by Alex Schwartz

It did not take long for new Seton Hall Head Coach Kevin Willard to land his first commitment as the man in charge of the Pirates. Named the SHU coach on Monday and formally introduced today, Willard has already picked up a verbal pledge from a member of the class of 2010.

Anali Okoloji of Impact Academy (FL) took his name off the board Wednesday afternoon, pledging to Seton Hall. The news was first reported by Ray Anczelowicz of Gotham Hoops Scouting. Okoloji, a 6'8 forward originally from New York, is doing a post grad year after graduating from Benjamin Banneker (NY).

After seeing his stock go up and down over the past couple of years, partially due to academics, Okoloji is happy to finally have the decision behind him. "It feels good, I feel relieved. The only things I can do right now are work hard, get better, just lock myself in the gym and get better, just prepare myself for the season," said Okoloji. "Everything happens for a reason, things work out for the better. I'm qualified now and I can just work on getting better."

Rice (offer), Providence (offer), Tulsa, and Ole Miss were Okoloji's other finalists. How did he decide on Seton Hall?

"Coach Shaheen [Holloway of SHU] called me in to come and check out the school this [Wednesday] morning. . . . It was up to me and I asked Coach Willard, 'do you guys want me to commit today?' and he said 'yeah'. I thought about it and [I committed]. I'm just gonna come in and work hard, the Big East is gonna be tough." Okoloji went on to add, "I just felt at home. . . . I think it's gonna be a great fit."

The new SHU staff had been recruiting Okoloji while they were at Iona, but the old SHU was not pursuing him. The former New York high school standout said the he averaged around 25 points per game while at Impact Academy this season.

Asked to describe his game, Okoloji replied, "A wing forward, a wing. I can rebound, [play] inside-out, score."

How do the SHU coaches plan to use him at the next level? "Maybe like a 3, just like a versatile forward. If they need me to go inside-out, if I have a guard on me, that type of game."

It is that versatility that Okoliji feels is the strength of his game. "My versatility, just being able to score on the wing, in the post. I can shoot it too."

No player is without flaws, something that the newest Pirate realizes. "The weakest point of my game is probably going left, driving left, but it's all things, nobody is perfect."

Okolloji is the fourth member of Seton Hall's class of 2010, though it remains to be seen whether or not Fuquan Edwin, Jamir Hanner, and Eugene McCrory will still go there. Only Edwin, ranked #124 in Northstar Basketball's Class of 2010 Terrific 125 and #4 in Northstar Basketball's New Jersey Class of 2010 Fab 50 has signed his LOI. Dashaun Wiggins is the lone member of the Pirates' class of 2011 at this point.

Okoloji does not plan on being a part of the recruiting process, choosing to leave that to the coaches instead. "Well I'm gonna let the coaching staff worry about that. They are pretty good, they are getting paid millions of dollars to do that, or whatever they're getting paid. They don't need that [help from me]," commented Okoloji. "I have faith in the coaching staff. Coach Shaheen and Coach Willard are great coaches, and that's part of it, bringing in great players."

If Kevin Willard's tenure at Seton Hall is as productive as his first few days recruiting, then the future of the Pirates will be be bright.

Note- photo is from http://www.umhoops.com/