Wyoming Lands First Recruit of 2009

Wyoming landed its first basketball recruit of the 2009 class when Michael Dietz of Casper, Wyo. gave head coach Heath Schroyer a verbal this weekend.

Dietz, a 6-foot-7, 185-pound small forward from Natrona County High School chose Wyoming over strong interest from Stanford, Colorado, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Gonzaga, Wichita State and Denver.

“Dietz will fit in very well in coach Heath Schroyer’s system at Wyoming and help the Cowboys compete for conference titles and NCAA tournament bids,” David Matthews stated in a press release. Matthews is the president of Colorado Chaos Basketball Club, an AAU team Dietz plays for in the off-season.

Only a sophomore in 2006-2007, Dietz averaged 15 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots per game while leading his team to the state title. He was named first team All-Conference and was the only underclassmen to be named to the All-State team. As a junior this season he is one of the front-runners to be named Mr. Basketball.

His commitment marks the earliest a junior from the region has committed to a Division I school in the past ten years. He will join fellow Colorado Chaos and Casper standout Eric Platt in a Cowboy uniform. Platt led all freshmen in the Mountain West Conference in scoring last season.

“He is a very athletic and skilled small forward who can play a variety of positions,” Matthews said. “He is a great shooter, ball handler and passer and finishes very well inside. Dietz also has a ton of upside and should be able to make an impact early in his career in the Mountain West Conference.”

Log on for more information about Dietz later in the week.