Marshall Plumlee has two brothers who will play for Duke next year. Cody Zeller is the younger brother of Luke (Notre Dame) and Tyler Zeller (North Carolina).
Both have a ton of potential, and both showed that in Indiana Elite One's first game at the It Takes 5ive Classic on Monday.
Though these twin towers are Top 60 recruits, according to Scout.com, neither was overly impressive. Still, both had their moments and look as if they could be solid college players with good coaching and more work in the weight room.
Zeller rebounded well and had a block, but did not play his best game offensively. Plumlee, meanwhile, has a decent post move on the low block and is very quick up and down the court, but also missed a couple easy baskets.
Following the first game, Zeller said he holds offers from IU, Butler, Purdue and Iowa, though many think the Washington, Ind., native might get more attention as a high school senior.
"I didn't play real well offensively," he said about his first game, "but you can always play defense. The team won, so that's the most important thing."
Zeller says the biggest thing he can do for his game is hit the weights. The lanky big man (he looked at leas 6-foot-9 or 6-foot-10) thinks "that will help everything," including rebounding and passing.
He said he has no timetable set for making a decision, a plans on making campus visits once AAU season is over in August. Zeller recently took a trip to IU, but he said it was more just to play basketball than anything (his hometown gym was temporarily closed).
Zeller does not think his brothers playing at Notre Dame and North Carolina will play a factor in his recruitment, though he is more familiar with those campus. Similarly, he said he would not base his decision on location, despite the closeness of IU.
Lastly, Zeller hopes to improve his outside shot. Though he missed a 3-point attempt this afternoon, he did show his ability to step out and shoot.
"It would be a big weapon if I could get it down," he said.
In the evening game, Zeller was said to have scored nine points, grabbed five rebounds, and pull down a block. In that same game, Plumlee reportedly had 14.
Earlier that day, following the first game, Plumlee mentioned offers from IU, Notre Dame, North Carolina State, Virginia, Minnesota and LSU.
Plumleee, though a Warsaw, Ind. native, plays his high school basketball at The Christ School in Arden, N.C. Being away from home during the year, location won't play much of a factor in his recruitment either.
"I've kind of gotten used to being away from home so I could be playing in China and I wouldn't mind," he joked.
Plumlee mentioned his "strong (family) roots" up near Purdue, and thus only recently has he seen IU. But after seeing Bloomington, he said he is "definitely going to pay more attention" to IU and he "can't wait to learn more about the program."
He added that he looks forward to seeing how Crean does this year with IU.
Plumlee, who is just shy of 7-feet tall, plans to work on all aspects of his game, because "if you're not getting better, you're getting worse," he said.
