LSU gets signatures from Mitchell and Voogd

BATON ROUGE -- LSU men's basketball coach John Brady announced on Wednesday that he has received the signed national letter-of-intent papers from two high school seniors headlined by Denham Springs' nationally known recruit Tasmin Mitchell.

Mitchell and Florence (Oregon) point guard Ben Voogd are the first two to return letters to the LSU basketball office since the fall national signing period began on Wednesday. The signing period runs for one week.

Mitchell, who was near the top of everyone's recruiting lists, signed earlier Wednesday at his high school in Denham Springs. The 6-7 Parade All-American forward averaged 24 points and 12 rebounds for Denham Springs High School in earning all-state honors in the state's top class, 5A. He also is presently listed as the nation's third best small forward in the country and the 11th-ranked senior prospect overall in the country by Rivalshoops.com.

"We are extremely excited about the signing of Tasmin," said Coach Brady. "We have literally watched Tasmin grow up right in front of our eyes. He has not only developed into one of the finest high school players in the country, but also has become an ever finer young man. He will have an immediate impact on our program in every way possible from competing, playing, winning, fan support and will represent LSU basketball in a very positive, first-class way. We have taken another big step forward with our program with the addition of Tasmin to our team."

Voogd is preparing for his senior season at Siuslaw High in Florence and averaged 28 points, 8.5 assists and 7.5 rebounds as a junior. The point guard stands 6-1 and weights 180 pounds. The LSU coaches saw him this past summer when he played for the Oregon Rebels during AAU Tournaments in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

"In the signing of Ben Voogd, we have added a true point guard to our team," said Brady. "Ben is a fine player with tremendous toughness and character and fills a distinct need that we have for next season. Ben can score, but is extremely unselfish in his approach to playing the game. With the recruiting class we have coming in and the players we have returning, he is a perfect compliment to what is taking place with our program."