Jack Eggleston of St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, FL, has committed to Penn. Eggleston had narrowed his list to Penn, Lafayette, and American and had taken official visits to all three schools in addition to a visit to Lehigh. He also attended prospect camps at Princeton and Columbia over the summer. Last year the 6-8 forward averaged 8.0 points and 8.7 rebounds per game for a team that went 20-8 and advanced to the Florida 5A regional semifinals.

Eggleston spoke to the Miami Herald about his decision, saying, “‘I really liked all the schools. They all are good academic schools and all had great basketball opportunities for me. But I decided that there was no way I could pass up the incredible combination of academics and basketball that Penn provided.”

Slant: Eggleston’s initial list had some high-major schools on it, but in the end he found the Ivy and Patriot leagues to be his level. He has good size and strength and a high basketball IQ, but there are questions about his athleticism. A natural power forward, his prospects for future playing time may hinge on the decision of highly regarded Exeter forward Josh Owens, who is set to decide between Penn, Stanford, and Vanderbilt in the coming weeks. Eggleston does have Ivy League basketball in his blood, as his father, Tom, is a 1974 graduate of Dartmouth, where he was a three-time letterwinner.

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