April 15, 2010
Darian Norris signs NLI 
(San Diego, CA) - University of San Diego men's basketball head coach Bill Grier and his staff announced today the signing of Darian Norris (Las Vegas, NV) to a national letter of intent and scholarship agreement for the 2010-11 campaign. Norris, a 6-0, 180 lb. point guard, who will have two years of eligibility with the Toreros, played for Coach Norm Parrish at Salt Lake Community College this past season.
"We are very excited to have Darian in our program," said Bill Grier, USD head basketball coach. "He will give us experience and leadership at the point guard position. He had a terrific season playing for Coach Norm Parrish at Salt Lake Community College, finishing in the top 10 in nearly every statistical category in Region 18. His greatest attributes are the intangibles - his character, his toughness and is understanding of the position."
This past season Norris earned First Team Region 18 honors while ranking in most top-10 statistical areas among all Region 18 players. He appeared in all 32 games for the 24-8 Bruins while averaging 11.7 points, 5.2 assists 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 steals per contest. He converted 42.0% from the floor (103-245), 36.4% from three-point range (32-88) and 80.4% from the free throw line (135-168). He led SLCC in scoring in eight contests including a season-best 23 points in an 87-81 win over Snow College on February 27th.
Norris started his collegiate career in 2008-09 at Bradley University. He appeared in 35 contests with 5 starts his freshman year for the 21-15 Braves where he averaged 12.2 minutes, 3.5 points per game and totaled 27 steals. Coming out of high school he was regarded as one of the top guards on the West Coast after averaging 18.7 points, 7.1 assists and 5.0 rebounds at Mojave High School in 2007-08. Led by Norris, Mojave reeled off a 22-game winning streak that ended in the semifinals of the Sunset Region Tournament. Among his postseason honors, Norris was voted first-team all-state and collected Northwest Division and Sunset Region Most Valuable Player honors. As a junior in 2006-07, Norris led the Rattlers to the Nevada Class 4A state championship game by averaging 18.8 points per game and 7.6 assists.
Norris joins a quartet of players that signed NLI's during the early signing period back in November - Simi Fajemisin, a 6-9, 260 lb. center from Lynnwood High School in Lynnwood, Washington; Trevor Fuller, a 6-8, 215 lb. forward from Episcopal School of Dallas in Dallas, Texas; Dennis Kramer, a 6-10, 220 lb. forward from La Costa Canyon High School in nearby Encinitas, California; and Ben Vozzola, a 6-4, 175 lb. guard from Centennial High School in Las Vegas, Nevada.
