Portland Lands Two New Recruits

March. 2, 2013; Spokane, WA, USA; Portland Pilots head coach Eric Reveno looks on during a game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the first half at the McCarthey Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-USA TODAY Sports

Eric Reveno is establishing a different culture at Portland, and he prominently doing this through recruiting. In the last few weeks, Reveno and the University of Portland basketball program has landed two huge guard recruits, Bobby Sharp and Aitor Zubizarreta, who committed to the Pilots in recent days.

Sharp is a 5’10” point guard from Santa Rosa Junior College. He committed on March 30th, according to Rivals. “I felt very comfortable with the coaches and staff on my visit to Portland,” Sharp said of his commitment. Sharp will likely contribute right away for the Pilots at the point guard position. On offense, Sharp is a deadly accurate shooter. Derrick Rodgers, the point guard for the Pilots last season, was not much of shooter, or a scorer for that matter. Sharp will bring a different component to the Pilots offense that they haven’t had in a while. David Ahern and Sharp will likely eat up most of the playing time at the point guard position for Portland in the next two seasons.

This morning, Aitor Zubizarreta, a 6’2” combo guard from Spain, decided to take his talents to the Pacific Northwest and the University of Portland. Alex Kline broke the news this morning.

Like Sharp, Zubizarreta is a fantastic shooter. He shoots with a silky smooth release that is normally unveiled from beyond the three point line. He also shows the ability to pass at a high level as well. In most of his highlight tapes, Zubizarreta looks straight up dominant. The level of competition of which he’s playing with has to be taken in account. Regardless, it looks like Coach Reveno has landed a great combo-guard for years to come.

These two players will fill in extremely nicely in the Pilots backcourt in the coming years. Sharp will have 3 years to play 2, and Zubizarreta will have 5 years to play 4. With Alec Wintering coming to Portland as well, there could be a potential log jam at the point guard spot next year. However, an excess of talent is never a bad thing. Except at least one of these incoming players to redshirt to ultimately make room for more overall playing time in the next few years.

Things are certainly looking up for the University of Portland basketball program.