TOLEDO, OH -- Head coach Tod Kowalczyk announced the addition of three student-athletes to the men’s basketball program on Wednesday with the signing of 6-foot-3, 175-pound guard Lucas Antunez (Madrid, Spain), 6-foot-0, 165-pound guard Daniel Dzierzawski (Hamilton, ONT) and 5-foot-10, 170-pound guard Justin Roberts (Lawrence, KS) to National Letter of Intents to attend the University of Toledo beginning in the 2016-17 academic year.
The trio of guards . . .
The trio of guards . . .
. . . join 6-foot-5, 215-pound forward James Gordon IV (Shelbyville, KY), who played this past season at Chicago Simeon High School and signed an NLI with the Rockets last fall. UT also will gain the services of Marquette transfer, 6-foot-7, 240-pound senior forward Steve Taylor, Jr. and 6-foot-11, 235-pound redshirt freshman center Luke Knapke, who redshirted during the 2015-16 campaign.
“I’m really excited about our three signees, and they have addressed our needs in the backcourt,” Kowalczyk said. “Lucas, Daniel and Justin each bring something different to the table, and I’m looking forward to coaching them next season. In addition to next year’s newcomers, we’ll also have Steve and Luke on the court for the first time and that will provide us several different lineup options.”
Antunez has played the last two seasons at North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, ID and helped the Cardinals to a 31-2 win-loss mark in 2015-16 en route to a Scenic West Athletic Conference title and a No. 3 ranking in the final National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) poll. He earned second-team all-region accolades this past season after averaging 8.4 points, 3.8 assists, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals with a 45.1 FG%, 31.3 three-point FG% and 87.8 FT% in 23.5 minutes per game.
INCREDIBLE VISION
“Lucas is a tall, long point guard who has incredible vision,” Kowalczyk said. “He’s won 56 games over the last two years at North Idaho, and we feel he can come in and help make us a better team with his ability to run an offense and put teammates in good scoring positions.”
Dzierzawski also played for one of the nation’s top junior-college squads, as he helped Moberly (MO) Area Community College to the NJCAA national tourney. He scored a team-best 15.2 ppg, to go along with 3.1 rpg, 2.3 apg and 1.2 spg. He also tallied a 46.1 FG%, 27.3 three-point FG% and 82.6 FT%.
“Daniel is a combination guard who can really score and plays downhill,” Kowalczyk said. “He can play both guard positions, but I think he may be a little more comfortable playing off the ball. We certainly feel he can come in and score for us.”
(DZIERZAWSKI VIDEO HERE)
A first-team Kansas Basketball Coaches Association (KBCA) all-state selection this past year, Roberts was tabbed the Lawrence Journal-World All-Area Player of Year after averaging 19.9 points, 3.1 assists and 3.0 steals per game as a senior for Lawrence High School. Roberts finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,549 points and led the Lions to Class 6A Final Four appearances as a junior and senior.
“Justin is a coach’s son who understands how to run a team,” Kowalczyk said. “He’s unbelievably tough and he has an opportunity to be an impact player for us.”
The Rockets are returning six letterwinners from last year’s 17-15 squad, including third-team All-MAC guard Jonathan Williams (17.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg). UT also will have back senior forward Zach Garber (6.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg), senior guard Jordan Lauf (4.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg), sophomore forward Taylor Adway (1.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg), sophomore forward Nate Navigato (8.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg) and sophomore guard Jaelan Sanford (8.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg).
Antunez has played the last two seasons at North Idaho College in Coeur d’Alene, ID and helped the Cardinals to a 31-2 win-loss mark in 2015-16 en route to a Scenic West Athletic Conference title and a No. 3 ranking in the final National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) poll. He earned second-team all-region accolades this past season after averaging 8.4 points, 3.8 assists, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals with a 45.1 FG%, 31.3 three-point FG% and 87.8 FT% in 23.5 minutes per game.
INCREDIBLE VISION
“Lucas is a tall, long point guard who has incredible vision,” Kowalczyk said. “He’s won 56 games over the last two years at North Idaho, and we feel he can come in and help make us a better team with his ability to run an offense and put teammates in good scoring positions.”
Dzierzawski also played for one of the nation’s top junior-college squads, as he helped Moberly (MO) Area Community College to the NJCAA national tourney. He scored a team-best 15.2 ppg, to go along with 3.1 rpg, 2.3 apg and 1.2 spg. He also tallied a 46.1 FG%, 27.3 three-point FG% and 82.6 FT%.
“Daniel is a combination guard who can really score and plays downhill,” Kowalczyk said. “He can play both guard positions, but I think he may be a little more comfortable playing off the ball. We certainly feel he can come in and score for us.”
(DZIERZAWSKI VIDEO HERE)
A first-team Kansas Basketball Coaches Association (KBCA) all-state selection this past year, Roberts was tabbed the Lawrence Journal-World All-Area Player of Year after averaging 19.9 points, 3.1 assists and 3.0 steals per game as a senior for Lawrence High School. Roberts finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,549 points and led the Lions to Class 6A Final Four appearances as a junior and senior.
“Justin is a coach’s son who understands how to run a team,” Kowalczyk said. “He’s unbelievably tough and he has an opportunity to be an impact player for us.”
The Rockets are returning six letterwinners from last year’s 17-15 squad, including third-team All-MAC guard Jonathan Williams (17.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg). UT also will have back senior forward Zach Garber (6.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg), senior guard Jordan Lauf (4.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg), sophomore forward Taylor Adway (1.6 ppg, 1.6 rpg), sophomore forward Nate Navigato (8.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg) and sophomore guard Jaelan Sanford (8.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg).
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