Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Rebels Basketball:

Tristan Clark, 2017 recruiting target for UNLV, transfers to Findlay Prep

UNLV Basketball Team Players Scrimmage

L.E. Baskow

The UNLV basketball team head coach Dave Rice with others shouts direction to players during a scrimmage on Saturday, November 1, 2014.

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A week ago, class of 2017 player Tristan Clark knew very little about the newest school to offer him a scholarship. Now he’s going to get an up-close view as Findlay Prep on Thursday announced that Clark, a UNLV target, was the program’s newest player.

Clark, a native of Converse, Texas, came to Las Vegas last week for the final live period of the summer with his travel team, Pro Skills Elite. On July 21, UNLV assistant coach Todd Simon reached out with a scholarship offer, and the next night Clark was playing at Bishop Gorman High, where coaches from Findlay Prep and UNLV dotted opposite baselines among the dozens of other coaches in attendance.

A 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward, Clark has six offers and budding interest from in-state school Baylor. The offer from UNLV was the first time Clark had heard from Simon, and so far his knowledge of the program is limited to what he’s heard from coaches.

“I know they’re an uptempo team and I know that Coach (Dave) Rice, he likes me because I can fit into their system because I’m mobile,” Clark said last week.

Clark had been looking to transfer from Judson High, which is located 17 miles northeast of San Antonio. Findlay Prep seemed like a probable destination last week as the majority of the staff attended several of his games while shuttling around gyms to watch current and future players.

The Pilots added a player whose profile has grown over the last few months because of his performance on the travel circuit, a rise he credits to sticking with his strengths.

“I take pride in my defense and communication ability and my mid-range jumper,” Clark said.

Findlay Prep players regularly attend UNLV games, and moving down the road will give Clark plenty of opportunity to learn about the program. He could also just ask a teammate, as at least six current Pilots have an offer and a lot interest from the Rebels.

There’s class of 2016 guard Skylar Mays, who transferred to Findlay Prep days after an unofficial visit to UNLV in June, and a quintet in the class of 2017: guard Markus Howard and forwards O’Shea Brissett, Donnie Tillman, P.J. Washington and Clark.

Early on Findlay Prep players rarely considered UNLV, but ever since Rice took over, and especially when Simon joined the staff two years ago, it’s become the program’s top recruiting hotbed. The Rebels obviously aren’t going to get every player who steps through the Findlay Prep offices, but much of the ballyhooed influx of talent has started in UNLV’s backyard and that looks to continue in the future.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.

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