Indiana Hoosiers: What Peter Jurkin's Commitment Means To the Team

During halftime of the final game at the Adidas Nations Tournament last night, top ranked center Peter Jurkin, a member of the class of 2012, announced his decision to play for Tom Crean at Indiana.

Jurkin, who is a native of Sudan but currently lives in Bloomington, is a seven foot, 200 pound behemoth who routinely blocks shots and sends down thunderous dunks.

While his offensive game is still raw, it is improving, and he still has two years before he even steps on campus to have it ready for the Big Ten's level of basketball.

With Jurkin committed (he is ranked 37th in ESPN's Super 60 ranking of the 2012 class), many insiders believe that this will help Indiana not just on the court but also in their recruitment of other top prospects.

The 2012 class in Indiana is one of the best ever, and there are at least eight to 10 major prospects that could become stars at the next level.

Many Hoosier fans hope that with Jurkin committed, other home-grown players will follow suit.

Players like Haner Perea, D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera, Kevin (Yogi) Ferrell, and Gary Harris all value the Hoosiers highly, and there is no question that many of them would love to play alongside Peter Jurkin in the future.

Perea, Smith-Rivera, and Ferrell play alongside Jurkin on the same AAU team, Indiana Elite. And it is no surprise that Indiana head coach Tom Crean has stayed local, and it seems like his recruiting pitch is working.

It is only a matter of time before other potential Hoosiers—nationally ranked center Cody Zeller and Missouri guard B.J. Young—announce their decision of where they attend college.

But there is no doubt that the commitment of Jurkin could help speed up the process. In the meanwhile, the Hoosier faithful finally have something to smile about.