Jaquan Lyle is one of the most highly sought-after freshman players in the state of Indiana. He received significant minutes last season in his first high school year for Evansville Bosse, averaging 15.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. His team went 19-7 this past season before falling to Washington in the Regional Semifinal. Lyle has a scholarship offer from IU and Illinois.
IDS: How far along in the recruiting process are you?
JAQUAN LYLE: I'll be making my decision probably late sophomore or early junior year. Somewhere around that time. My family and I talk about it all the time and they said basically that it's my decision. I'll probably wait a little longer to see what other scholarships I get and what school I can get a better education at.
IDS: What schools have shown the most interest in you?
JQ: Ohio State, Purdue, Xavier, Illinois and Indiana. There are more, but those are the ones I know for sure.
IDS: Have you been in contact with Tom Crean or any of the IU coaching staff recently?
JQ: The last time I talked to him was when we lost in Regionals at Washington. I think he'll be down for open gym tonight, though.
IDS: What in particular do you like about IU and Coach Crean?
JQ: I haven't really been there to walk around much of the campus, but the gym is great. The atmosphere of every game, sold out every night. They were good this year, but not as good as 2012, 2013 or 2014 is going to be. Imagine how loud that place will be once those classes get there.
Coach Crean's cool. My family loves him. They think he's a nice guy. He's not just about basketball; he's about education, too. That's why I like him and my family likes him.
IDS: What do you think about all of these top in-state players committing to IU? Does that have an impact on your decision?
JQ: It's a big deal. I saw (Indiana Elite) play at the Indyball.com Shootout and it was crazy. Especially during warm ups, they were doing awesome dunks.
I would love to play with Jeremy Hollowell, Yogi Ferrell and Hanner because I won't have to be the main scorer on the team. I can give the ball up to the leaders on the team and I know they'll get a bucket.
IDS: What are you looking forward to in terms of AAU this offseason?
JQ: I'm looking forward to winning a lot of tournaments and making my teammates better. That's basically it.
