RECRUITING

ASU basketball coach Bobby Hurley lets sophomore Markus Howard know scholarship stands

Richard Obert
azcentral sports
All-Arizona boys  basketball player Markus Howard Perry High, Saturday, March 7, 2015 in Tempe, Ariz.

Sophomore guard Markus Howard, who will be leaving Gilbert Perry after this school year to join Findlay Prep's national powerhouse basketball program in Las Vegas, said that new Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley reached out to him Sunday to let him know the scholarship offer still stands.

Howard, a two-time azcentral sports All-Arizona selection who led the state in scoring with more than 32 points a game last season, reopened his recruiting last month, before Herb Sendek was fired. Howard had committed to ASU before his sophomore season, but felt he had jumped at it too soon and wanted to see what else was out there.

"(Hurley) said he saw some film and liked what he saw and was looking forward to seeing me play," Howard said.

Howard said it's too early to say if ASU is back in front as his recruiting ramps up, mainly because he needs more time to get to know Hurley.

Last week, Howard, who is playing this spring for the AAU Las Vegas Prospects, picked up offers from Texas Tech and UNLV.

"It's too early to say, because I don't really know him that well," said Howard, who will rejoin the Prospects for a tournament in Kentucky this weekend. "But he seemed like a great guy. I liked talking to him. He was talking about the future.

"I still have a lot of time to figure it out."

Meanwhile, Gilbert Christian 6-9 junior forward Mitch Lightfoot, who decommitted from New Mexico last Friday, has had recent inquiries from Arizona, Kansas, Nebraska, Vanderbilt, Creighton, Utah and Stanford. They are all expected to see him this week.