Aces sign basketball recruit

New University of Evansville basketball coach Marty Simmons and his staff have signed a second player to a national letter of intent with the addition of 65" forward Nate Garner, a native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa who attends Tyler (Texas) Junior College. The 225-pound Garner will have two years of eligibility with the Purple Aces. He becomes Evansvilles second signee of the spring signing period, joining guard Kavon Lacey of Alton, Ill. "Nate brings us some physical presence inside," Simmons says. "He may be undersized as a forward, but hes a warrior. Hes very physical, he loves to play, hes an excellent passer, and he knows the game. We really like both players that weve signed so far. Nate and Kavon have a lot of similarities. Theyre tough, they play hard, and theyre smart." Garner averaged 14 points and eight rebounds, and shot 62 percent, for a Tyler squad that head coach Mike Marquis led to the East Texas Junior College Playoffs. Two other Tyler players signed with Division I programs. Garner produced eight double-double games this season for the Apaches, scoring a season-high 30 points twice and pulling down 17 rebounds in one game. Garner was chosen second team all-region, all-conference, and as the teams most valuable player. As a freshman at Tyler, he averaged 10.6 rebounds. Garner is a graduate of George Washington High School in Cedar Rapids, where he was first team all-state as a senior. He qualified academically to attend a four-year college out of high school, but elected to follow AAU teammate Tyrone Cole-Scott to Tyler. Garner expects to major in business administration or marketing at the University of Evansville. He becomes the fourth newcomer at Evansville for the 2007-08 season, along with Lacey and fall signees Jonathan VanHoose of Ashland, Ky. and Clint Hopf (pronounced HOPE-f) of Birdseye, Ind. They will join 10 players who return from the 2006-07 team. Courtesy: UE Sports Information