Tulsa adds two at start of early basketball signing period

November 11 marks the start of the early signing period for basketball, which runs through November 18, and Tulsa signed its two commitments -- high school guard Gavyn Elkamil and junior college forward Tim Dalger -- on Wednesday.

After a stellar senior season at Pittsburg (KS), Elkamil was named the area high school boys basketball player of the year by the Joplin Globe. Despite early offers from Southern Miss and UMKC, he opted for a prep year at Link Year Prep in Branson, Missouri, reclassifying to 2021.

The 6-foot-4, 195-pounder averaged 24.6 points, 12.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals as a senior for the Pittsburg Purple Dragons, which finished 13-8 after falling in the Class 5A tournament. Against Fort Scott, he posted a career-high 37 points on 12-of-19 shooting.

"Gavyn's been a player we've known about for quite some time and he actually attended our summer camps in the past being from nearby Pittsburg, Kansas," said Tulsa head coach Frank Haith. "His game improved rapidly throughout his high school career, and he was fantastic this summer in the events we were able to evaluate online. He's skilled, strong and aggressive.

"We love Gavyn's ability to shoot the basketball with confidence, but also create for his teammates to do whatever it takes to win. Most importantly, Gavyn is high character, plays the game with passion and he competes with a chip on his shoulder. Those are all three qualities that have helped us be successful here at Tulsa."

Elkamil's recruiting process picked up this spring and summer with additional offers from St. Louis, UTSA, UC Davis, SEMO, Northern Colorado, SIU-Edwardsville and Towson. Tulsa coaches offered on July 18, and less than a month later, the 3-star prospect committed to the Golden Hurricane.

"The legacy they are building really drew me in," Elkamil told Inside Tulsa Sports. "The way the coaches made me a priority and not just a want. I really like the coaching staff as well, and it being close to home is a great thing as well."

Elkamil's coach at Pittsburg High had only great things to say about his former star.

"Gavyn is an extremely skilled basketball player that works tirelessly on his game," former Pittsburg coach Kyle Roelfs said. "He is a very well-rounded player with a very high basketball IQ, and he was an extremely enjoyable player to be around because of the type of person that he is."

Dalger is a 6-foot-7 wing from Independence Community College that had a dozen scholarship offers but felt most comfortable with the Golden Hurricane.

"Just the opportunity in itself. Coach (Frank) Haith gave me an opportunity to play at the highest level," Dalger told Inside Tulsa Sports. "I’m gonna take it and run with it, and be the person most believe I can't."

Dalger also held offers from Central Michigan, Florida Atlantic, Texas State, Weber State, UTSA, Robert Morris, Illinois-Chicago, ETSU and others.

In 29 games as a freshman last season, Dalger helped Independence to 23-9 record, as the Pirates fell in the quarterfinals of the Region VI tournament. Dalger averaged 11.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 0.9 assists, while shooting 53.9 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from three and 66.9 percent from the free throw line.

"I play hard," he explained. "I play like I have nothing to lose. I do it all."

A native of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Dalger was a three-year letter winner and two-year starter at Calvary Christian Academy, where he averaged 12.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and shot 48-percent from the field as a senior.

"Tim is another versatile guy that fits well with how we play and is similar in style of play to Brandon Rachal," said Haith. "He is 6-foot-7, has toughness and ball skills for his size. He was one of the better junior college prospects last season as a freshman and would have been an All-America caliber player as a sophomore.

"With the NCAA and NJCAA ruling that current student-athletes get their 2020-21 season back next year, Tim has three years of eligibility remaining once he gets to Tulsa and that's a terrific development. Being at Independence Community College, he was another local guy we had the chance to follow last year. And like Gavyn he is a high-academic student-athlete that will mesh well with what we are all about at TU."

The Hurricane still has scholarships available and are recruiting several other talented prospects, including 3-star guard Houston Mallette of Newport Beach (CA) Pacifica Christian. Mallette, a former Penn State commit, has narrowed his choices to Tulsa, Wake Forest, Pepperdine and Loyola-Chicago, and plans to sign in the early period.

Tulsa is also pursuing NEO big man Nikita Konstantynovskyi and Missouri City (TX) Hightower forward Tyrone Baker.