full article is here. excerpt published up front.
All the way from Meridian, Idaho, Drew Fielder is a 6-foot-9 inside-outside presence with a perimeter game and guard's skill set. You can't, however, pigeonhole Fielder as today's brand of forward who plays with a polished skill set and without ferocity.
Fielder had multiple games of 25+ points and 10+ rebounds at Southern California Academy in Los Angeles this past season. He's an active crasher who brings vertically explosive athleticism, with a knack for stickback dunks.
Fielder committed to Providence in the fall but has flipped his commitment to Georgetown with the arrival of Ed Cooley.
It's been clear from the very beginning that Fielder has a unique relationship with Cooley, feeling a certain connection with him.
"Coach Cooley and I are just super honest with each other and super real," Fielder said. Fielder and his SCA teammates, 6-foot-5 point guard Garwey Dual and 6-foot-7 stretch four Donovan Santoro all committed to Providence this season, as SCA was one of the nation's best on the prestigious Grind Session circuit
While Dual, a versatile defender with a high end downhill game, is currently weighing options, Santoro has remained committed to Providence under new head coach Kim English. Despite uber passionate Providence fans being incensed about Cooley's decision to leave for a program in the same conference, Fielder flipping his commitment and heading to Georgetown seemed inevitable.
After playing a supplemental role as a junior, Fielder took leadership matters into his own hands his senior year at SCA. He had an immense game in propelling SCA to a victory over national power PHH Prep (AZ), scoring 25 points and displaying his wide ranging offensive game throughout. Fiedler also had a monstrous putback in the fourth quarter and getting to the free throw line and delivering early and often.
While Cooley is known for keeping freshman on a short leash throughout his career, Fielder enters Georgetown with the type of rate experience and poise from criss crossing the country with a national schedule.
“(Fielder) is going to go to a college and lead from Day 1,” SCA national team head coach Julius Von Hanzlik said back in the fall.. “Last year, we had 7-8 guys go to the high major level, so (Drew) didn’t play a ton of minutes. Still, he was holding guys who were playing over him accountable. The biggest thing with Drew is his leadership and maturity on the floor.. Him being able to hold himself accountable and looking to hold his teammates accountable and never in a disrespectful way. That’s just who he is.”
