The High Point University men’s basketball team has signed two recruits to National Letters of Intent, head coach Scott Cherry announced on Tuesday. Miles Bowman Jr., of Winston-Salem, N.C., will join HPU from Louisburg College and Austin White will join the Panthers out of St. Peter’s Prep in Jersey City, N.J.
Through seven games at Louisburg this season, Bowman is averaging 21.3 points on 69.4 percent shooting along with 10.7 rebounds per game. The 6-6, 215-pound forward scored 28 points on 11-for-15 shooting in a win over Southside Virginia on Nov. 1 and scored a season-high 30 points in a win over Spartanburg Methodist on Nov. 16. Bowman played the 2012-13 season at Delaware State, where he averaged 4.2 points and 3.3 rebounds in 32 games. Bowman posted a double-double with season highs of 15 points and 13 rebounds against Eastern Kentucky on Nov. 28, 2012. He will be a junior when he joins HPU next season.
“Miles brings Division I experience at the forward position,” said Cherry. “We’ve got a good group of guys returning next year but, when you graduate a guy like Allan Chaney, it’s great to bring in another one with experience. He can score in a variety of ways – from three, off the bounce or around the basket. He’s a good character guy playing in a great program this season.”
Bowman is a graduate of Parkland High School in Winston-Salem, N.C., where he was named Most Outstanding Player as a senior. He set the Parkland record with 56 points and 21 rebounds in an overtime win over Southwest Guilford his senior year. He helped lead his team to conference championships his sophomore and junior years.
White played in 30 games for St. Peter’s Prep as a junior last season and averaged 15.9 points as the team went 23-7 and advanced to the NJSIAA Tournament final. A 6-0, 165-pound guard, White scored over 20 points in seven games last season, including a season-high 28 points with five three-pointers in the team’s win over Paramus Catholic in the NJSIAA Quarterfinals. He scored 27 points in two other games. White was named first-team All-County and second-team All-State.
“Austin is a scoring guard who can play multiple positions,” said Cherry. “We’re graduating a point guard and a wing this year, and Austin has the flexibility and versatility to play both. He’s quick, athletic, can shoot the ball and defend. Austin is a perfect character guy coming from a great high school program and a good family.”
As a sophomore, White averaged 13.2 points in 25 games, scoring at least 20 points four times for St. Peter’s Prep. He was named second-team All-County and third-team All-State. White was named MVP in showcases he participated in, including the 2013 Freedom Fighters Hoop Challenge and the 2012 and 2013 2013 Prime Time Shootouts.
Bowman and White along with transfer Brian Richardson will help make up for the losses of Chaney as well as seniors Derrell Edwards and Dejuan McGaughy. Richardson will be eligible to play for HPU in 2014-15 after joining HPU from the University of South Carolina, where he averaged 5.7 points and 1.6 rebounds in 86 games. During the 2012-13 season, Richardson averaged 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists while shooting 39.9 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from beyond the arc.