn was able to join up with Hillcrest for the final nine games of the season, in which he averaged 25.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists.

"It was really tough," Evelyn said. "It was a really emotional time for me and my family. I was looking to get a new start away from all the drama, and it kind of followed me down here. It was tough, especially not being able to play."

Things ended up turning out OK for Evelyn, though, as he picked Nebraska over UTEP - where he officially visited two weeks ago - and other schools that were showing interest like Michigan, Oklahoma State, Temple and Toledo.

As for his future role with the Huskers, Evelyn said head coach Tim Miles told him he will have a very good chance to play immediately as a true freshman next season, particularly following the transfer of freshman point guard Tarin Smith. Evelyn said he's ready to do whatever was necessary to help NU succeed.

"I feel like I am a true point guard, but I can score the ball and I can make plays in a lot of different ways," Evelyn said. "I just try to bring excitement and energy and just a competitive spirit and wanting to win."

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