Marquette Gets Verbal Commitment from 2014 F Malek Harris

Here's a fun lesson for everyone: When a kid says that he's not going to commit to any school until the fall unless he gets his socks knocked off, as Malek Harris did when speaking with PowerMizzou.com back on May 31, it's a good idea to arrange an unofficial visit to campus on a day when you're hosting a reunion of former players.

Apparently Harris was quite impressed with Marquette and the goings on surrounding the Backyard Barbeque yesterday, as he verbally committed to attend Marquette and play for Buzz Williams beginning in the fall of 2014. Of course, based on what Harris told the Chicago Sun-Times, maybe it didn't take that much convincing once he arrived on campus:

Harris himself knew his trip to Marquette on Wednesday was different in comparison to other visits because he couldn't fall asleep on the car ride to Milwaukee. This was the first visit among several he had taken where Harris couldn't get any shut-eye during the ride to campus.

"I was thinking so much about Marquette and so excited I couldn't sleep," says Harris. "But Marquette has always stood out to me, and I felt like if everything was the way I expected it was going to be on the visit, I would commit."

It also doesn't hurt that Harris appears to be close with Marquette 2015 verbal commit Nick Noskowiak:

SO to my guy @24_MoneyTeam_10 visiting Marquette today! Show him some love golden eagle fans! #Mubb

— Nick Noskowiak (@NickNoskowiak) June 26, 2013

After a high school season where Harris missed 11 games due to injury, he's starting to garner attention amongst recruiting gurus. Rivals' brand new rankings have him as a four star recruit and ranked 120th in the country, although yesterday Rivals' Eric Bossi said that Harris would be in the top 75 in today's new rankings, and called Harris "a perfect Buzz Williams type." Evan Daniels of Scout called him a top 100 forward yesterday as well, and ESPN's Reggie Rankin says Harris "will be a hand in glove fit" for MU (Insider link).

At 6'7", 200 lbs., Harris sounds physically similar to Juan Anderson. But he wears the size differently, and as you can see from the following highlight video, he seems comfortable out on the perimeter making the smart pass as well as mixing it up inside to get a rebound and a basket. Sounds exactly like the kind of switchable guy Buzz Williams wants.

Harris' commitment leaves Buzz Williams with three scholarships to fill for fall of 2014 with the departures of seniors Davante Gardner, Jake Thomas, Jamil Wilson, as well as the theoretical end of eligibility for the Doctor Of Defense, Chris Otule.

(h/t to College Basketball Talk for the video)